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Generative AI is everywhere now. You see it in content, campaigns, customer experiences, and even internal workflows. It promises speed, scale, and efficiency, but there’s a harder question sitting underneath all that progress; Do your audiences actually trust it?

Trust in the Age of AI: What Consumers Really Think About AI Generated Content

Today, PR teams aren’t just tracking media coverage and share of voice. They’re also measuring how their brand shows up in AI-generated answers, search summaries, and large language models (LLMs). This new LLM visibility layer is quickly becoming a critical part of PR performance.

15 Must-Have PR KPIs and How to Track Them

See how one platform can power every decision across PR, communications, and marketing.

The Meltwater Blog

Blog Topics: Generative Engine Optimization, Media Intelligence, Media Relations, Social Listening, Consumer Intelligence, Influencer Marketing

Find out how you can leverage Facebook to boost your brand's online presence and gain a competitive edge. Explore the Meltwater category page today!

Facebook Blog | Meltwater

Find out how you can leverage Instagram to boost your brand's visual appeal and gain a competitive edge. Explore our category page today!

Instagram Blog | Meltwater

Find out how you can leverage LinkedIN to grow your professional network and gain a competitive edge. Explore the Meltwater category page today!

LinkedIn Blog | Meltwater

Find out how you can leverage TikTok to elevate your brand with creative content and gain a competitive edge. Explore the Meltwater category page today!

TikTok Blog | Meltwater

Find out how you can leverage X / Twitter to engage your audience effectively and gain a competitive edge. Explore the Meltwater category page today!

X / Twitter Blog | Meltwater

Find out how you can leverage YouTube to create engaging video content and gain a competitive edge. Explore the Meltwater category page today!

YouTube Blog | Meltwater

Generative Engine Optimization (GEO) is transforming how brands show up in AI-powered search. Explore insights, strategies, and best practices to help your content rank and resonate across conversational engines like ChatGPT, Gemini, and Copilot.

Explore insights and strategies for Generative Engine Optimization (GEO) to help your brand stay visible and discoverable in AI-powered search.

Generative Engine Optimization (GEO) Blog Collection | Meltwater

Every day billions of conversations take place on social media: tweets, posts, comments, blogs, reviews, podcasts, and much more.
Learn how to use social listening to make sense of all of that data.

On our social listening category page, you find all our blogs covering topics around social listening and social media monitoring. Read more.

Social Listening Blogs | Category

Business Reputation Management: What does it take to add reputation management to your marketing strategy? More importantly, how do you keep your reputation sparkly and shiny? Here’s your all-access guide to online reputation management for the long term.

On our reputation management category page, you find all our blogs covering topics around business reputation management. Read more.

Reputation Management Blogs | Category

From your brand's logo to your website, your social media presence to your customer support—these elements combined are what constitutes a brand in the minds of customers. But, there are thousands of other businesses that have a logo, website, social media presence, and website. So, how can you position your business on the market and make it stand out from the competition?
The key to success is branding & brand management!

On our brand management category page, you find all our blogs covering topics around brand management. Build your strategy and reach your goals!

Brand Management Blogs | Category

Competitive intelligence and the act of collecting competitive data can be seen as growth drivers for a company. Our guide will help you understand the concept of competitive intelligence (CI) by answering questions such as: What is the definition of competitive intelligence? How is competitive intelligence useful to organizations? What is the goal of competitive intelligence? And more.

On our competitive intelligence category page, you find all our blogs covering topics around competitive intelligence. Learn how to stay ahead.

Competitive Intelligence Blogs | Category

Let’s dive into the customer journey framework and how to optimize the process by creating a customer journey map and using metrics that matter when analyzing the customer journey.

On our customer journey category page, you find all our blogs covering topics around mapping and understanding the customer journey.

