Social media is a new place where roles can be flexible and the strongest players are those who are willing to explore new ways of thinking. There’s a lot of money to be saved and new customers to be reached. The idea of the public—customers and non-customers—interacting and communicating about a company's products and services has not been embraced by B2B companies at the same level as B2C companies. The logic is simple—B2B companies have fewer, more complex customer relationships. They have a tendency to be very protective about relationships. The key is that in today’s environment, social media is another channel for building a better relationship with customers. The most trusted source of information for buyers has always been other buyers. More buyers are embracing social media, and the tools and possibilities for collaboration continue to improve. As a result, social media is becoming a critical channel for print/marketing service providers to help buyers find one another and market to them.

In a recent article, eMarketer discussed the results from Business.com’s 2009 B2B Social Media Benchmarking Study. While B2B companies are less experienced with social media than B2C companies, those that are using social media are more active. These firms realize that they can’t ignore this major destination for Internet users. The study found that those B2B companies already using social media focused on microblogging, discussions on third-party sites, blogging, and company mentions on various social media. B2Cs were ahead in a few areas, including social media advertising, user ratings and reviews, and online communities.

Table 1: Leading Social Media Initiatives Among B2B and B2C Companies in North America – September 2009