Manufacturing B2B Examples in Social Media
Case studies about b2b manufacturing or chemical companies aren't as frequent as case studies about consumer oriented companies, but they are available. For example...
People are using social media platforms to talk about ball bearings.
If there is room to become a social media leader in the ball bearing industry, there is room to become a leader in your industry - Matt Dickman from technomarketer
He found this out through basic testing when he made a presentation about using social media and one of the audience members kept frowning, thinking it wasn't relevant to him.
People are using social media platforms to talk about industry conferences.
The World of Concrete conference uses a variety of social media tools to communicate with their audience in commercial construction. And that audience uses those tools enough themselves that they started WoC's Facebook fan page, not WoC.
One excellent source of additional examples and information is Social Media B2B, a blog that explores the impact of social media on B2B companies.
Three relevant examples:
- Dupont using video to increase general brand awareness
- Indium Corporation blogging effectively on semi-conductors and more
- Steel company with mixed results, plus the follow-up direct interview
You might also want to check out Kipp's post on 10 Signs Your B2B Company Isn't Ready for Social Media and 5 Cases when Social Media Isn't Right for B2B.
If your company falls into one of these categories then it doesn't mean you can't use content marketing techniques. It just means you need to take a different approach to keeping on the minds of your prospects and customers. Custom published magazines and newsletters were around long before the internet.
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Beth-
Less than a year ago, I used to think to myself, "What businesses (small or otherwise) couldn't social media or 2.0 marketing?" It was a fun thought experiment, and I always came up with examples from the small town in which I grew up. Down the corner was a tack-and-feed which was even traditional for a tack-and-feed. That used to be the business I would point out to people as not needing a social media presence.
I've done a 180 of late. It's not true anymore. There is an angle for EVERY business out there. Not a necessity, perhaps, but an angle to be sure. Great post. Look forward to reading more.
Thanks for commenting, Ian. I agree that the importance of social media has been shifting over time. In some areas, though, it's still preparing the ground for the continual increase of folks interacting online. But if you're not there, then they can't interact with you. And if you don't lay the groundwork then you don't know for sure that they won't interact, no matter what they say in surveys. It's that idea of customers wanting a faster horse, but if you build the car...
Do you have any examples of service companies and small businesses successfully employing social media? Thanks.