Customer Journey Blogs | Category

What Is Data Analytics? [Beginner’s Guide 2023]
How can I grow my business? 
How do customers interact with my newly launched product?
How do I increase the productivity of my employees?
How do I know if my marketing efforts are working?
We have just two words for you...Data analytics!

On our data analytics category page, you find all our blogs covering topics around AI and data analytics. Technical and still easy to understand.

AI & Data Analytics Blogs | Category

Public relations and media relations can add impact to any marketing strategy. It’s an opportunity for brands to grow their reach beyond traditional sales messages. PR helps to shape the image you want people to have of your brand.
So, what is PR and how do you use it? This guide shows you everything you need to know to build a strong public relations foundation.

On our public relations (PR) category page, you find all our blogs covering public relations and communications topics. Step up your PR game.

Public Relations (PR) Blogs | Category

We all know exactly what the roles of sales or accounting are in a company, right? We might even have a slight idea of what the IT guys are doing.
But there is another business discipline, that plays a crucial role in organizations, even more so during the pandemic – internal communications!
But what exactly do we mean by that, what purpose does it serve and what steps can you take to ensure you and your employees will communicate effectively?

On our internal communications category page, you find all our blogs about internal comms topics. Learn about the intranet, internal newsletters, and more.

Internal Communications Blogs | Category

As the internet has taken root in more areas of our lives — everything from entertainment to shopping to paying bills and more — traditional marketing is becoming less impactful. As any marketer knows, you need to focus on where your audience is if you want to reach them. Since the average person spends about seven hours a day online, it’s no surprise that content has maintained its hold on marketers.

Here's a closer look at what content marketing is and why it matters more than ever in our digital-first economy.

On our content marketing category page, you find blogs about content marketing topics. Learn about strategies, KPIs, tips, and more. Make your content king!

Content Marketing Blogs | Category

The rise of the influencer marketing space – today a $10 billion industry, growing 50% per year – is one of the clearest examples of how social media is transforming traditional marketing. These days having a business website, presence on social, PR coverage, and your own content isn’t enough to compete.
We'll dive into the intricacies of influencer marketing to help ensure that you're equipped with the insights needed to be successful in this space.

On our influencer marketing category page, you find blogs about influencer marketing topics. Build your strategy, find influencers, and measure results.

Influencer Marketing Blogs | Category

Have you just launched a new product or service that you want to get the word out about? Maybe you want to share with consumers why it is awesome and how it is so much better than the one your competitors offer.

Well, then, there is one thing you can't do without...Marketing!

On our marketing category page, you find blogs about marketing topics. Learn about all the different angles and types of marketing and improve your results.

Marketing Blogs | Category

In this guide, we want to give you a peek into the definition of social media management, the daily schedule of a social media manager, social media platforms to promote your business, and the do’s & don’ts of social media management.
Are you ready to begin the journey of becoming a social media superstar?

On our social media management category page, you find blogs about social media management topics. Build and manage your online community.

Social Media Management Blogs | Category

Building a following and using social media platforms to reach a wider audience requires a well-planned social media marketing strategy. In this guide, we’ll be looking at why social media marketing is so essential and how you can make it work for your business.

On our social media marketing category page, you find blogs about social media marketing topics. Learn how to get the highest paid social ROI!

Social Media Marketing Blogs | Category

In the fast-evolving realm of digital marketing and public relations, utilizing the right tools is crucial for success. Our interdisciplinary category showcases all the pertinent tools for digital marketing & PR. These tools help in enhancing your online presence and effectively reaching target groups, whether through reputation management, influencer marketing, or social media management.

On our digital marketing and PR tools category page, you find all our blogs covering topics around mapping and understanding the customer journey.

Digital Marketing & PR Tools Blogs | Category

As social media channels go, LinkedIn stands out from the crowd as the professional’s platform. It caters to the career-driven, the consultant, and the corporate. It provides opportunities to job seekers and a space for those at the top of their field to share their knowledge and expertise.

