B2B Networking and Marketing

We’ve often heard, “it’s not WHAT you know, it’s WHO you know.” And for the most part, it’s true. When you’re a small business owner, contacts play a very large role in the development and maintenance of your enterprise. From forming customer relationships to getting the best deals from wholesalers, it’s important to keep in touch with the right people.

This is essentially what B2B (business to business) communication is. B2B is the relationship between two businesses that trade products, information, or services via the internet, whether it is a regular transaction or a one-time-only occurrence. With the advent of dozens of ways to communicate or “friend” people online, it is no surprise that B2B also found its social media niche.

B2B social interaction has several benefits, from faster communication to more information about your colleagues or partners.

1. Find your business partners/wholesaler/manufacturer/distributor on Facebook, Twitter, Myspace (although that one is a bit outdated)/LinkedIn/Tumblr and connect with them.
2. Make sure you build a profile for your business, not just yourself. Include as much information about it as possible, including address, hours of operation, years in business, etc. Think of this as another home page for your business.
3. After you’ve established your presence, try to become an industry expert. If your business is a hardware store, talk about it. Update your Facebook/LinkedIn/Twitter page with industry news, your own experience, product reviews.

Websites like Bizo promise to help business owners reach colleagues by targeting “more than 80% of the US business population.” Small businesses make up a large segment of the population using B2B marketing. So if you own a restaurant, for example, sites like this one make it easier to reach food wholesalers and find the best deals for you.

A perfect example of this can be seen in this announcement via The New York Times. Dairy giant Danone partnered with IBM “to increase the flexibility and responsiveness of its business-to-business (B2B) commercial interactions.” This partnership allows Danone to reach trading partners around the world, as well as simplifying invoicing, order-to-cash transactions, and logistics and delivery.

The difference between using social media with other businesses, as opposed to customers lies in one crucial point: you are not trying to advertise and fish for prospective customers. According to a 2002 study (pdf) from the Small Business Administration, 24% small businesses were using the Internet for their B2B commerce relations. Currently, that number has grown exponentially thanks to the availability of fast connection internet services and specialized networking sites like Bizo.

Industries using the most B2B e-commerce include motor vehicle manufacturing, retail trade, industrial equipment, shipping, high-technology sectors, and government.

For those who are interested in learning more about how to get the most out of B2B, they can attend the Sales 2.0 Conference in Boston, MA. It will take place on June 20, 2011, and will feature speakers from Oracle, Hewlett Packard, and Xactly Corporation. This is a great opportunity for small business owners to hear about B2B commerce from the experts.