Another great report came out of eMarketer the other day.
The findings in the report found that ad agencies in the US were spending time figuring out how to develop leads with various social media. There was success with things like email newsletters and LinkedIn, but the winner of generating the most leads was blogs.
Finding New Clients with Blogs
The report found agency blogs were the most effective social media tool for uncovering new business opportunities, more so than standard social media channels like Facebook and LinkedIn.
Full report: Social Media Comes Up Short for Agency Prospecting
The title of the article is certainly true. Most ad agencies are seeing only 10% or less of their new business coming from social and less than 30% of their revenues coming from social channels according to the article.
Those are not encouraging numbers for owners of B2B businesses. However, after looking into what the numbers are really saying, my hunch is these agencies are just figuring out the importance of blogging and I expect the trend of business blogs to continue to increase (see: 43% of US Companies Will be Blogging by 2012).
Blogging and Social Media
There is much information to find out there regarding the importance of Facebook and Twitter. These channels are frequently touted as the way of the future; the way for businesses to find new clients.
I think it’s true that Facebook, Twitter, and other channels are important, but I think it’s crucial to understand the best way to use these channels. What I believe is the proper way to create a social media strategy is to first start with a blogging and content strategy on your own website. From there you can syndicate your content to Facebook and Twitter.
This method sets up your own site for the win. Leads will come via search engines where they are searching for information regarding the service you provide. Your blog posts and site content will target these people.
You can also publish your posts and content to your Facebook and Twitter accounts. For folks that like to consume content on these channels you will still be providing a way for them to find your content and your site.
Blogging for Leads
The article linked above from the eMarketer study does include a few interesting bits about blogging:
The report found agency blogs were the most effective social media tool for uncovering new business opportunities, more so than standard social media channels like Facebook and LinkedIn.
…..
While agency blogs appeared to be effective, less than half (41%) of client-side marketers said they followed such blogs. This appears to highlight a discrepancy in agency performance and prospect communication preference; however, it may also suggest that blog-originated leads—though perhaps fewer in number—may be more qualified or client-ready.
It’s great to see studies coming out that support the power of blogging for businesses and acquiring new leads. It’s easy to get washed up in all the news surrounding Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter.
However, it’s important to focus on the best ways to acquire new customers and blogging seems to be one of the best ways, still, for businesses to find new business.