The launch of Facebook Studio is yet another demonstration of social media’s increasingly business-focused approach. Alex Aspinall investigates
The recently launched Facebook Studio is billed as a(nother) place to ‘learn, share and find information.’ The new tool is designed to provide advertising and marketing professionals with a new online network and to help show them how to get the most out of the marketing opportunities offered by the world’s biggest social media platform.
Agencies can upload their finest Facebook campaigns and provide plenty of detail about accomplishments, staff members, company ethos and whatever else they may wish to include. But is it of immediate and direct use to those marketers concentrating solely on B2B?
“In terms of helping agencies and creative teams benchmark and learn from ‘best-of-breed’ campaigns, it can only be a good thing,” says Steve Kemish, director at Cyance. “But whether these learnings are applicable in the social environment of that B2B brand is yet to be proved.
“I hope this site doesn’t convince yet more B2B marketers to use Facebook to talk to their audience – just because your customers are on Facebook doesn’t mean they want to hear from you or think about you on Facebook. Marketers have to recognise that just because you can find somebody to talk to doesn’t mean they want to talk to you.”
Matt Brayley, head of digital media at Bray Leino, agrees, “B2B marketers and agencies can use Facebook Studio to gather ideas about what makes successful and compelling creative campaigns through a social media platform. Facebook, as a platform in its own right, at the moment, does not lend itself particularly to B2B marketing.”
Good old-fashioned advertising
So B2B agencies won’t be inserting the words ‘Facebook Studio’ right at the top of their to-do lists. But what is more noteworthy is that the launch of Studio is another example of social media’s continued stride towards being B2B entities themselves.
Many of the biggest names in web tech today didn’t really have a game plan of how to turn their products into profits initially. Google, Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn are four examples of companies that have had to bide their time in order to figure out how best to leverage worth from their respective captive audiences. But they have now decided. And, unsurprisingly, it comes down to good old-fashioned advertising. Admittedly, it’s hyper-targeted 21st century-style advertising; but advertising all the same.
As social networks grow increasingly business-minded, their B2B teams start to grow larger. They start hosting agency and media events to promote the business elements of their offers (as Facebook did to highlight the launch of Studio) and as social ads and promoted tweets start to grow more numerous, questions will be asked about how the social media landscape is changing. Because, for better or for worse, it is definitely changing; social media is no longer just about the liberalisation of the web, citizen journos and sharing photos with friends.
Bryony Thomas of Clear Thought Consulting says, “If the ads are relevant and appropriate, then they’ll take off.
“If there weren’t ‘get rich quick’ merchants jumping on it, then I’d be pretty confident in saying that relevant interesting marketing in social media is part of its appeal, and could actually strengthen it. But, there will always be those who use it badly and make people feel uncomfortable, which will undoubtedly happen to a greater or lesser extent, as it does in all forms of marketing.”
Social selling
One thing is for sure: no one is predicting a decrease in social media advertising spend. Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn have been credited with being behind the recent resurgence of online advertising. And it’s not just B2C ads that work in this arena.
January Wynne, MD of digital agency Pipon Solutions, says, “Social media advertising can be extremely useful in the B2B world for brand recognition, generating leads, and providing real-time feedback and market research.
“One potential pitfall, however, is that many businesses are failing to use social media in an effective way. Many B2B companies feel they have to be on platforms such as Twitter and Facebook, yet sometimes their use of such platforms is amateurish and lazy.” Again, it comes down to ensuring your messages are delivered correctly and targeted at the right people.
It’s also fair to say that the issue of privacy is more relevant these days. And marketers need to be increasingly aware of these issues in order to retain positive sentiment from both potential clients and also the law, given the EU legislation passed last month concerning the use of cookies. The buyers are more in control of the marketing messages they see these days.
Rob Mathieson, MD of AYO Media, says “Web-based businesses have learnt their lessons over the years and understand that invasive advertising will very quickly reduce the number of users they have. The main question lies within the violation of a user’s data.
“Generally speaking, the younger generation expect some of their information to be used, unless they specify otherwise, which is why Facebook works so well for its audience. This may not be the same for social networks that rely on an older demographic.”
E-coupons for businesses
So what does the immediate future of business-focused social networking hold? Just as most marketers are getting their heads around social media best practice, the businesses behind tweeting, poking and recommending need to evolve.
Steve Kemish says, “I don’t think we have seen anywhere near as much in crowd-sourcing. I also think that the web will naturally allow more group buying – Groupon behaviour for business, for example. If 10 dentists, who work in different parts of the country and therefore don’t compete with one another, could benefit from bulk-buying their supplies as a group, then that works well commercially and helps build community and a reason for them to come together.”
This view is gathering considerable support, and Groupon-style B2B models may well be the next big thing.
Gemma Phelan, managing consultant, partner at management consultancy BCM Solutions, says, “One site to keep an eye on is Huddlebuy.com. Termed as the ‘Groupon of the business world’, if Huddlebuy is even half as successful, I believe sites like these could provide a valuable new channel of social selling for smaller B2B organisations.”
Will the monetisation of social media prove to be its undoing?
By Mo Elnadi, head of digital at The Reptile Group
“The short answer is no; there is a big difference between mass marketing and targeted marketing that touches the audience at the right moment, with the right message and in the most appropriate tone. Context is key when it comes to the commercialisation of social media, and will ensure effective monetisation of the fan base if effectively utilised by creative B2B agencies and marketers.
“This of course is as long as marketers respect their target audience’s valuable time and try to add value for those audiences through their targeted advertising campaigns and customised offers.”
