Influencer marketing has become an increasingly popular strategy for B2C brands to promote their products and services. However, B2B companies have been slower to adopt influencer marketing. This is a missed opportunity, as partnering with B2B influencers can be highly effective for generating leads, building brand awareness, and establishing thought leadership.
B2B buyers are looking to influencers for insights and expertise. According to a recent survey, 81% of B2B buyers are influenced by industry thought leaders when making purchasing decisions. Additionally, 49% of B2B buyers rely on advice from industry experts and influencers when evaluating new products or services.
In this article, we will explore why B2B influencers are so valuable and how partnering with them can benefit your B2B company.
Who are B2B influencers?
B2B influencers are individuals who have established credibility and a strong social media presence around a particular industry, topic, or type of product. These influencers produce high-quality content that provides value to their target audience. They have cultivated an engaged community of followers who look to them for insights, opinions, and recommendations.
There are several different types of B2B influencers:
Industry experts
These are seasoned professionals who have extensive experience and expertise within their industry. They likely have had senior roles at major companies and are go-to sources for commentary on industry trends and insights.
Thought leaders
Thought leaders have built a strong personal brand and reputation for cutting-edge thinking on business strategies, innovations, and future directions for an industry. They are respected for their unique perspectives.
Analysts
Analysts work for firms that provide research, advisory services, and consulting support across different industries and functional areas. Well-known analyst firms include Gartner, Forrester, and IDC. Analysts publish reports, speak at events, and advise clients.
Journalists
Journalists who cover B2B topics have insider access to company information and data through developing strong professional networks. They provide news, interviews, and insights to their audiences.
Educators
Professors, authors, and corporate trainers who share their knowledge and research through content are also considered influencers. They are viewed as trusted experts.
Executives
C-level executives and other senior leaders at B2B companies also act as influencers by publishing thought leadership content that highlights their expertise. Their insights are highly valued.
Why are B2B influencers effective?
There are several key reasons why partnering with B2B influencers can be an impactful marketing strategy:
They reach targeted audiences
Influencers have spent years building up niche, targeted audiences within specific industry subsectors. Partnering with relevant influencers provides access to your ideal customers.
They build trust and credibility
In a survey by Edelman, 71% of B2B buyers said industry experts and insiders shape their perceptions on brands and products. Influencers are seen as trusted advisors.
They boost brand awareness
Influencers expand reach for brands by exposing new audiences to products and services through shares and recommendations.
They provide valuable content
Audiences look to influencers for reviews, use cases, tips, and how-to advice that enables informed buying decisions.
They influence consideration
Thought leadership content from influencers shapes what decision makers add to their consideration set during the research process.
They accelerate decisions
Buyers view influencer recommendations as validation that helps justify purchase decisions. Their insights provide confidence.
They amplify messages
Influencers sharing brand content to their own audiences grows visibility for campaigns and brand-owned assets at a faster rate.
What do B2B buyers want from influencers?
It’s important to understand what B2B audiences hope to gain from following influencers when considering potential partnerships:
Education and skills building
52% of B2B buyers view thought leadership content as an opportunity to improve their skills and knowledge. They want actionable takeaways.
Industry trends and insights
79% of B2B buyers say reading influencer content helps them stay on top of the latest industry developments and trends.
Product reviews and comparisons
68% of B2B technology buyers read product reviews from influencers during the research process. They provide added perspective.
Problem-solving ideas
Influencers share tips, case studies, and strategies that buyers can apply to address challenges. This content is highly valued.
Validation and trust
As discussed earlier, recommendations from influencers offer validation that gives buyers the confidence to move forward.
Peer community
B2B audiences also value engaging with other like-minded professionals within influencer communities. This provides a sense of belonging.
Career advancement
Followers look to thought leaders for motivation, career advice, and insights on achieving professional success. The content is aspirational.
How can brands partner with B2B influencers?
