In this era of web 2.0, where social networking sites dominate the social and now the business scene, it is difficult to tell just how beneficial some of these sites are for B2B purposes. OneSource Information Services recently conducted its own primary research on the topic, asking B2B sales professionals about the types of information resources and tools they use for building their sales pipelines and qualifying opportunities. They found that most social media tools are not having a large impact on the way they research companies and contacts:
- 66% of respondents suggested LinkedIn is “significantly” or “moderately” changing their methodologies
- 23% said the same of Personal & Professional Blogs
- Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube did not achieve mentionable numbers (4% or less)
To some this might be surprising, but to me it makes perfect sense. I have heard again and again from a range of marketing and sales professionals that LinkedIn is providing real value to business professionals, as opposed to the other social networking sites. While a site like Twitter can help you keep connected and up to date, it takes too much effort with too little a reward for marketing purposes. Sales reps may occasionally catch a tweet from a prospect or customer that gives them valuable information to use during a call, but for the most part LinkedIn will be their go-to source of info.
Check out the survey results here: http://bit.ly/aZop5H, and be on the look out later this month for more results from the OneSource survey.