While different from more typical social media platforms, LinkedIn does still have an algorithm that favours best practices around what and when to publish. In this blog, we cover the ideal times to post on LinkedIn in South Africa for maximum reach and engagement, with a couple of extra tips to optimise your content.

When is the Best Time to Publish on LinkedIn in South Africa?

Publishing on LinkedIn From South Africa for an International Audience

Optimising LinkedIn Content for Maximum Reach

Leverage Meltwater to Find the Best Time to Post on LinkedIn in South Africa

LinkedIn activity is on the up in South Africa: 99.1% of South African internet users say they use social media platforms, 37.5% have looked at recruitment platforms, and 20% of the national population use LinkedIn, according to the report on social media statistics in South Africa. In addition, 52% of internet users between the ages of 16 and 64 use LinkedIn each month. As a destination website, LinkedIn falls just outside of the top 10 sites visited in South Africa, closely following behind Netflix.com and WhatsApp.com. 

Its status as one of the fastest-growing platforms in the country underlines its importance to the business community at large. With myriad networking opportunities, recruitment potential, and a wealth of thought leadership content, LinkedIn is the most dynamic and user-centric professional platform.

Meltwater Marketing Tip: Learn more about the South African Digital & Social Media Statistics 2024.

If you’re active on LinkedIn, you’ve probably noticed posts from days or even weeks ago on your news feed. This is because LinkedIn has a heavy skew towards content that drives interaction rather than simply showing the newest content first.

However, it is still important to post at a time that encourages early uptake. This initial engagement is important for the algorithm to determine the quality of your post and display it on your contact’s feed. A social media management tool will provide you with detailed audience analytics that reveal the optimal times to post. By analysing engagement patterns and follower activity, it will ensure your content reaches the maximum number of users at peak times, boosting visibility and impact.

Because the LinkedIn audience uses the platform more professionally than personally, users tend to be active during working hours more so than in their downtime. With this in mind, the best time to post on LinkedIn in South Africa is between 07h00 and 08h00 during the week. The least effective times to post are late at night, as well as over weekends. 

Interestingly, the top performing posts on a Monday are published later, between 10h00 and 11h00. This is likely due to users catching up emails or admin, or attending those common 09h00 Monday morning meetings.

The best time for immediate engagement on a Tuesday and Wednesday is between 06h00 and 08h00, targeting the time that businesses open and professionals log on.

Early morning is still the ideal time to post on a Thursday and Friday, but early afternoon posts also see high engagement. As the work week winds down, many corporate professionals spend their mornings on more deep focus work before looking to engage on the platform. After the 06h00 and 08h00 time slot, 14h00 is the best time to post on LinkedIn.

While the weekend typically sees less engagement, there are still users that interact on LinkedIn. This is normally between 05h00 and 06h00, as the early bird professionals log in before the day starts.

While it’s helpful to know the best time to post in South Africa, it’s important to bear your international audience in mind, particularly for relevance and engagement. If your content is designed for a broader target market, scoping out the time zones of your professional network can help you optimise your scheduling. 

Posting at different times in the day and monitoring engagement and performance is a great way to determine the best time for you to post. Again, making use of a social media management tool is essential. With analytics, strategy optimisation, and intuitive scheduling features, you can be sure that every post will reach the right audience at the right time.

LinkedIn is one of the only platforms where organic reach isn’t restricted. Instead, quality content is promoted as opposed to just paid promotions. Simply put, engaging content creates engagement. 

There are a few ways you can optimise your LinkedIn content for that extra interaction:

There are just three ingredients needed for a good LinkedIn post. 

Firstly, a “hook” or attention-grabbing opening sentence to bring a reader in so that they want to read more.

Secondly, valuable post content. It should be informative, insightful or instructional. Your audience should feel like they’ve gained knowledge through reading or engaging with your content. Anecdotal, industry-specific posts that deliver authenticity and insights go far in performance.

Finally, draw attention with a strong image (or images), or a video.

