B2B Lead Generation using Social Media

Recently, every prospect and client that we have met has been telling us that their #1 problem is lead generation.  They wonder if Web 2.0 or social media can help them. Our initial interest in engaging with many of these prospects, was to enable them to build trust-based relationships with their stakeholders using social media. However, these interactions set us down the path of helping them implement a social media strategy for lead generation.

According to a 2008 McKinsey study Building the Web 2.0 Enterprise: McKinsey Global Survey Results organizations are increasingly using social media to target external objectives – reaching out to new markets and interacting with customers. Robert Lesser, President of Direct Impact Marketing, provides specific instances of companies generating leads through social media, in his post Delivery ROI on Social Media.

Social media, like any other tool, needs to be used creatively towards specific business goals. The advantage of social media is its very nature – it thrives on referrals and self-selection. And nothing works like referrals and self-selection for generating qualified leads. In fact, sellingpower.com puts the prospect referral chain right at the top of its list for lead generation strategies.

As the McKinsey survey points out, organizations have a long way to go to truly harness the power of social media, but  a start has been made! In the coming months, we will share our own learnings in this blog, as we help our customers harness social media as a lead generation tool.