As a creative agency regularly responsible for the social media output of our clients, we often find companies in a familiar predicament. A B2B company that has a reasonable (or in some cases sizable) social media following… that’s getting almost zero engagement on their posts.

The main offender is Twitter, or X, as we’ll attempt to call it with a straight face for the rest of this blog. B2B companies can have hundreds of followers, even thousands, while their average likes and reposts hover around zero.

It’s not just X where this is a problem, though. Nowadays B2B companies are often struggling for engagement on just about every social media platform.

So, in today’s digital marketing landscape, which social media platforms do B2B companies actually need?

X: is there any benefit for B2B companies?

It’s no surprise that results are less forthcoming these days for B2B companies on X. Aside from the platform’s tanking reputation (thanks to an unprecedented influx of bots; paid ads for barefaced scams remaining on users’ feeds for several months despite, in many cases, having community notes confirming that the ad that looks like a blatant scam absolutely is a blatant scam; and endless examples of hate speech going unpunished)... users just use X differently these days.

It used to be that users’ feeds would display both posts from the people they follow and engage with, and posts from people they don’t follow, but that X thinks they’d appreciate. Now, the X feed is split between a For You page, and a Following page, and most people opt for the former. This might have something to do with the fact that millions of X users have had an account for over a decade, and have, over time, followed so many people that the rough now far outweighs the diamond.

But the main reason so few users use their Following tab is that the For You algorithm is simply… good. The truth is that, if you use X enough, eventually it will only show you posts that you want to see. It’s the same with short video platforms like TikTok; the social media algorithm, for better or for worse, has been perfected. And with far fewer users seeing the posts of the people they’re actually following, it’s no wonder B2B companies are struggling for engagement; previously, it would’ve been primarily those companies’ followers that were liking their posts.

Facebook and Instagram for B2B marketing

X can seem like a lost cause in the world of B2B digital marketing, but so can Facebook and Instagram. The difference with Meta platforms, though, is their paid ads system. Paying for ads on X isn’t a great look right now (there’s a reason most of the ads you see are for crypto scams). But on Meta, paid ads are not only more socially acceptable in the eyes of the general public, but they also allow you to target your demographics with precision, whether users are following you or not. Meta Ads can be a great way to direct people to your Facebook and Instagram pages, and generate crucial leads.

The new generation of social media platforms

In the last couple of years, a number of new social media platforms have emerged, attempting to capture the increasing swathes of disillusioned X users: Mastodon, Bluesky, and Meta’s own Threads. None of these new platforms have exactly burst onto the scene- but should companies be making accounts on them anyway, just in case they explode? It can’t exactly hurt, but if you’re already struggling to keep up with all your different social media accounts, then it’s probably better just to stick with the platforms you’re familiar with.

B2B marketing: which social media platforms do you actually need? (conclusion)

Getting minimal engagement on your social media accounts isn’t the end of the world. As we’ve already covered, the landscape is vastly different than it was 10 years ago. Should you delete your X account and replace it with Mastodon, Bluesky, Threads? No need to be so drastic; there’s no guarantee engagement would be any higher on those other platforms. The key to organic socials is not being afraid to get creative, engaging with your community, and, crucially, being realistic.

Looking to liven up your social media presence? Get started now by messaging Fiona!