Adding trending hashtags in South Africa that your target audience is most likely going to be looking for helps expand your reach. While general and relevant hashtags support your content, using a keyword research tool is an ideal way to optimise your posts for maximum exposure.

Meltwater Marketing Tip: Hashtags also help drive engagement and reach, as they allow content to fall within a popular search term. They increase and amplify content visibility - especially in South Africa where social media is used for sales, marketing, entertainment, and business. Learn more about the top trending hashtags in South Africa. 

Adapting to the LinkedIn algorithm keeps your content relevant and top-of-feed. One of the easiest, most effective ways to do this is to use a variety of post formats. Diversify your content by creating video, carousels, and single-image posts (portrait usually performs better than landscape).

The best way to know when to post on LinkedIn in South Africa is to continuously monitor and analyse your audience’s behaviour. By using a social media management tool, you can analyse your audience’s behaviour as well as track and monitor the performance of your content in order to further optimise for the platform. 

We understand that developing a social media strategy for each platform requires significant time and effort. So we’ve compiled a social media toolkit packed with resources, inspiration, templates, and guides to streamline your social program, improve your reporting, and help you stay ahead of the competition.

Get in touch with Meltwater by filling out the form below. You can request a free demo and learn how to get the most out of your LinkedIn content.

The Best Time to Post on LinkedIn in South Africa

Every year, as the summer winds down and we dig out the long sleeves to prepare for the cooler months, the “Song of the Summer” — all of the earworm-y tracks that became staples of your poolside hangs, your backyard cookouts, or your beach vacations — becomes a trendy topic online.

Maybe you enjoyed the neon-green hedonism of Charli XCX’s “360”, the lead single off of her summer-conquering album Brat. Perhaps you preferred the playful, chilled-out disco of Sabrina Carpenter’s viral hit “Espresso”. Whatever your personal preference, Summer 2024 had no shortage of contenders for the Song of the Summer championship belt.

That’s why we used the Meltwater Media Intelligence Suite to find out which Song of the Summer candidate generated the most global buzz. Using a list of 10 of the most popular tunes from the last three months, we examined the online, social media, and news conversation from May 15 to August 15 to see which of them made the biggest impact. 

“Mamushi” by Megan Thee Stallion feat. Yuki Chiba

“Birds of a Feather” by Billie Eilish

“Million Dollar Baby” by Tommy Richman

Our data shows that Kendrick Lamar’s “Not Like Us” generated by far the most buzz of the summer. Stemming from Lamar’s ongoing feud with Canadian rap mogul Drake, the song was covered and discussed extensively by fans, critics, influencers, and traditional media. This is likely why “Not Like Us” generated almost 3 times the number of mentions as the next most popular track, Sabrina Carpenter’s “Espresso”.

Lamar also built on the initial buzz of the song throughout the summer, giving it staying power in the public discourse and the press from early May all the way through to early July, as you can see from the spikes in mentions of “Not Like Us” on News and Broadcast channels.

Peak 1: June 20, 2024 - This first spike in mention volume is due to Lamar's performance of his Drake diss track multiple times during a pop-out concert in his hometown of Los Angeles. The show (and the many performances of the track) sparked interest and speculation about their ongoing feud. The presence of high-profile celebrities like LeBron James and Russell Westbrook at the concert also contributed to the spike in coverage. This BBC news article was the top piece by reach, while the AP’s report from the show was the top post by engagement.

Peak 2: July 1, 2024 - The song spiked again in broadcast and news mentions during controversial and politically charged moments at the BET Awards involving Taraji P. Henson and Vice President Kamala Harris. As host of the awards, Henson opened the show with a parodied version of “Not Like Us” and proceeded to make a number of political statements over the course of the evening. On top of that, Harris appeared in a skit during the awards and even quoted the song, sparking discussion and criticism on social media, especially X. This article from the Daily Beast generated the most reach, while a broadcast from News18 India had the most engagement.

