Why “Social First” is a powerful B2B marketing approach

Why is Social First also relevant for the B2B sector?

Many B2B companies assume that their target groups are already well familiar with them. However, this is often a misconception: younger professionals, international employees taking on responsibilities in Germany, or new decision-makers who enter companies through transformations often lack existing networks or market experience. This is where social media presents a crucial opportunity.

Good, relevant, and unique content not only adds value for your target group, but also offers a genuine opportunity to engage in dialogue with them. “Social-first” marketers report that through organic social media, they can save up to 50% in costs while simultaneously achieving better lead qualification. Additionally, a close integration with other channels – such as websites, platforms, or campaigns – creates significant synergies.

Faster Testing and Better Results

Another advantage of organic social media is the ability to test content efficiently. New content can be quickly and cost-effectively evaluated to see how it resonates with the target audience. These insights can then be specifically leveraged for paid campaigns. Particularly in times when complex, in-depth content is increasingly in demand, this approach pays off. The return on investment (ROI) within the marketing mix can thus be better optimized, as “deep content” remains usable for longer than daily posts.

Organic Social Media in the Lead and Sales Funnel

Organic social media is highly versatile and delivers compelling results in nearly every phase of the lead and sales funnel. Over 80% of marketing executives report that organic content works particularly well in the upper and middle funnel phases. Even in the lower funnel stages, it still achieves measurable success in 47% of cases.

Industry Discourse as a Strategic Tool in B2B Marketing

An active industry discourse is much more than just an exchange between companies and their target audiences – it is a crucial lever for visibility, trust, and thought leadership. Platforms such as LinkedIn, professional forums, or even X (formerly Twitter) offer companies the opportunity to engage in relevant discussions, build thought leadership, and identify trends at an early stage. Successful B2B brands use these channels not only to distribute their own content, but also to interact with other experts and decision-makers. Corporate influencers – employees who act as subject-matter authorities – play a key role here: they lend authenticity to the brand and strengthen its position as an industry leader. Companies like SAP demonstrate how the publication of well-founded whitepapers and reports on digitalization, sustainability, and AI can build a lasting reputation as a thought leader. The decisive factor is the combination of high-quality content and strategic interaction – only those who actively participate in professional discussions will remain relevant in the long term.
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The Challenge: Gaining Leadership Buy-In

Many marketing professionals want to invest more strategically in organic social media – but often encounter reluctance or skepticism within their leadership teams. The issue is often not a lack of budget, but rather a lack of understanding. While social-first channels prove to be high-performing and ROI-efficient, traditional formats such as professional articles or trade show appearances still enjoy greater prestige among many decision-makers. One reason: the personal media habits of many executives play a decisive role. Those who rarely use platforms like LinkedIn or X themselves often lack an intuitive sense of the relevance and impact of social content.

This is precisely where one of the most important scientifically accompanied studies in the DACH region comes into play: the long-term study “Social Media in B2B Communication” by Althaller Communication has, for the past 14 years, continuously shown how social media has become established in B2B communication – and how leadership style influences its use. Particularly noteworthy: companies with a participatory, open leadership style integrate social media much more actively and strategically into their communication efforts. The conclusion is clear: the more leadership teams are willing to embrace digital dialogue formats, the more successfully companies can enhance their visibility, reputation, and innovative strength in the market.

Anyone seeking to advocate internally can start here – with reliable data, benchmarks from the long-term study, and above all with the insight that long-term social media success is not a matter of platform trends, but of mindset and culture. Social-first doesn’t just begin in marketing – it begins in leadership mindset.
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Conclusion: Invest in Your Reach

Organic social media not only offers B2B companies the opportunity to save costs, but also to reach new target groups that can become valuable long-term partners.

“In an increasingly digital marketplace, the successful integration of social media into B2B strategies is not just advantageous – it is essential. Companies that use social media effectively can build deeper relationships, enhance customer engagement, and achieve significant sales conversions. The DACH region, with its robust technological infrastructure and innovation-driven economy, presents unique opportunities for companies to harness these tools.”
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Source: “Digital Media as a Game-Changer in B2B Buyer-Vendor Relationships,” Journal of Sustainable Business and Economics (2022) Krings et al. (2022)
Source: https://journals.bilpubgroup.com/index.php/jsbe/article/view/5559

With the right strategy, you can increase your brand awareness, generate better leads, and use your marketing budgets more effectively. Organic social is useful even in the B2B space.
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Practical Tips for Successful Organic Social in B2B

1. Community instead of mere followers – Relevance over reach

• Analyze follower quality: Many B2B profiles have high follower numbers, but often with a surplus of internal employees, competitors, or job seekers. This can distract from the actual marketing goals.
  Solution: Use social listening & analytics (e.g. LinkedIn Page Analytics, Brandwatch) to understand the composition of followers. If the target group isn’t ideal, initiate targeted dialogue with industry players, potential customers, and decision-makers.
• Targeted interaction with relevant accounts: Instead of focusing only on your own content, actively participate in relevant groups, forums, or comment sections of thought leaders.
• Best practice: Use executives and subject-matter experts as corporate influencers who are strategically present in LinkedIn groups, professional forums, or Twitter/X discussions and contribute valuable insights.

2. Thought leadership through relevant, curated content

• Publish high-quality content with added value: Whitepapers, reports, and academically grounded materials form an excellent basis for thought leadership.
  Solution: Don’t just upload these as static PDFs to your website – repurpose them into snackable social media content. Examples include carousel posts with key insights, video teasers with expert statements, or interactive LinkedIn polls.
• Use B2B storytelling: Numbers and facts alone are not enough. Narrative approaches also work in B2B – for example, customer success stories or insights from R&D departments.
• Trend 2024: Integrate employees as authentic brand ambassadors (employee-generated content). Personal LinkedIn posts by experts often outperform pure corporate communication.

3. Think platform-appropriately: B2B doesn’t have to be dry

• Use LinkedIn as the primary platform – but not exclusively
  • LinkedIn for professional articles, whitepapers & thought leadership
  • Instagram & TikTok for employer branding & recruiting (e.g. behind-the-scenes or CEO insights)
  • YouTube & podcasts for deep dives into complex topics
    Best practice: Siemens uses LinkedIn for B2B expert topics, while addressing younger talent more on Instagram.
• Use current formats
  • Micro-content instead of long posts: LinkedIn newsletters or short videos with insights
  • Carousel posts with quick wins: Prepare study results in a few slides
  • Live discussions & AMAs (Ask Me Anything) on LinkedIn or Twitter/X for Q&A sessions

4. Understand community management as active dialogue

• No one-way communication: Just posting content is not enough – genuine interaction is what counts.
  Solution: Targeted responses to comments and questions, not just under your own posts, but also actively in discussion groups.
• Encourage user-generated content: Motivate customers and partners to share their own experiences.
  Best practice: Companies like HubSpot or Salesforce have strong communities because they don’t just broadcast – they actively engage users, for example through challenges or co-creation formats.

5. Use B2B influencers & corporate influencers strategically

• Build subject-matter experts and thought leaders in a targeted manner: Executives and specialists within the company should post regularly and actively engage in industry discussions.
  Solution: Offer training for employees to introduce them to LinkedIn strategies. It’s about how they can share their expertise authentically without sounding like advertising.
• Involve external industry influencers: Collaborations with well-known LinkedIn thought leaders or podcast hosts can extend reach.
  Example: SAP works with analysts such as Gartner and uses their reach for content strategies.

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