There’s a delicate balance between activating the proper B2B channels and spreading your efforts so thin across multiple platforms that you don’t see results from any of these campaigns. Not to mention the genuine threat of budget blowout, content creator burnout and mounting evidence of failed use cases that can and will be used against you next time a forward-thinking marketing strategy is proposed.
We love it when our clients ask about the what, why and how of the many B2B platforms out there, particularly as they pertain to their niche businesses and marketing goals. You don’t have to be everywhere; in fact, it’s a huge green flag when B2B organisations aren’t. It signals a sound understanding of the brand, its audience and its marketing goals.
We’re here to shed some light on the channels we’re finding most effective for our clients and how to leverage these platforms best, or maybe not.
LinkedIn’s primary purpose has always been to provide a digital space for professional networking, focusing on job-seeking and career development. LinkedIn made key corporate decision-makers easily accessible, and it became apparent that the B2B gang was all here. So, it only makes sense that this corporate social media platform has continued to grow into the top-of-mind online space for businesses looking to reach other businesses.
Already active on LinkedIn? If so, you’re in good company with over 67 million other companies listed worldwide. And chances are, if you work in B2B marketing, you’re all over LinkedIn, with statistics showing that 96% of B2B marketers use LinkedIn for organic social media marketing and 80% use LinkedIn for ads.
Not active on LinkedIn as a business yet? Even if your organisation doesn’t plan to post content regularly, setting up a proper LinkedIn Company Page is still best practice. Aside from being searchable on this trusted platform and building brand credibility, your internal team can keep their professional experience up to date and be visible as connected employees. (Note that this is a one-off exception to the cardinal rule of social media; thou shalt not set up profiles that thou does not intend to use.)
LinkedIn is a B2B powerhouse, so there are numerous ways to harness this power of connectivity. The lowest-hanging fruit is employee advocacy for organic growth; empower your people to shout about their accomplishments within the organisation. (We have a complete LinkedIn B2B how-to guide here.) A middle-of-the-road LinkedIn activation might look like an organic content strategy, including case studies, long-form articles and engaging visual content. Then, once your Company Page is established and optimised, a paid campaign can be easily integrated using the HubSpot ads tool. The beauty of this integration lies in the automation accessibility and data hygiene—no missed opportunities or crossed wires between your CRM and LinkedIn ad results. If you need even more convincing, LinkedIn is also wonderfully suited for account-based marketing campaigns due to its granular targeting options.
With new short-form video platforms constantly popping up, it’s pretty impressive that YouTube has held its ground as the most widely used video marketing platform overall. More impressive still, YouTube users surpassed Netflix subscribers as of 2022, making it the top video streaming platform worldwide. Credit is partly due to the addition of YouTube Shorts, which has steadily increased in popularity since its release in 2020 to capitalise on the short-form video craze. Smart move on their part, as short-form video is more relevant than ever, especially in the marketing world. HubSpot reports that among marketing professionals, video content ranks as the most popular and effective media format for the fourth year in a row, with no signs of slowing.
YouTube also has one specific advantage over its competitors: their relationship with Google. We’ve all seen YouTube videos pop up in our Google search results, and this is due to the effectiveness of video as a content type to answer questions and provide helpful information. Beyond appeasing Google, YouTube itself is a search engine to be reckoned with; many sources speculate that it’s the world's second-largest.
To use YouTube effectively, content should be optimised for Google searchability and YouTube SEO. This all starts with a solid content strategy based on platform best practices and understanding your customers’ pain points. What problems can you solve for them? Your organisation could be well suited to enter the YouTube realm if you know your customer journey and how this type of video content can integrate to improve touchpoints. (Bonus: HubSpot also offers a YouTube integration to monitor campaign performance and compare data.)
The other piece of the YouTube pie is the paid component, pre-roll ads specifically. YouTube pre-roll ads break down into three types:
Bumper - Non-skippable 6-second ads
Skippable - Viewers have the option to skip the ad after 5 seconds; the ad must be over 12 seconds
Non-skippable - Maximum of 15 seconds, no option to skip
Google Ads power YouTube ad targeting, which boasts extensive targeting options to reach niche B2B markets, including robust retargeting functionality to bolster top-of-funnel brand awareness efforts. But even with flawless ad trafficking, a campaign can live or die based on its (video) creative and key messaging, both of which rely on an airtight understanding of your target audience.
While we couldn’t possibly cover all of the online B2B spaces in one blog, these guys earned an honourable mention in the top-players club.
Not just for DIY projects and birthday party planning, this visual planning platform is filled with highly engaged, high-intent and often affluent users in many B2B industries (think business owners in particular). That said, a successful Pinterest strategy relies in part on the industry, how relevant these are to users on the platform and how eye-catching the supporting visuals are. Some industries well-suited for the platform include architecture, real estate, creative agencies and product-based B2B businesses.
This tight-knit web of subreddit communities is becoming increasingly visible to outsiders due to Google’s recently expanded partnership with Reddit. Due to this friendly agreement, marketing professionals have been reassessing the viability of Reddit’s highly engaged online communities—but there’s some hesitation. The brave folks at Loomly kindly took one for the team and ran a test B2B SaaS Reddit campaign; you can read about how it went here.
The Reddit community has a reputation for being, well, rather ruthless. However, they can also be hugely knowledgeable resources. For that reason, SaaS and tech subreddits have been gaining popularity as a space for industry experts to weigh in, showcase expertise, and build community—all the building blocks of a successful marketing campaign, just without the “salesy” bit.
Industry-specific online community platforms are often overlooked as a “marketing tool”, but these dedicated spaces are primed for you to showcase your professional chops among other industry professionals—including key decision makers. However, the key to effectively presenting yourself (and by proxy, your organisation) in these spaces is authenticity and a genuine intent to make connections. For example, the online marketing community PEAK is very transparent about its community guidelines, requiring members to abide by a strict no-pitch policy to keep the focus on career growth and support. When used wisely, these B2B-specific networks can be hugely valuable in multiple facets of business growth.
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