Peak 3: July 5, 2024 - “Not Like Us” recaptured the zeitgeist once again and caused a spike in mentions when Lamar released the music video for the track. The video features a number of celebrities and persons of interest in the feud, including Lamar’s fiancée Whitney Alford and NBA star DeMar Derozan, an LA native who started his career in Drake’s hometown of Toronto. The video’s release was covered extensively by the traditional and broadcast news, including this NBC News article that generated the most reach, and this Social News article that saw the most engagement.

Although Kendrick Lamar’s “Not Like Us” may have generated the most buzz, our analysis shows that it did not enjoy the most positive sentiment. In fact, Shaboozey’s country hit “A Bar Song (Tipsy)” generated the most positive sentiment globally. 

“Not Like Us” actually generated the most negative sentiment of any of the songs we analyzed. This may not be surprising, as the song is a targeted diss against one of the biggest pop stars in the world. It also generated negative press when other artists played it, like after a fight broke out when rapper Rick Ross dropped “Not Like Us” during a festival set in Vancouver.

It’s no surprise that “Not Like Us” garnered the most mentions in the United States, but it was also the most popular song in Brazil, South Africa, Canada, France, Nigeria, and India. Elsewhere, Sabrina Carpenter’s “Espresso” was the most mentioned track in the UK and China. Finally, Megan Thee Stallion’s “Mamushi”, featuring Japanese rapper Yuki Chiba, was the most popular song in Japan.

Sabrina Carpenter’s “Espresso” generated the most discussion on Pinterest and broadcast news. It was also neck-and-neck with “Not Like Us” in terms of mentions on podcasts. 

“Not Like Us” generated the most discussion on Reddit, and was also extremely popular in comments sections, news sites, and on X. In fact, from May 15 to August 15, “Not Like Us” was mentioned on social media 950,000 times.

Similar to the song’s spikes in broadcast and news mentions, its biggest spikes coincided with his LA pop-out concert on June 20 and the release of the song’s music video on July 4. 

This year featured a strong slate of Song of the Summer candidates, and we already can’t wait for next year! 

Want to see how the Meltwater Suite could help you do your own deep-dive online analysis? Request a demo today!

Song of the Summer 2024: A Meltwater Analysis

Gaming influencers might not be the most obvious choice in influencer marketing. But there’s no question that they can help put your brand under a national spotlight. They’ve turned a popular pastime into a lifestyle brand, a practice that has captivated the attention of millions. They can put their popularity to work for you in the best possible ways.

Gaming content creators serve a wide spectrum of audiences. That’s because gaming is a hobby that knows no bounds. People from every interest, subculture, and walk of life connect over video games, which can help you cast a wider net and build a loyal following of your own.

Here’s a closer look at the top five gaming influencers and how to work with them and other gamers in your influencer marketing strategy.

Benefits of Collaborating with Gaming Influencers

Find More Gaming Influencers with Meltwater

A gaming influencer is someone who plays video games and shares their experiences with an online audience. They often live-stream their video gaming so their fans can follow along in real time.

Typically found on platforms like Twitch and YouTube, gaming influencers are known for their skills, entertaining commentary, and personalities. They attract a large, loyal following who enjoy watching them play.

What makes them influencers is their ability to impact their followers' opinions and choices — about which games to play, gear to buy, or trends to follow. Influencers can range from casual gamers who play for fun to professional eSports players who compete at a high level.

Because of gaming influencers’  large and engaged audiences, brands often partner with them to promote products.

Check out our influencer definition to learn more about what to expect when working with influencers.

Tip: Check out our blog about the top Twitch influencers right here.

Brands, businesses, and even other influencers can benefit from partnering with gaming influencers. 

Authentic promotion. Influencers promote products in ways that feel natural and relatable to their audience, which can help you build trust and credibility instantly.

