1.
The Social Bridge
to the IT Committee
How trusted content on social media
builds relationships with IT buyers
Commissioned study
conducted by:

2.
2
Through decision
making process
60%
Buyers are highly informed, savvy, and demanding
Source: CEB, “The Digital Evolution in B2B Marketing”, 2012
First contact
with brand

3.
Tech companies risk being on the
sidelines if they don’t educate and help
TECH
COMPANIES
3
Decrease in lead
potential
Implications
Less exposure to
client and prospect
projects
Limiting long-term
perception as a trusted
partner and thought
leader

4.
Social media can help bridge the gap and build
relationships
4
TECH COMPANIES

5.
Why is it so critical to foster
long-term relationships?

6.
There is a scarcity of influential B2B tech buyers – tech
companies can’t afford to alienate them
5X more expensive to gain a new customer
than to retain an existing one 3
1 comScore PlanMetrix US June 2013
2 Forrester Research
3 TARP Worldwide
$820 billion
US IT spending2
15million
US Tech Decision Makers1
6

7.
THE IT COMMITTEE
They work
cross functionally
43% Work outside of IT
They include individual
contributors and managers
50% are individual
contributors or managers
These scarce influencers include more than the IT
department and the Executive team
Source: commissioned study conducted by comScore in the US on behalf of LinkedIn, Q3 2013 7

8.
LinkedIn partnered with comScore, Starcom MediaVest Group,
and Mashwork to understand today’s B2B IT Committee
comScore: Q3 2013
SMG / Mashwork: 2012
LinkedIn data: Q2 2013
8
What are they thinking?
379 IT Committee members
What are they saying?
3,000 tech posts from public
LinkedIn Groups
What are they doing?
IT decision makers on LinkedIn

9.
Key Findings
Source: commissioned study conducted by comScore in the US on behalf of LinkedIn, Q3 2013 9
Make the vendor shortlist by
fostering long-term relationships,
while serving short-term needs via
lead generation.
The vendor shortlist is more
exclusive and critical than you
think.
Social media is not just for
connecting with peers. The IT
Committee actively seeks insights
& conversations with vendors.

10.
The IT Committee actively seeks
conversations with vendors on
social media
10

11.
Nearly all of the IT Committee use social networks
Source: commissioned study conducted by comScore in the US on behalf of LinkedIn, Q3 2013 11
LinkedIn leads all social platforms
86%
2013
95%95%
2012
85%
Use social network monthly for business

12.
The reason? Social media – LinkedIn especially – provides
them with trust, efficiency, relevance, and access
Source: Commissioned study conducted by Forrester Consulting in 8 countries on behalf of LinkedIn, Q3 2012 12
Access
A
Access a
broader network
49%
Relevance
R
Relevant context to
connect with vendors
37%
Efficiency
E
Quickly
find information
40%
Trust
T
Learn from
trustworthy peers
58%

13.
TERA continues to drive even deeper utilization across the
entire IT decision process
Source: commissioned study conducted by comScore in the US on behalf of LinkedIn, Q3 2013 13
67%56% 58% 49% 61%
Implement
70%
Select
68%
Plan
74%
Scope
73%
Awareness
79%
Influence of social media at each stage of decision making
YoY
Increase

14.
As tech decision makers use social to learn and debate,
they’re looking to vendors to participate
Source: commissioned study conducted by comScore in the US on behalf of LinkedIn, Q3 2013 14
68%
Open to connecting with
vendors on social
Ready to have a conversation
with a vendor on social
76%

15.
The vendor shortlist is
more exclusive and critical
than you think
15

16.
The IT Committee already have a good idea who they want to
work with
Source: commissioned study conducted by comScore in the US on behalf of LinkedIn, Q3 2013 16
vendors make their short listOnly 3
purchased from a vendor that made the short list92%
purchased from a new vendorOnly 1 in 6

17.
How do you make the short list if
you are a new vendor?

18.
Old ways of communicating don’t work and can turn off your
audience
Source: commissioned study conducted by comScore in the US on behalf of LinkedIn, Q3 2013 18
Top 5 reasons the IT Committee doesn’t connect with a
vendor on a social network
05
Talk too much about
themselves
02
Don’t believe would provide
any credible information
04
Don’t believe would provide any
info that is relevant to my job
01
Don’t want to receive a lot of
marketing materials
03
Not thought leaders in
the category
Source: commissioned study conducted by comScore in the US on behalf of LinkedIn, Q3 2013

