Defining Engagement in B2B Marketing
The term engagement is often thrown around in conversations regarding marketing and social media. Increasing engagement is almost always addressed when discussing content, campaigns and new projects. However, a recent article by Mashable pointed out that the word engagement can hold different meanings for different types of companies and brands. When it comes to B2B marketing, what exactly does engagement mean?
In terms of B2B marketing, engagement should be viewed as a marathon instead of sprint. For instance, engagement in B2B marketing is not becoming an overnight social media sensation. Instead, it is becoming an established thought-leader in the industry by commenting on current conversations in order to slowly grow a following of quality.
We should also understand engagement to be a two-way street. We want prospects to be viewing our website, downloading our content and following us on social media. In order to keep prospects connected, we must be actively providing them with a dynamic website, compelling content and a fresh social media presence. By ultimately doing these things, in time, our prospects have the potential to turn into customers.
It can be easy to pin engagement as an end goal. However, it shouldnt be considered so much as a result as more of a set of practices. Measure engagement against the actions you took to stay connected instead of the number of sales you made in the process.
As a B2B marketer, how do you define engagement? Share with us.
