For B2B marketers, tracking and measuring both the ongoing progress and the results of their campaigns is key. After all, sharing the success of campaigns is crucial in justifying marketing spend to senior management, and demonstrating alignment with company goals. As a non-traditional marketing channel, influencer marketing doesn’t seem as straightforward when it comes to tracking influencers’ activities and setting overarching objectives. However, with this medium giving 11 times more ROI than banner advertisements, it’s clear that this is something B2B businesses will need to tackle sooner rather than later.

Influencer marketing has seen rapid growth in today’s digital-first world. While typically seen as a B2C marketing strategy, it can be hugely beneficial for B2B brands too – with many B2B businesses seeing it deliver transformative results at every step of their sales cycle. Influencers can position a brand as a thought leader, boost overall brand engagement, and distribute content to a highly targeted, engaged audience.

A hybrid of both old and new marketing techniques, influencer marketing is an approach that has taken the marketing world by storm in recent years. Combining the age-old idea of celebrity endorsements with modern day social media channels and content-driven marketing campaigns, influencer marketing can be seen across the internet by millions of people every day. With influencers able to increase a business’ brand awareness, boost conversions and help with product launches, it’s not surprising that brands are predicted to spend up to $15 billion on influencer marketing by 2022.

Although not an entirely new concept, influencer marketing has seen major growth in today’s digital-first world. Celebrity endorsements have been transformed, through social media and content marketing, into a lucrative opportunity for businesses across the globe. For B2C brands, influencer marketing has been paying dividends – but B2B companies are lagging behind. In fact, in a recent survey, only 31% of marketing professionals who run influencer marketing campaigns said they were running campaigns for the B2B sector.

Influencer marketing is now a force to be reckoned with in the marketing world, having seen incredible growth in the past decade. An evolution of the old school tactic of celebrity endorsement, now combined with social media platforms and content-rich marketing campaigns, influencer marketing has been used with great effect by direct-to-consumer brands globally. But why should B2C have all the fun?

When executed well, partnering with the right influencers can lead to multiple benefits for B2B brands, including increased brand exposure, share of voice in a competitive marketplace and widespread communication of key messages. Undoubtedly, influencer marketing is a real opportunity for B2B – so how can your business harness it?

We’ve created a guide on B2B influencer marketing with actionable advice on how to include it in your strategy.

What’s covered in the guide?

• What exactly is influencer marketing?
• How do we define an ‘influencer’?
• The specific benefits for B2B businesses
• Measurement and ensuring ROI
• 10 actionable ways to implement an influencer strategy