The best social media networks for the supply chain

The best social media networks for the supply chain

Content marketing has become a priority for many companies in recent years. But connecting branded digital content with the right audience can be tricky. A new report from Fronetics Strategic Advisors examines the relationship between social media and content distribution. The report reveals which social media networks are the most popular for content distribution and which ones add the most value for brands. Take a look at some of the key findings of the report below and then dig into the full report.

Where you should distribute your content:

best channels for sharing content on social media

 

 

The best social media networks for the supply chain

The best social media networks for the supply chain

Content marketing has become a priority for many companies in recent years. But connecting branded digital content with the right audience can be tricky. A new report from Fronetics Strategic Advisors examines the relationship between social media and content distribution. The report reveals which social media networks are the most popular for content distribution and which ones add the most value for brands. Take a look at some of the key findings of the report below and then dig into the full report.

Where you should distribute your content:

best channels for sharing content on social media

 

 

How companies within the manufacturing, logistics, and supply chain industries can increase their B2B visibility on LinkedIn

How companies within the manufacturing, logistics, and supply chain industries can increase their B2B visibility on LinkedIn

how to increase B2B visibility on LinkedInI wrote a guest blog for freight logistics company Cerasis in October which discussed how companies within the manufacturing, supply chain, logistics, and industrial industries can increase their B2B visibility on LinkedIn.

The catalyst for writing the blog were results from a recent survey focused on the supply chain and logistics industry.  58% of respondents rated LinkedIn as “very impactful,” and 37% rated LinkedIn as “somewhat impactful.”  At the same time, respondents reported challenges associated with strategy (33%) and a lack of understanding about the application of social media (24%).

Leveraging LinkedIn

There are over 3 million LinkedIn company pages.  Being present on LinkedIn is critical, but is not enough.  To maximize your LinkedIn presence you need to take steps to increase your B2B visibility.  Here’s how:

  1. Create a compelling company page

Your company page is an extension of your company.  Make sure that the page is compelling, informative, and presents your company as a leader within the industry.

  1. Be active

In addition to keeping your company page up-to-date, you need to be active on LinkedIn on a daily basis.  LinkedIn groups are great.  Actively participating in LinkedIn groups will allow your company to: 1) gain business and market intelligence; 2) introduce you to new, interesting, and relevant topics; 3) help you increase brand awareness; and 4) position your company as an industry leader.

  1. Distribute content

If you want your content to be seen you need to get it out there; you need to distribute your content.  Distribute your content and curated content via your company page and (when relevant) within the LinkedIn groups to which you belong.

  1. Employee engagement

Your employees are your brand ambassadors.  Empower your employees to be active within LinkedIn groups as representatives of your company.  Encourage employees to share your content and industry content with their connections.  Additionally, encourage employees to share open positions with their LinkedIn connections, and to identify great talent within their network.

  1. Prospect for leads

LinkedIn is an effective prospecting tool.  Use LinkedIn to prospect for leads and to build your sales pipeline.

  1. Optimize your profile

Every employee is a reflection of the company.  Encourage employees to optimize their personal LinkedIn profiles.

  1. Don’t be annoying

You will fail if you take a “me, me, me attitude.”  Constantly self-promoting is bad for business.

If your company is not using LinkedIn you are missing out on opportunities and revenue.

How companies within the manufacturing, logistics, and supply chain industries can increase their B2B visibility on LinkedIn

How companies within the manufacturing, logistics, and supply chain industries can increase their B2B visibility on LinkedIn

how to increase B2B visibility on LinkedInI wrote a guest blog for freight logistics company Cerasis in October which discussed how companies within the manufacturing, supply chain, logistics, and industrial industries can increase their B2B visibility on LinkedIn.

The catalyst for writing the blog were results from a recent survey focused on the supply chain and logistics industry.  58% of respondents rated LinkedIn as “very impactful,” and 37% rated LinkedIn as “somewhat impactful.”  At the same time, respondents reported challenges associated with strategy (33%) and a lack of understanding about the application of social media (24%).

Leveraging LinkedIn

There are over 3 million LinkedIn company pages.  Being present on LinkedIn is critical, but is not enough.  To maximize your LinkedIn presence you need to take steps to increase your B2B visibility.  Here’s how:

  1. Create a compelling company page

Your company page is an extension of your company.  Make sure that the page is compelling, informative, and presents your company as a leader within the industry.

  1. Be active

In addition to keeping your company page up-to-date, you need to be active on LinkedIn on a daily basis.  LinkedIn groups are great.  Actively participating in LinkedIn groups will allow your company to: 1) gain business and market intelligence; 2) introduce you to new, interesting, and relevant topics; 3) help you increase brand awareness; and 4) position your company as an industry leader.

  1. Distribute content

If you want your content to be seen you need to get it out there; you need to distribute your content.  Distribute your content and curated content via your company page and (when relevant) within the LinkedIn groups to which you belong.

  1. Employee engagement

Your employees are your brand ambassadors.  Empower your employees to be active within LinkedIn groups as representatives of your company.  Encourage employees to share your content and industry content with their connections.  Additionally, encourage employees to share open positions with their LinkedIn connections, and to identify great talent within their network.

  1. Prospect for leads

LinkedIn is an effective prospecting tool.  Use LinkedIn to prospect for leads and to build your sales pipeline.

  1. Optimize your profile

Every employee is a reflection of the company.  Encourage employees to optimize their personal LinkedIn profiles.

  1. Don’t be annoying

You will fail if you take a “me, me, me attitude.”  Constantly self-promoting is bad for business.

If your company is not using LinkedIn you are missing out on opportunities and revenue.

Content is king, but distribution is queen and she wears the pants

Content is king, but distribution is queen and she wears the pants

Content is king.  By creating and distributing valuable and relevant content in a strategic and consistent manner you will be able to create demand for your products and services and will be able to drive profitable customer action.  That being said, while content is king, content doesn’t go far (actually it goes nowhere) without distribution.  Wise words by BuzzFeed’s Jonathan Perelman: “Content is king, but distribution is queen and she wears the pants.”

Distribution wears the pants

For content to be successful for your business you need to do more than create content – you need to distribute content.  Moreover, the content needs to be delivered consistently over time, at the right time, and in the right place.

For your company this means taking the time to identify the distribution channels that are the right fit for your company, your content, and your goals.  It also means taking the time to learn how to distribute content via these channels effectively.

For example:

  • LinkedIn and Twitter are good candidates for letting people know about the white paper your company just released, whereas Pinterest is probably not a good white paper distribution channel.
  • Levering your 140 characters for Twitter is key, but taking those same 140 characters to LinkedIn or Facebook will likely result in you falling flat.
  • Distributing your content multiple times a day via Twitter is essential given the short lifespan of a Tweet; however, distributing content multiple times a day via email will not be well received.

Content will help you move the needle.  Content will drive profitable customer action.  However, your content, no matter how valuable it is, will not be seen and therefore will not be effective if you do not have a solid content distribution strategy.  If you want results, remember who wears the pants.

This post was first published on DC Velocity.