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B2B Targeting on Social: Practical Guide

B2B Targeting on Social: Practical Guide

Social platforms offer scale, identity data, and intent signals that aren’t always available through search or display.

Pie chart showing 75% of B2B buyers use social media when researching business purchases

According to industry benchmarks, 75% of B2B buyers use social channels to support purchase decisions, and over 50% engage with vendor content long before filling out any form.

1. Build Segments Based on Real Buyer Behavior

Start by aligning your audience segments with actual buying committee behavior.

  • Decision-makers: directors, VPs, and C‑level leaders.

  • Influencers: team leads, specialists, and practitioners.

  • Researchers: users who consume content but don’t yet express intent.

Useful metric: B2B teams report a 2.3× higher conversion rate when segmenting campaigns by buying committee role rather than broad job titles.

2. Layer Firmographic Filters

To refine your reach, apply:

  • Industry categories

  • Company size or employee count

  • Revenue brackets

  • Geographic distribution

Studies show that campaigns using firmographic filters deliver 28–35% lower CPA compared to non-filtered targeting.

3. Target by Engagement Signals

Warm audiences often convert fastest. Effective segments include:

  • Users who viewed videos to 50%+

  • Users who interacted with ads or posts

  • Repeat website visitors

  • People who downloaded assets

Engagement-based retargeting typically increases lead-to-opportunity conversion rates by versus cold audiences.

4. Use Competitor-Adjacent Targeting

Reach prospects who follow:

  • Competitor pages

  • Industry communities

  • Thought leaders relevant to your niche

Surveys show 46% of B2B buyers follow at least one competitor brand, making these audiences highly valuable for awareness and mid‑funnel campaigns.

5. Build Lookalikes from High-Intent Data

Lookalikes based on:

  • Returning website users

  • Trial signups

  • Sales-qualified leads

  • High-value customer lists

Campaigns using lookalikes built on high-intent sources typically see 20–40% increases in MQL quality.

6. Personalize Creatives by Audience Segment

Tailor messaging to each group:

  • Decision-makers: ROI, efficiency, business impact

  • Influencers: day-to-day value, product usability

  • Researchers: educational content and comparisons

Personalized ad variations can lift CTR by 30–50% and reduce cost per qualified lead.

7. Align Campaigns With the B2B Funnel

Top of funnel: educational content, industry insights, short explainer videos
Middle of funnel: case studies, testimonials, competitor comparisons
Bottom of funnel: demos, trials, pricing pages

Bar chart segment showing that 44 percent of B2B buyers review three to five content items before vendor engagement

Data shows that buyers who consume at least three types of content before converting have 44% higher deal close rates.

8. Measure Quality, Not Just Volume

Track beyond clicks:

  • SQL rate

  • Pipeline influenced

  • Cost per opportunity

  • Close rate

Teams that optimize for revenue metrics instead of lead volume report up to 65% improvement in ROAS.

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