If you want to reap the benefits of working with B2B influencers, here are some proven partnership approaches:
Sponsored content
You can pay influencers to create blog posts, videos, or social media content about your brand, products, and industry point of view. Ensure content provides value.
Product seeding
Send influencers free samples of products to review and feature in blogs, videos, and other content. Be sure to set expectations up front.
Brand ambassadorship
Formalize long-term partnerships that enable influencers to participate in content creation, events, and strategic consulting.
Takeovers
Let an influencer “take over” your company’s social media accounts for a day to provide a new perspective to your audience.
Q&As/interviews
Interview or ask influencers to answer questions about topics relevant to your content strategy and audience interests. Syndicate the content.
Case studies
Publish case studies featuring clients of your company that influencers can help promote through their platforms.
Co-hosted webinars
Work with influencers to plan and host educational webinars for their audiences on topics aligned to your solution offering.
Influencer events
Sponsor or participate in influencer events to connect with many influencers at once and build relationships.
Giveaways
Incentivize influencers to get involved by providing giveaways of your product or service they can promote to their followers.
What to look for in a B2B influencer
Not all influencers will be a great match for partnering with your B2B brand. Here are key factors to evaluate:
Relevant niche and audience
Ensure the influencer targets your ideal customer segments and topics directly related to your solution.
Strong reach and engagement
Prioritize influencers with large, actively engaged followings on social platforms and their blog/site.
Original content
Look for influencers who publish regularly and develop creative content formats. Stale content is a red flag.
Industry credibility
Influencers should have recognizable expertise and a positive reputation based on past roles, experience, etc.
Accessible for partnerships
Review if the influencer has worked with other brands through various partnership models. This indicates openness.
Clear analytics and reporting
The ability to track performance/engagement on influencer content is key. Ask about monthly reporting.
Fair pricing
Beware of influencers who charge exorbitant rates or refuse to disclose fees. Reasonable pricing builds trust.
Brand alignment
Make sure the influencer’s target audience, values, and content approach aligns well with your brand identity and positioning.
Positive relationships
Talk to other brands the influencer has worked with. Strong referrals indicate a positive experience.
Measuring the impact of B2B influencers
It’s critical to track performance when partnering with influencers. Relevant metrics to monitor include:
Content reach
Total number of people exposed to influencer content featuring your brand across all platforms.
Engagement rate
Measure likes, shares, comments, clicks, etc. on influencer content as a percentage of total reach.
Referral traffic
Monitor website traffic, email list signups, downloads, and inquiries driven specifically from influencer content.
Brand awareness lift
Conduct surveys before and after working with influencers to assess changes in brand recognition and perceptions.
Influencer sentiment
Use social listening to track the sentiment (positive, negative, neutral) of mentions by influencers over time.
Sales influence
If possible, track sales pipeline and closed deals that originated from influencer touchpoints.
Cost per acquisition (CPA)
Calculate cost to acquire a new customer based on dollars spent on the influencer partnership.
Audience demographics
Leverage influencer and social media analytics to better understand audience composition (titles, industries, etc).
Key takeaways on B2B influencers
Here are the major points to remember about the value of B2B influencers:
Credibility and trust
Buyers have greater confidence in brands endorsed by industry experts they know and respect.
Accelerated decisions
Thought leadership from influencers helps justify purchase decisions and speeds up sales cycles.
Targeted reach
Influencers provide access to niche audiences that closely match ideal buyer personas.
Amplified messaging
Partnerships enable brands to expand the reach of owned content and campaigns.
Ongoing engagement
Collaborating with influencers facilitates more touchpoints throughout every stage of the buyer’s journey.
Conclusion
Influencer marketing is not just for B2C brands. Partnering with relevant B2B influencers offers amazing opportunities for lead generation, brand building, and thought leadership. Consider developing an influencer strategy focused on creating co-created content, recruiting brand advocates, sponsoring key events/platforms, and ultimately amplifying your messaging to the audiences that matter most. Done right, collaborating with B2B influencers can deliver significant ROI and greatly strengthen your overall marketing efforts.
