B2B Marketing Gets Social Spotlight With LinkedIn IPO

Ever since the recent LinkedIn IPO catapulted the business social-networking platform into the financial stratosphere, B2B marketing has emerged from the shadows of its flashy, highly funded B2C counterpart. According to Russell Glass of Bizo, LinkedIn is propelling B2B marketers’ visibility with its evolved, sexy — and rich — social network. Read the full article…

Ending its first day on the market valued at a staggering $8.9 billion, LinkedIn is poised to bring social media networking to the forefront of business-to-business marketing conversations. Just a few years ago, most companies were blocking access to distracting social networks. LinkedIn’s now-lofty stature has elevated social media marketing to a bonafide business marketing function.

Ismael Seguban of Engaging Times says look at how we use LinkedIn “to find jobs, sales leads, credible opinions and insights from other people in their profession. With the proper social listening skills, you can find dependable information that will help you with your professional career.” Read full article…

The LinkedIn we know is undoubtedly going to change, becoming a major player in B2B social networking circles just as Facebook has for B2C. This huge influx of working capital should enable LinkedIn to make improvements based on customers’ suggestions, as well as the site’s own wishlist.

B2B marketers should bookmark the LinkedIn blog to take advantage of these impending product developments. I’m sure we’ll see an influx of tools that can bring us closer to quantifying the ever-elusive return on investment for our social media marketing efforts.

Here are more articles about LinkedIn going public:

Wall Street Journal: LinkedIn IPO Soars, Feeding Web Boom

WebPro News: LinkedIn IPO Reactions From The Twitter World

Mashable: LinkedIn’s Road to IPO [Infographic]

What are your predictions for B2B social media marketing with the advent of the LinkedIn IPO?