Abstract:
World is becoming increasingly “social” and the influence social media have on businesses’ activities cannot be denied anymore. Indeed, it is changing completely how companies promote and communicate their brands by offering new and challenging opportunities to increase brand awareness and engage directly with customers. Although B2B companies have start considering social media as an important marketing channel, they still have some difficulties in leveraging it properly and in integrating it in their marketing strategy. This research aims at investigating the role of social media as a marketing tool in the B2B sector. The first chapter analyses the existing academic literature regarding social media in the B2B environment by highlighting possible opportunities, advantages and barriers; the second chapter addresses the relationship between food and social media by focusing on the pastry sector; the third chapter explains the empirical investigation. Collected data are the result of three interviews in two companies and an online survey (N=44) targeting companies working in the pastry, ice cream and bakery sector in Europe. Findings suggest that the characteristics of the B2B sector in terms of product, market and buyer-seller relationships are important factors shaping social media adoption while companies have contrasting opinions regarding the influence senior manager’ mindset may have on social media usage. Additionally, the results show that B2B companies consider social media as a tool to attract new customers, increase brand awareness and foster real-time communication rather than to strengthen relationships with existing customers. On the other hand, evidence suggests that lack of time, resources and expertise are the main perceived barriers. Moreover, social media are considered a tool to inform and provide support to customers and not to sell products directly. Finally, companies recognize the fact that social media will increasingly support or eventually substitute traditional marketing channels, therefore it is necessary to integrate social media strategy with the overall marketing strategy.
