The middle of July might not seem the ideal time for an organization to host its first Twitter chat, but G2 seemed to have no problem attracting comments from people who work at major B2B SaaS firms to weigh in at #G2Fireside.
As might be expected, the peer-to-peer review platform decided to focus much of #G2Fireside on the opportunities and challenges of social media itself — both as a way to connect with customers and even as a tool for professional self-development.
Most of the early comments suggested that social media needs to be deeply integrated into marketing and sales processes. A content marketing pro from RingCentral recommended a mix of experimentation and consistent visibility:
A1. By using the social media where our target audience is (mainly LinkedIn and Twitter) and having content shared daily on it. We try different formats (native videos, visuals, links, documents) to see what work to increase our reach#G2Fireside
— Adrien Lemaire (@adrien_lemaire) July 18, 2019
One of the biggest challenges for many firms, particularly in B2B, is figuring out which of the many social platforms they show up on. A tweeter from the Content Marketing Institute had a simple but in some ways novel approach:
A8b we also ASK! We do video check-ins with community members. What's working? Where should we be? Oh, they'll tell you. LOL #G2Fireside
— Content Marketing Institute (@CMIContent) July 18, 2019
Of course, most organizations wouldn’t have social media accounts at all if there weren’t the potential to actually grow businesses. That’s why #G2Fireside also explored the way social networks could be used to find new leads and prospects. Dan Willis, who focuses on video strategy for brands, recommended moving progressively from online to offline:
A4 3 Step Process:
1. Listen actively on #socialmedia with tools like @Agorapulse and @Talkwalker
2. Engage in value driven conversations
3. Connect professional and create a face to face interaction. #G2Fireside pic.twitter.com/UcQ38MeANB— Dan Willis #SAIS2019 (@MLLNNLmotivator) July 18, 2019
Mastering social media might be a good way of preparing for some of those in-person interactions, according to a digital marketing professional at LedgeviewCRM, who argued that there has never been a better time to take advantage of the services available:
A5: It lets us establish ourselves (personally and w/ company profiles) as subject matter experts. We have the power to reach wider audiences than ever before! It's incredible what we're capable of. With the right strategy to back it, we're unstoppable. #G2Fireside
— Julia Rose (@Missjflar) July 18, 2019
At a brand level, marketers continually debate the best ways to evaluate the performance of their social activity. A content marketer from Automate had some ideas:
A6: We have different metrics for each platform for us. Since we are focused on brand visibility – we focus on reach – 'audience growth rate' and 'average engagement rate'#G2Fireside
— Archita Sharma (@mearchita) July 18, 2019
If you occasionally struggle with social media, though, you’re in good company. In fact, a social media specialist at Sprout Social admitted the company had fallen short of its internal goals but rallied after a series of retrospective analysis sessions:
A2b: In Q2 we got back on track by making content and cadence changes to our strategy. Pro-tip: PIVOT. pic.twitter.com/amxGWdodOi
— Olivia Jepson ⚡️ (@ohjepson) July 18, 2019
G2 said it would follow up on #G2Fireside with additional Twitter chats on subjects like artificial intelligence next month.
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