How to utilise influencers in B2B marketing

By Laura Holland

When most people think of influencers, they usually think of high end beauty products and make-up tutorials. The reality of influencer marketing however, is much more varied and diverse than that, especially within B2B marketing.

The B2B marketing sphere has had more attention since the very first B2B marketing campaign won the Grand Prix prize at Cannes Lion in 2022, what followed, was a wave of change both in perceptions of what traditional B2B businesses could do with their marketing efforts, but also the type of companies that influencers would consider partnering with. 

With that in mind we’ll take you through why you should consider influencer marketing as a B2B company and how they can help establish your authority as well as generate new business leads.

Influencers help to build trust and credibility

For B2B companies trust is like a gold dust, especially if you are a small business or a company just starting out, competing with well established players can feel very much like David vs Goliath, the good news is David won that battle, and influencer marketing is one of the items in your armoury which you can put you onto the path of victory.

Influencers spend years building their reputation and credibility with their audience by becoming a trusted voice around niche topics because they have a much closer relationship with their followers than brands could ever have, and these audiences reward this time with engagement and most importantly trust.

Influencer endorsements can lend credibility to your product/services as well as reaching an audience you may have ordinarily struggled to engage with.

Influencers can help you reach your niche B2B audiences

To understand how influencers can help you reach your audiences, you first need to understand the difference between B2B and B2C influencer marketing.

B2C Influencers:
These types of influencers focus their messaging to the end user of the product or service they are promoting, this is usually a specific audience demographic within the general public.

B2B Influencers:
B2B influencers usually focus their messaging around industry specific topics and talk more around business solutions and pain points plus insights and even expert opinions if they are high up in their field or niche.
Because the B2B influencers focus their messaging on industry specific topics they’re better positioned to help you reach the key decision maker audience that will help you to grow and expand your business.

Generating new business leads through influencer partnerships

We’ve talked a lot about how influencers can expand your brand awareness, but one of the biggest reasons why organisations work with influencers is to help increase their lead generation, and this works particularly well within the B2B industry, where key decision makers are often in a position to make decisions quite quickly (unlike consumers).

Selecting the right B2B influencers will be key in making your partnership a success, here are the top things to consider when choosing:

1. Relevance
Ensure that the influencer’s expertise, content and audience are aligned to your industry and the audience you want to reach.

2. Brand alignment
You should arrange a discovery call to make sure that the influencer’s personal brand, values and views are aligned with your company’s own. The last thing you want is to choose a creator just because they are popular only to have a scandal land in your lap.

3. Credibility
Influencers that are well respected and viewed as experts in the field or niche you are trying to extend your audience reach in is key.

4. Content quality
Probably one of the most important considerations when looking for an influencer is to review the quality of their content as it will ultimately be representing your brand. 

5. Legal and compliance
Finally, you want to ensure that the influencer you are working with a) understands the legalities and compliance within your industry and b) tags posts with ads or paid partnerships were appropriate.

If you’re considering an influencer campaign and would like some guidance, please do get in touch with us at Flame either by, email: [email protected] or call us: +44 20 3357 9740