It’s great to know that there are some key leaders out there reading Canyon’s B2B Fishbowl. In fact, an ERP Analyst named Derek Singleton at Software Advice came to me with a great follow up from my most recent post on social media in B2B. He agrees that social media is an important part of any marketing strategy; however B2B companies have been apt to adapt this outlet, particularly manufacturing companies more so than B2C companies.

Derek informed me of an article he recently published on how manufacturers can use social media to win business. He found in Forrester’s report that only 30 percent of global manufacturers planned to increase social media spending in 2012. What about local manufacturers? He believes that small to

mid-sized manufacturers have the most benefit in building social media outlets compared to global manufacturers. Why? Read his article as he outlines tools to help small and mid-sized manufacturers generate brand awareness, engage/share information and gain more business:

• Think strategically when developing a social media plan
• Use Facebook and Twitter to brand your company and build an audience
• Promote your brand with YouTube or a blog (i.e. share a factory tour or customer testimonial)
  • Love this idea!!
• Expand your network to target sales prospects via LinkedIn

In response to my last post on the debate if social media works in B2B, I think this article proves that social media can be successful in B2B if you use the right tools in front of the right audience.

Big thanks to Derek for reading the Canyon B2B fishbowl and pointing out a helpful resource to our readers!

With the New Year comes the prime opportunity not only to make resolutions and goals of all kinds, but also to evaluate and assess all of those from the past year.  Somewhere on that list should be a review your website’s SEO campaign.  The internet marketing landscape can change fast, so taking the opportunity to revisit objectives, competitiveness, and performance for the coming year can pay huge dividends given that things have likely changed over the course of the year.

Performing an annual review of your SEO strategy is essential to the performance of your website(s), and there is no time like the New Year to do so. Inevitably through the course of the year, you’ve added to your site, little by little. This is a good thing, because it obviously means you were adding new content to take advantage of new and potential SEO opportunities. But as new trends and opportunities emerge, you may find adding content a little at a time may leave your site and overall strategy looking a bit pieced together.

Image credit of SEObook.com

While additions are great, every now and again we need to evaluate and assess whether everything is working together to enhance the original goal and focus. In the SEO game it’s easy to be focused on the overall metrics, but it is equally as important to take a look back to clean up things that may have slipped past us. Things such as over- or under-usage of target keywords, proper linking, etc., can use a quality assurance check now and then as more and more content goes up on your site.

Think of it like decorating a room. Maybe you wanted to have a contemporary Southwestern-themed room in your home. You paint, add furniture and the basic artwork that sets the tone you want. Then your family gets you Southwestern décor for Christmas and your birthday, or the Southwestern section at the Black Friday sale was too good to pass up.

Next thing you know, your room is filled with, albeit cute and attractive, an array of Southwestern décor. What you now have are several items that may all fit the genre, but do they not alter the original image you set out to create? Does that bright-colored poncho your sister-in-law bought you really fit the theme without stretching it?

By revisiting your site (or your room) and evaluating its performance and attributes against the focus and message you wish to present, you create the opportunity to pursue the best changes and strategy into the coming year.

So with this New Year, make it a point not only to evaluate your website’s performance, but also make sure you’re doing your best to meet and exceed your SEO goals.

Recently, I’ve been receiving a variety of text messages from companies such as Guess and Amazon promoting their post-Christmas/new year sales. I don’t even read the text messages, instead deleting them immediately (I guess I shouldn’t have opted in to receive their texts).

Clearly, SMS text messaging can be an annoyance to me, but it got me thinking about what experts are saying about SMS marketing and if it provides value in B2B.

Best Text Marketing, a site that provides reviews and ratings of SMS marketing services, outlined the benefits of SMS marketing in an article this past year. These benefits include:

• Cost control
  You can control the cost through your choice of plan, whether it is domestic/international, the number of texts per month you require and the service features.

• Control message arrival
  SMS text messages are nearly instantaneous to transmit, and the character limit means they will open more quickly. You can send a message at the exact time you see fit for your marketing campaign.

• Freedom to do it yourself or hire an expert
  You have the choice to set up the marketing campaign that is appropriate for your target audience.

• Target your audience more effectively
  Use an opt-in marketing method so you’re targeting only those people who are interested in your product or service. Use short codes so you can segment your audience and send to customers who you know are interested in your product or service.
  

I agree that SMS marketing can be effective in the B2C space as long as the right customers are opting in to receive information about the company’s products or services. For me, I need to make sure that I have a high interest in the company’s product or service before I opt in to receive text messages.

So how does SMS marketing provide value in the B2B platform? I found a great article that outlines specific uses for text messaging to                                                                                B2B customers:

• Share information
  Provide customers with industry-specific news updates, white papers, etc.

• Product updates
  Make decision makers the first to hear about product launches, updates, etc.

• Trade shows
  Keep customers informed of your trade show appearances—notify them of booth changes, contests and promotional items

• Appointments
  Send appointment reminders to prospects that include parking info, directions and other details via text

• Customer service
  Set up an automated system where customers can receive order status

• Polls and surveys
  Give customers the option to provide their opinion about you

• Promote your other offerings
  SMS can be a great way to promote a new tool or resource

• Emergency notifications
  Inform your customers of a serious problem with a product

I think these uses for text messaging to B2B customers are all  great ways to find a qualified lead. Do you agree or disagree?

As 2012 begins, many people’s fresh New Year’s resolutions are already being challenged by the old realities of our everyday routines. If work, school, family and other activities continue to chip away at keeping your resolutions, I’d like you to consider a simple question:  Are you living your life backwards?

You can see this is not a typical blog post intended to educate you on ways to grow your client base or build brand loyalty. This one is aimed at your heart and personal wellness.

As I said, the New Year can get busy quickly – rushing to secure new business to meet this year’s budget, getting the kids back into the swing of school and homework, doing the taxes. Add this to our usual list of responsibilities, and the struggle to take

care of ourselves seems overwhelming. Finding time to take care of ourselves – go to the gym, prepare a healthy meal, read a book with your child, make an appointment with the doctor or even get a full night of sleep – seems impossible. The key word here is “seems”.

The Dalai Lama summed it up when asked what surprised him most about humanity. “Man,” he said. “Because he sacrifices his health in order to make money. Then he sacrifices money to recuperate his health. Then he is so anxious about the future that he does not enjoy the present; the result being that he does not live in the present or the future; he lives as if he is never going to die and then dies having never really lived.”

As you are rushing through new assignments at work or helping the kids with their latest “independent study” project and you find your stress level rising, ask yourself this question:  Am I living my life backwards?

If your answer is “yes,” then perhaps it’s time to make yourself a higher priority. Remember that without good physical and mental health as a base, the rest of your life suffers. If you really want to live, create some balance and schedule your “me” time as carefully as you’ve been scheduling your client meetings. If you’re worried about the impact on your work, don’t. For in the end, your effectiveness and productivity will rise along with your mood and energy.

Wishing you good health and happiness in the coming year!