When we read about the importance of listening, monitoring and being active in social media, it is typically in reference to B2C companies. Social media is almost seen as “sexy” and a “must-have strategy” for B2C success, yet we tend to hear less about how important real-time listening and social media monitoring is for B2B companies. Typically, B2B marketers are not looking for the “sexy” solution; they want practical ways to measure their brand, their campaigns, and their place in the market, and they want to use that intelligence to make impactful business decisions. What’s more, many B2B companies don’t think that they have enough brand mentions to warrant monitoring online conversations. But B2B companies, like their B2C counterparts, can benefit tremendously from listening to conversations in the social sphere. 

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The traditional features release with its consumer-directed, ready-to-go content is ideal for exposing your messages to a diverse audience. But features releases can accomplish another goal. Because features stories now appear on media websites and search engines that reach millions of people online, with a little creativity and planning your features release can become a valuable tool for measuring the success of your PR and marketing activities. Not only can you reach new target audiences, but you can also drive them to your website where you’re able to track traffic patterns, garner new business leads and even generate revenue. In short, features releases can play an important role in gathering market intelligence and demonstrating measurable ROI.  

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