When it comes to social media, there are plenty of advertising options for B2B marketers – they could run an ad campaign on Facebook, they could sponsor tweets on Twitter, or they could create sponsored content for LinkedIn. Any guesses as to which social platform turns in the most impressive performance?
That’s right, LinkedIn is still the clear leader, and it isn’t even close. As part of its “Proof Week” campaign in April, LinkedIn pulled together an infographic (“The Case for B2B Marketing on LinkedIn”) about advertising on that platform to show why it continues to be the preferred choice for B2B marketers. Currently, 92% of B2B marketers leverage LinkedIn over all other social platforms.
And, certainly, the numbers do look impressive.
First of all, in terms of reach, you’re not going to find a social platform that connects more of the world’s top business decision-makers. In terms of overall size, Facebook may be larger, but you’re not going to find the same concentrated mix of business decision-makers. According to internal LinkedIn data, there are now 461 million members on LinkedIn, including 61 million senior-level influencers and 40 million decision-makers.
That group of influencers and decision-makers is just about the ultimate audience if you’re trying to get the word out about a new product or service offering. The key to a successful campaign is reaching the right target audience, right? Well, LinkedIn (81%) is still the preferred channel of choice for B2B product launches. Twitter comes close at 71%, followed by YouTube (54%) and Facebook (54%).
Secondly, LinkedIn is simply unparalleled when it comes to lead generation. Again, according to internal LinkedIn numbers, 80% of B2B marketing leads sourced through social platforms come from LinkedIn. That means that all the other social platforms combined – Twitter, YouTube, Instagram, Facebook and Pinterest – account for only 20% of all B2B marketing leads. Think about that for a moment.
Currently, 59% of marketers generate leads from LinkedIn, compared to 28% from Twitter and 24% from Facebook. In terms of the different social platforms, LinkedIn is a lead generation machine. That makes sense since, of all the social platforms, LinkedIn is the one that’s most tailored to the needs of business.
Thirdly, you’re simply generating higher ROI and better conversion rates by advertising on LinkedIn. For example, you’re getting 3x higher conversion rates with LinkedIn Sponsored Content than with Google Ad Words. And it’s more efficient in terms of driving leads. B2B marketers report a 28% lower cost per lead for LinkedIn Sponsored Content than for Google AdWords. So, not only are you converting more people, you’re also doing it more cheaply than with traditional advertising tactics.
Long story short: LinkedIn’s marketing solutions consistently deliver proven results for B2B marketers. If you’re trying to reach influential B2B decision-makers, it is still the platform of choice. It’s a way to generate new leads and then convert them into paying customers.
Image: LinkedIn
Dane
Dane Cobain is a published author, freelance writer, book blogger, poet and (occasional) musician from High Wycombe, UK. Before going freelance, he worked as a social media marker, now specialising in writing about publishing, technology and marketing.