There were times when social media marketing was seen as a nice, but actually irrelevant ("Do we really need this?") addition to the marketing mix of B2C companies - and certainly not as something that could inspire B2B companies to new heights in sales. After all, private individuals are the audience of social media platforms. The target group of B2B companies, however, are companies - or at least a group of professionally trained decision-makers. So we could end this article here, couldn't we?

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Excursus B2B social media

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No, of course not. Because the days when telephone receivers, trade fair appearances, a skillful sales force and advertisements in trade journals were all that B2B companies' marketing and sales departments needed to achieve their goals are over. Instead, these same departments now face challenges that many of them may not have thought about 10 years ago: How can they become more present online when almost all decision-makers now obtain their information primarily online? And how do they manage to reach precisely those companies that have or could have a need for their offer before the international competition does - without driving scattering losses to infinity? Visibility, speed and a precise, targeted approach: today, social media marketing makes all of this possible in one fell swoop. Also for B2B companies.

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At first glance, the decision is obvious. Facebook is aimed at private individuals, LinkedIn at professionals. As a B2B company, you want to reach professionals. So everything on LinkedIn - right? Unfortunately, it's not that simple. Because even in B2B marketing, it all depends on what goals you are pursuing. And we must not forget: At the end of the day, all professionals, however responsible their position may be, are also private individuals.

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The Facebook advertising universe: It's all about the masses?

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With around 2.8 billion monthly users, Facebook is still the most popular social media platform in the world - and that doesn't even include Instagram, which is part of the Facebook family. Facebook was founded as a network for friends, family and acquaintances. Its activities focus on personal interests, leisure activities such as hobbies or events and connecting with private contacts, which would be easy to lose sight of without the network.

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This also leads to one of the most important criteria for deciding for or against Facebook Ads: users only fill out their profiles with the most necessary information. As they only network with people they already know privately anyway, they have no reason to provide detailed information about their profession, employer or career. When it comes to targeting, Facebook (and Instagram as well) must therefore mainly rely on insights from users' online behavior. This can be a challenge for B2B companies that only want to reach a small, clearly defined target group. However, B2B providers who manage to reach potential decision-makers with skilful Facebook marketing and to pick them up emotionally usually already have more than just one foot in the door.

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LinkedIn Ads: Quality over quantity, or Facebook?

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756 million users instead of 2.8 billion: Compared to Facebook, LinkedIn looks small. However, this impression is deceptive - because LinkedIn is to social media platforms what a B2B company is to analog life. Unlike Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Snapchat, TikTok and the like, LinkedIn is a professional, not a private network. For many professionals around the world, it is a natural part of their everyday working life and the platform of choice for their personal branding. This in itself narrows down LinkedIn's target group. In addition, the majority of LinkedIn users are what we call knowledge workers. You will most likely find the head of the purchasing department of an automotive supplier on LinkedIn, but you are unlikely to find a painter or mechatronics engineer (but they are very good on Facebook and Instagram).

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What does this mean for targeting? Quite a lot! As a career network, LinkedIn offers users an immediate incentive to fill out their profiles in as much detail as possible and keep them up to date. After all, the next dream job could be just a few clicks or contact paths away. The database that you can draw on when targeting your LinkedIn Ads therefore allows for a much finer gradation and more precise targeting than your competitor Facebook.

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In return, Facebook offers more effective retargeting due to its higher user numbers - i.e. the display of ads for a product that the user has previously viewed on another website. The same applies to the targeting of lookalike target groupswhich, when used correctly, can become an effective tool for reaching your B2B target groups on Facebook. Overall, the technological basis on which Facebook Ads are based is unsurpassed in many respects. It is not for nothing that the algorithm for displaying ads is one of Facebook's best-kept company secrets. The Ads Manager, which automates many tasks and makes the ongoing optimization of campaign performance particularly easy, also continues to set industry standards.

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The differences between Facebook and LinkedIn Advertising in practice

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An example to illustrate the differences: Let's say you are a manufacturer of workwear and want to attract new customers in the construction industry. Since very few people on Facebook specify their profession, your ad targeting here takes into account the assumed interests of users based on their online activities. However, someone who is interested in work clothes and tools is not necessarily active in the construction industry - and certainly not in a managerial position. It is therefore highly likely that your ad will be displayed to DIY enthusiasts, house builders and other private individuals as well as professional tradespeople. This should be taken into account in the campaign concept.

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On LinkedIn, on the other hand, you can not only select the industry, profession and education of the people you want your ad to reach. You can even specify the specific company. In this way, you can ensure that your ads reach precisely those users for whom your products are actually relevant and who may decide directly whether to do business with you (although there are of course some imprecisions and display errors here). With Sponsored Messaging Ads, you can even send personalized direct messages directly to your target group's inbox on LinkedIn.

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Everything on LinkedIn - or on Facebook?

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The user data that LinkedIn has at its disposal is therefore many times more valuable for B2B companies than that used for Facebook Ads. Of course, this is also reflected in the costs. According to Social DNA Benchmarks, the average CPC (cost per click on an ad) on Facebook in Germany is between €0.25 and €1.50, whereas it is usually between €4.00 and €12.00 on LinkedIn. What may seem daunting at first glance is - as we have seen - quite justified. And can pay off with the right strategy and precise implementation.

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So is LinkedIn the platform of choice for B2B companies? It depends. Facebook is bigger, cheaper and offers a wider range of ad formats and automation options. LinkedIn, on the other hand, takes ad targeting to the extreme, offers access to a highly professional, professionally active audience and pays accordingly for both. In general, the higher the volume of a single deal in your company, the more worthwhile it is to invest in precisely targeted LinkedIn ads.

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Why only one when you can have both?

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Both platforms help you to achieve different goals. You are likely to generate higher quality leads with LinkedIn Ads, whereas you may generate broader brand awareness with Facebook and Instagram Ads. Translated into our example, this would mean that on LinkedIn you reach the person who decides on the purchase of work clothing at the large construction company you would like to have as a customer - but on Facebook you also reach those who would wear your products day after day and are therefore likely to have an influence on the buyer's decision. Ideally, you should therefore combine both channels to maximize the impact of your campaign. Facebook and Instagram Ads can provide quantity and broad visibility, while LinkedIn contributes the necessary quality and leads.

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Decision matrix and webinar video

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How you allocate it depends entirely on your goals. We have developed a webinar and a decision aid that can help you with an initial assessment of the ideal distribution of your media budget and at the same time contains the most important distinguishing features of the two platforms. If you are interested, please send an email to hello@social-dna.de!