Lauri Huotari, Pauliina Ulkuniemi, Saila Saraniemi and Minna Mäläskä
The present study aims to examine how business-to-business (B2B) marketers can influence content creation in social media. Social media tools are becoming an interesting component…
Abstract
Purpose
The present study aims to examine how business-to-business (B2B) marketers can influence content creation in social media. Social media tools are becoming an interesting component of B2B marketing because of the roles of personal relationships and interactions in these markets. However, research has not approached social media content creation from a B2B marketing perspective.
Design/methodology/approach
Social media tools are becoming an interesting component of B2B marketing because of the roles of personal relationships and interactions in these markets. However, research has not approached social media content creation from a B2B marketing perspective. The present study examines how B2B marketers can influence content creation in social media.
Findings
The paper proposes that B2B firms engaging in social media as part of their marketing efforts should carefully consider the roles and activities of various users, which are directed to and by different internal and external users. B2B companies can influence content creation in social media directly by adding new content, participating in discussions and removing content through corporate user accounts and controlling employee social media behavior or indirectly by training employees to create desired content and performing marketing activities that influence other users to create content that is favorable for the company.
Originality/value
The study contributes to the theoretical discussion over B2B marketing communication and the role of social media in it.
Details
Keywords
Minna Törmälä and Saila Saraniemi
This study aims to examine the roles of business partners in co-creating a corporate brand image.
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to examine the roles of business partners in co-creating a corporate brand image.
Design/methodology/approach
The study adopts different business partners’ perspectives to analyse corporate brand co-creative actions through a case study within a business-to-business company (B2B SME) context. Interviews with the case company’s manager and key business partners were used as the primary source of empirical data.
Findings
The study suggests a typology of seven roles which business partners adopt in corporate brand image co-creation: co-innovator, co-marketer, brand specialist, knowledge provider, referee, intermediary and advocate. The study also highlights the management of co-creative relationships in corporate brand image co-creation in the context of business partners.
Practical implications
This study increases the understanding of the complexities and dynamics related to corporate brand image construction and helps managers size the potential of business partner relationships in corporate branding and manage co-creative brand partner relationships.
Originality/value
The roles are examined by applying a conceptual framework built by combining branding research in a novel way with the role theory. The study also provides a multi-stakeholder perspective to brand co-creation.