Social media has become the No. 1 channel for B2B brands

The main measure of success is engagement, which is not easy due to algorithm changes and the growth of AI content. Responsibility for social media is distributed across teams. CEO Richard Davies is active on LinkedIn, which adds credibility to the corporate page. The bank does not calculate ROI on organic content, allowing teams to "experiment tonally."

Toolstation: content for tradespeople

Tools and building materials supplier Toolstation has a "relatively small budget" for brand marketing and is increasing its share of social content to offset rising costs and declining reach of other channels. The content targets professional tradespeople, but must allow DIY customers to "feel comfortable," notes marketing and e-commerce director Chris Other. The main platforms are TikTok and Instagram, where the tradespeople audience is. "The content works for the brand, not performance, but some materials are used in paid social," he explains. Success is measured through brand awareness, reach and ROAS; social commerce is on the horizon.

Bureau: "you need to have something to say"

Office booth manufacturer Bureau has made social media a priority channel. "We try to show real people and real points of view, not to retell what the whole industry is saying, but to take a stance and have an opinion," says marketing vice president Josh Harris.

Social media lead Simona Baccanti describes the channel as a "playful," "editorial platform": the focus is not on the products, but on how they solve everyday problems, such as distractions in the office. Bureau gets its best engagement on Instagram; LinkedIn is a growth area, TikTok is for the future, along with influencer marketing. Posts from the company's founders perform "much more effectively" than corporate page content. "The main problem is that no one will buy a £10 thousand product directly on Instagram," notes Baccanti.

Pearson: 171 accounts — into one

Education company Pearson consolidated its social media about 15 months ago, cutting 171 accounts down to one main account on each platform in order to create "a single brand voice." Global brand vice president Rachel Exton calls LinkedIn the "platinum" platform for conversations "at the board level." Over 15 months, Pearson's LinkedIn page grew from 800 thousand to 1.3 million followers — thanks to the voices of top executives, stories about learners and video.

YouTube is the second priority as a platform for educational content; TikTok, Instagram and Facebook with their student and teacher audiences "have yet to be cracked." The brand is starting to experiment with Reddit given its popularity with LLMs. "You can't be schizophrenic and be someone completely different on LinkedIn than on TikTok. You need to stay yourself, just adjusting the tone," says Exton. According to her, all platforms today are "pay-to-play," and social media can work across the entire cycle — from brand to conversion.

Exton, like Harris and Burks, expects changes from AI: "We increasingly discuss how to build a brand for people and for machines. This will start competing with LinkedIn, Instagram, Reddit for marketing budgets. Social media have been leaders for a long time — they beat TV and programmatic. But now their first place may be shaken."