The Rise Of B2B Influencer Marketing: Credible Partnerships Driving Leads & Sales

A photo of a diverse group of business professionals engaged in a lively discussion, with a thought bubble above their heads containing the words "B2B influencer marketing."

The influence of social media is undeniable in today's digital landscape. While most associate the term "influencer" with Instagram models and YouTube beauty gurus, a new category has emerged - the B2B influencer. As B2B influencer marketing continues its meteoric rise, smart brands are leveraging partnerships with credible industry experts to drive leads and sales.

What is B2B Influencer Marketing?

B2B influencer marketing refers to partnering with influential experts to promote products or services to other businesses. This allows brands to connect with niche professional audiences and build trust in competitive industries.

According to a recent study by Rival IQ, over 80% of marketers find influencer marketing effective for their B2B companies. Whether through educational content, reviews, product mentions, or co-created assets, B2B influencers provide brands access to highly targeted, relevant audiences.

The Power of Credibility and Authenticity

In a sea of #ads and sponsored posts, consumers have banner blindness to anything that smells less than genuine. This makes credibility and authenticity even more critical in B2B influencer campaigns.

Rather than celebrities or internet famous personalities, B2B influencers are industry experts, analysts, and professionals with established follower bases tuned into their specialty.

Whether a prominent Twitter biofilm engineer or LinkedIn FinTech writer, B2B influencers understand technical specifics and buyer journeys in their field. They can speak to professional pain points and product solutions in an insightful yet relatable way.

This subject matter expertise lends itself to more authentic recommendations. Audiences recognize B2B influencers are not paid actors but real advocates vetting solutions for professional use.

The rise of micro and niche influencers further enables hyper-targeted, credible partnerships. With options like Fluencer Market's ready-made bundles, brands can easily deploy geo-targeted campaigns matching their product to regional or industry-specific needs.

The Lead & Sales Generating Power of Influencers

With buyers trusting recommendations from industry peers over branded messaging, the lead and sales-generating power of B2B influencers is monumental.

According to Demand Metric, B2B decision-makers are 70% more likely to trust peers' opinions over messaging from brands. A recent LinkedIn study also found content shared by employees receives 561% more engagement than brand-shared content and is re-shared 25 times more.

Whether reviews, how-tos, AMAs, or other co-created assets, influencer content leverages an authentic voice and existing community. This drives qualified traffic and lead generation through trust and recognition.

In many cases, the educational or advisory nature of B2B influencer content also nurtures prospects throughout earlier funnel stages towards a purchase - rendering it a sales tool through the path to purchase.

The Future of B2B Influencer Marketing

As more marketers experience the lead and sales-generating power of influencer campaigns first-hand, partnerships with B2B social media stars and industry experts will continue to rise.

Forbes goes as far as predicting that in the next 5 years, every company will have an influencer marketing strategy regardless of B2B or B2C.