Marketing

Tips for B2B Facebook Marketers

When it comes to B2B marketing strategies, Facebook probably isn’t at the top of the list. You may think businesses aren’t out on Facebook seeking things to buy…and you’re right, but neither is any other type of consumer! Yet, with over 2.2 billion Facebook users and a robust advertising platform, Facebook is one of the leading conversion tools out there. While it might be easier to target consumers, it’s highly possible to nurture qualified leads on Facebook as a B2B marketer. Here are 3 tips for your B2B to take advantage of Facebook:

Get Interactive

Since your target audience isn’t on Facebook seeking to buy, it’s important to catch their attention in a way that stops them from mindlessly scrolling. Aim for content that simultaneously introduces your brand and encourages engagement, even if your audience is in an earlier awareness stage. If you’re putting money behind a boosted post or paying for an ad campaign, incorporate interactive elements that cut through the noise and showcase your value proposition. Test running video ads, lead magnets (such as an eBook or white paper), surveys, or your top blog posts. How can you build credibility and prompt Facebook users to want to learn more? What information can you provide that’s captivating enough for them to engage? With surveys specifically, not only can they be incredibly engaging but also incredibly insightful, helping you better understand your market. Test a variety of interactive content to see what resonates most with your audience and engages qualified leads.

Leverage Current Audience Insights

The best kind of audience you can find on Facebook as a B2B marketer is the one that’s as closely aligned as possible with your real-life market. Luckily for you, the Facebook ad platform is powerfully built, allowing marketers to upload lists of current customers’ phone numbers or emails. From there, Facebook will search its database and match the information provided to users and create a custom audience. This alone provides an excellent opportunity for B2B marketers to target existing customers and cross-sell. However, you can take it a step further by creating a lookalike audience, which targets other Facebook users that mimic your uploaded customer database. This ensures you’re reaching people who are similar to your most valuable audience, leading to higher conversion rates.

Play The Long Game

While robust, the Facebook advertising platform isn’t built for B2B, meaning creative workarounds like those above and playing the long game are essential to your strategy. Your audience, more than any other type of Facebook user, isn’t on Facebook looking to buy. This means you aren’t going to close a sale directly from a Facebook ad. Rather, focus on nurturing these leads through a B2B Facebook funnel, moving them from the awareness stage to consideration and, finally, the decision stage. In the awareness stage, your goals are centered around building brand recognition, allowing users to get to know you. In this stage, highly interactive content, such as videos, is imperative. Through retargeting users that have engaged in a certain manner, such as watching over 50% of a video, you can push them further through the funnel to the consideration stage. Once here, begin to showcase content that provides solutions, such as lead magnets and white papers. From here, you’ll continue to retarget users that are taking action on your ads and push ads with a strong call-to-action to get them on a sales call.

Facebook for B2B marketers might require a bit of innovation and creativity, but it’s a valuable tool to reach qualified leads. For more Facebook ad tips, check out last month’s blog post.