A new study from BtoB magazine indicates that social media marketing is on the rise among business-to-business brands. Perhaps unsurprisingly, the professional-friendly social site LinkedIn is cited as the top platform for many respondents.
The survey, titled Emerging Trends in B-to-B Social Marketing: Insights from the Field, reveals that social marketing is poised for growth in the B2B marketing community. Ninety-three percent of B2B marketers are engaged in some form of social outreach, and the majority of respondents claim that social media marketing supports branding efforts.
When asked which channels were best, LinkedIn came out as the B2B favorite, cited by more than one-quarter of respondents (26 percent). Marketers say LinkedIn is particularly strong for lead generation.
These results seem to confirm the steady rise of LinkedIn as a business-friendly social channel. As Brafton has reported, the site has seen a surge in B2B sign-ins, and it recently hit the 100-million-member mark. Plus, the launch of new social search features and its custom news aggregator (LinkedIn Today) make it a viable content-sharing platform.
Using LinkedIn to distribute content may help B2B marketers find audiences for another top social marketing strategy – blogging. BtoB magazine reports that 19 percent of respondents cited blogs as the most beneficial social outreach.