High engagement. Gaming influencers interact with fans in real time, which creates immediate feedback and can build a sense of community around your brand.

Brand awareness. Working with top gaming influencers can significantly boost your brand’s visibility because of their large followings. Our influencer marketing statistics support the success of using influencers for brand awareness.

Unique content. Gaming influencers are well known for creating diverse and entertaining content that resonates with their audience, removing the guesswork of what people will respond to.

Diverse platforms. You’ll find gaming influencers on TikTok, YouTube, Twitch, Instagram, and more, helping you reach different segments across various channels.

Gaming influencers are a unique subset of influencer marketing. Their audiences are highly diverse and can help you capture unique niche markets you might not have targeted otherwise.

Going by audience size, PewDiePie (whose real name is Felix Arvid Ulf Kjellberg) is arguably the best gaming influencer. He’s amassed an impressive 104 million subscribers. 

Even many people who aren’t gamers have heard of him.

Finding a gaming influencer to collaborate with takes a little effort given the massive size of the gaming communities. Here are some tips to streamline your search.

Use Meltwater to find top gaming influencers

Meltwater's Influencer Marketing Platform, gives you the quickest route to find gaming influencers. You can search for gamers based on your criteria, such as:

Audience size (e.g., gaming micro-influencers)

Social media platform (e.g., TikTok gaming influencers)

Meltwater gives an Influencer Score to each gaming influencer, which is like a stamp of approval. It shows you which creators have engaged and growing audiences and a high level of trust among the public.

You can find and vet influencers and also reach out to them directly through Meltwater. Create and send influencer briefs and track your communications.

When you’re ready to collaborate, Meltwater also includes influencer campaign tracking. You can view metrics for each campaign so you can track content and engagement. See how your partnership is paying off.

Want to see Meltwater's influencer marketing solution in action? Click here and fill out the form below for a personalized demo!

Find gaming influencers on Instagram by looking at relevant hashtags. Gamers will include gaming-related hashtags in their content, such as names of video games or generic terms like #gamer.

You can click the hashtag on Instagram to see who’s posting content using those same hashtags. This is a great way to discover creators and view the type of content they’re posting before reaching out to them.

Join gaming forums, subreddits, and Discord communities where influencers often interact with their followers. You can see what types of content they’re posting about and whether people are engaging with their posts.

Engaging in these spaces can help you identify influencers who are active and respected within specific gaming communities.

Keep it simple with a Google search. You can search for keywords like “gaming influencers Instagram” or “best Twitch streamers” and see who pops up.

Google typically gives you lists of influencers across multiple platforms and subtopics. This can be a quick way to identify gaming influencers, but make sure you dig deeper before reaching out to potential candidates.

If you’re on the hunt for a gaming influencer, consider these biggest gaming influencers who are used to working with brands and companies.

Swedish YouTube gamer PewDiePie is one of the most recognizable names in online gaming. He started his YouTube channel in 2010 and has since grown the largest following in his niche. He’s most widely known for his “Let’s Play” videos and humorous commentary on a wide range of video games, particularly horror titles.

His success has led to a number of brand collaborations and a book deal. Despite some controversy regarding language and off-putting jokes, he has maintained his influence in the gaming world and beyond. His content has expanded to include vlogs, memes, and general commentary on internet culture.

Canadian Twitch streamer xQx (whose real name is Félix Lengyel) is a professional eSports player known for his lively and often unpredictable personality. He originally gained fame as a professional Overwatch player, representing teams like the Dallas Fuel in the Overwatch League. He now streams full time and creates diverse content across multiple games.

One of the most notable female gaming influencers, Valkyrae (whose real name is Rachel Hofstetter) is an American gamer, streamer, and YouTube content creator. She first gained popularity on the streaming platform Twitch, where she played games like Fortnite and Among Us. She later transitioned to YouTube gaming, becoming one of the platform’s biggest female gaming influencers.

