Replug: How Startups can reach SMBs and beyond?

 Social networking site use by age group, over time

Based on the needs of the demogrpahic change and how technology was evolving everything – we at MarkiTech, knew that  digital marketing and social media was the wedge to open doors with new B2C customers – I always get challenged whether digital marketing and social media would have the same impact on the B2B or SMB segment. Then I came across this from Dan Levy, Director of small business, Facebook “If you have a mobile phone and you have a Facebook Page, you have a mobile marketing strategy.” I thought to myself – the market is changing rapidly and for sure digital marketing and social media will be a huge differentiator in the B2B / SMB segment.

               According to Dan Levy,Facebook has 30 million small businesses with active Pages on the social network. As compared to last Novembers’ 25 million, this is a major jump and demonstrates the success which Small businesses are experiencing with social media and digital marketing, coupled with inbound sales and marketing tactics.

*Note that in November Facebook first started using its current definition to counting SMBs using its current definition (previously, it didn’t count e-commerce businesses that don’t have a brick-and-mortar store, so we can’t make an apples-to-apples comparison).

Why attract B2B customers via Social Media and using Digital Marketing strategies?

• REACH – According to a research conducted by LinkedIn, 94 per cent of small businesses who use social media or digital marketing use it for marketing, and three out of five small- to medium-sized businesses say they’ve gained new customers by using social media.

• ACTIVE B2B CLIENTS – With over 1.39-billion active users on Facebook alone, your SMB or B2B segment is bound to have prospective customers on one of the many social spaces.

• TIME SPENT – An average American spends about 37 minutes on social media that makes reaching out to these people very easy.

A example in mind is Morgan Miller Plumbing, a small business that has flourished through facebook. Pluming might appear like a business less likely to get attention on social media. However, the business was able to get attention and get new clients by sharing pictures and info about its employees — the very plumbers that customers are typically reticent to invite into their homes, according to Levy said.

• SHOPPING BEHAVIOR – In 2014, consumer shopping behavior evolved rapidly. Shopping online and through mobile devices is the new norm, and the experience has become increasingly more social with platforms such as Facebook and Twitter. These platforms, in turn, have launched new commerce capabilities like the “buy” button.

Download our webinar recording and “Learn how to generate leads and potential sales from your company website and make 2016 even better”!