19.
Building relationships with the right content is critical to
being considered
19

20.
AWARENESS SCOPE PLAN SELECT IMPLEMENT
The IT Committee are interested in a diverse range of topics
– earn more interest with multiple types of content
Source: commissioned study conducted by comScore in the US on behalf of LinkedIn, Q3 2013 20
Best practices, how-to’s, checklists
Prod / solution demo / software trial
IT industry news / strategy info
Top types of information sought in each stage of IT
decision-making process:
Diagnostic / assessment tools

21.
3,217 IT Decision Makers engaged with
this article on LinkedIn in June
"Windows 8 is gold: Release date just
days away [link] #ITBW for
@computerworld by @richi $MSFT”
Junior Decision Maker, Twitter
"It's nice to hear that Asian companies are
starting to adopt e-learning. [Link] E-
learning going mobile in Asia | ZDNet”
Senior Decision Maker, LinkedIn Groups
21
Source: commissioned social intelligence research conducted by Mashwork on behalf of Starcom MediaVest Group and LinkedIn, Q1 – Q4 2012
Senior decision makers are 2X more likely to have shared
and engaged with product / industry news

22.
Senior decision makers were 11.5X more engaged with
thought leadership content
22
Source: commissioned social intelligence research conducted by Mashwork on behalf of Starcom MediaVest Group and LinkedIn, Q1 – Q4 2012
1,345 IT Decision Makers engaged with
this post on LinkedIn in June

23.
23
Source: commissioned social intelligence research conducted by Mashwork on behalf of Starcom MediaVest Group and LinkedIn, Q1 – Q4 2012
Junior decision makers were 39% more engaged with best
practice content
"An interesting and insightful article elaborating on the
innovative applications of analytics to enhance VAS
revenues.... [Link]"
Junior Decision Maker, LinkedIn Group

24.
Build relationships to make
the short list
24

25.
Traditional lead generation needs to be blended with social
to earn leads
25
Sweet Spot
Social
Relationships
Valuable
Content
Traditional
lead generation

26.
Context matters. Credibility and trust drive brand perception
and willingness to consider a vendor for the shortlist
45%
46%
47%
32%
33%
31%
23%
23%
21%
Source: commissioned study conducted by comScore in the US on behalf of LinkedIn, Q3 2013 26
% who trust LinkedIn more than other websites
Connecting more efficiently with vendors and relevant companies
Talking about my experience with IT vendors
Receiving information relevant to my IT decisions
LinkedIn Same Other websites

27.
The IT Committee are more likely to engage with their
vendors on LinkedIn than on other social networks
27Source: commissioned study conducted by comScore in the US on behalf of LinkedIn, Q3 2013
Reading a post
from their vendor
Following their
vendor
50%
more often
than other
social
networks
LINKEDIN IS
USED
56%
more often
than other
social
networks
LINKEDIN
IS USED

28.
Likelihood of getting a meeting with the IT Committee
increases as vendors engage with this audience on LinkedIn
28Source: commissioned study conducted by comScore in the US on behalf of LinkedIn, Q3 2013
# of types ways engaged with vendor on LinkedIn before purchase
Pre-Purchase Vendor Engagement by # of
Types of Engagements on LinkedIn

29.
Vendors who interact with the IT Committee at a high rate are
more likely to create promoters
29Source: commissioned study conducted by comScore in the US on behalf of LinkedIn, Q3 2013
Types of Engagement on LinkedIn Prior To Purchase
Vendor Net Promoter Score
39
NONE
58
1 TYPE
62
2+ TYPES

30.
Engage the IT Committee everywhere they learn
30
NEWSFEED
MOBILE
GROUPS
INMAIL

31.
Earn leads and build relationships with content
31
SLIDESHARE CHANNEL
SPONSORED UPDATES
SLIDESHARE CONTENT ADS
PERSONALIZED INSIGHTS VIA API

32.
Key Takeaways for IT Marketers
32
01
02
03
04
Target more than IT functions in your campaigns.
Effective content is authentic, valuable, timely, and customized
by decision stage and seniority.
Start earning leads via social in addition to buying leads
(traditional lead gen).
Focus on building relationships to get you on the short list.
Begin tracking how often and for what clients you make the short
list.
05