With last week’s social media crises for Burger King and Jeep, you might be worried about going all in on a social media strategy. However, it’s important that B2B technology companies don’t disregard social media in its entirety. Whether you’re participating in social media or not, there are conversations happening about your brand, your competitors and your industry. According to Social Media Examiner, social media listening can help you find and better understand opportunities and stakeholders. It’s necessary to keep your marketing and communications strategy fresh and competitive. If you’re a B2B tech company here are several ways you will benefit from social media listening. 
Research
One of the biggest advantages of social listening is the insight it can give you into your industry and your competitors. If you’re a B2B tech company, most likely the investment that needs to be made for your product or service is large. Understanding how your competitors are engaging with their audience can help you to better position yourself among the competition. If you’ve got a tool like Salesforce Marketing Cloud you can and should enter each of your competitors along with different variations of their names. Let them test the social media waters for your industry first, then use listening to determine what does and doesn’t work for your own social media strategy.
Social listening is also essential to learning new things about your industry. Identify key influencers in the industry and pay attention to what they’re talking about. The next best thing could be entering the marketplace and this is a great way to be the first to jump on a new opportunity.
Lead generation
A big goal for our public relations and social media strategies is lead generation. Without a proper plan in place you could be missing out on potential opportunities. With the proper search terms identified for your product or service, aligned with your ideal customer’s pain points you can determine which industry is best to target for potential customers. Then use the information you’ve uncovered in your social listening when you get that first pitch meeting with a potential customer.
Customer service
As mentioned earlier, whether your organization is on social media or not there are conversations happening about your brand and its products or services. Setting up keywords that are directly related to each of those items is an effective way of staying on top of trends. Using a tool like Salesforce Marketing Cloud allows you to scan blog posts and comments across the web. You may identify disgruntled customers or employees who are expressing their disdain across the Internet. Using listening tools and taking care of those concerns as they arise can prevent even more negative comments in the future. It will also help establish your brand as someone who cares about its customers and wants to give them the best experience possible.
Your social listening doesn’t have to be complex. By setting up a few simple search terms around your brand, your competitors and your industry you’ll be able to keep your marketing and public relations strategy fresh and competitive.
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Emma Walter is a senior account executive for WordWrite Communications. You can find her on Twitter @emmasreallytall.
