B-to-B companies are used to being in control of their marketing messages, according to John Sonnhalter in The Social Media Challenge: ROI. But to take advantage of the strength of social media and other online tools, you have to let go of some of that control.
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“Negative feedback and comments are actually a great opportunity for discussion,” says Bob DeStefano, author of the B-to-B Online Marketing Toolkit. “The most interesting conversations are the ones that have a point-counterpoint. You aren’t differentiating yourself if you’re taking the exact same position as everyone else.”
After all, negative comments about your company will exist online whether you see them or not. So respond to them in a way that shows your company takes customer satisfaction seriously. “You can’t control what other people say,” Sonnhalter says. “You can only take advantage of the opportunity to be a part of the conversation rather than on the sideline.”
And use comments about your company or topics, issues or products you know well to establish your expertise. After all, the more you participate online – in forums, LinkedIn groups, Twitter – the more you take back some of that control.
Sonnhalter was featured in MDM’s January episode of Executive Briefing. Listen to his discussion with Lindsay Konzak on the role mobile plays in distributor marketing.