Valkyrae is known for her engaging personality, skilled gameplay, and her ability to create a welcoming and inclusive community. She is also a co-owner of the esports organization 100 Thieves.

Jacksepticeye, whose real name is Seán McLoughlin, is an Irish YouTuber and one of the most popular gaming influencers on the platform. Known for his distinctive accent and loud “Top o’ the morning to ya” intro, he plays various video games and uses the popular “Let’s Play” format to attract millions of followers. He’s even earned a nod from PewDiePie, which helped him gain support for his channel.

Beyond gaming, Jacksepticeye has expanded his content to include vlogs, charity live streams, and collabs with other creators. He frequently uses his platform to raise money for various causes, another aspect that helps him maintain a loyal fanbase.

Tyler “Ninja” Blevins: 99 Meltwater Score

One of the most popular faces on the Twitch streaming platform, Tyler Blevins (who goes by Ninja) built his brand with livestreams of Halo 3 and Fortnite: Battle Royale. He brings high energy and engagement to his streams and has attracted millions of followers, making him a household name in gaming influencer marketing. His success has helped to bring eSports into the mainstream world.

Ninja’s popularity has led to several high-profile collaborations with celebrities, appearances in the mainstream media, and partnerships with major brands, including a deal with Microsoft to stream exclusively on Mixer for a period of time. He’s also dabbled in other ventures, including books, merchandise, and voice acting for — you guessed it — video games (and a few TV series).

If you’re contacting gaming micro-influencers, you may be able to reach them via their social channels. Micro-influencers have smaller audiences and may or may not have a team working behind the scenes, so you have a stronger chance of reaching them directly.

Many of the top gaming influencers have agencies that represent them. You can try contacting them through social media, but there’s no guarantee they will respond or even see your message.

To get in front of gaming influencers for a potential collaboration, it’s helpful to use gaming influencer services. You can get a direct line to their representatives and start the conversation.

You can also use platforms like Meltwater to handle your outreach. Melter not only shows you the best gaming influencers but also gives you a way to contact them directly. You can create an influencer marketing request, track your messages via the platform, and keep all of your communications in one place.

We’ve gotten you started with a list of the top five gaming influencers. You can start adding to this list with Meltwater. Our influencer marketing platform lets you discover influencers in any niche, including gaming, then filter them based on your criteria. 

Keep your outreach, collaboration, and metrics all in one place. See how working with gaming influencers can pay off for your brand — learn more when you request a demo by filling out the form below!

Top 5 Gaming Influencers and How to Work With Them

No two customers are quite alike. But dig deeper and you’ll find that some of your B2B customers share unique characteristics. Knowing these characteristics — a process called B2B segmentation — makes it easier to tailor your marketing and customer journey in a way potential customers will notice.

In marketing, generalized messaging isn’t always effective. General messaging talks to everyone and no one. There’s nothing that makes your customer stop in their tracks and think, “Hey, they really get me!”

That’s where B2B customer segmentation can help. While many marketers associate segmentation with consumer marketing, it also applies to business customers. Here’s how you can use this strategy to reach more customers and drive more sales.

What Is an Example of B2B Customer Segmentation?

Key Differences Between B2B and B2C Customer Segmentation

Methods for Effective B2B Customer Segmentation

Best Practices for Successful B2B Customer Segmentation

Implementing B2B Customer Segmentation in Your Business

B2B customer segmentation refers to how you divide your business’s customers into groups, or “segments.” These segments are based on shared characteristics, such as the products they purchase or the lead channels they came through.

For example, a business selling software might have customers in multiple industries. Companies might vary in size (e.g., startups, enterprise customers). Knowing these characteristics, you can tailor your marketing, sales, and product offerings to meet their unique needs. This might have an affordable solution for smaller companies and more advanced features for enterprises, for example.

You might also hear customer segmentation referred to as audience segmentation. Same thing.

Ultimately, B2B segmentation helps you target your efforts more effectively. You can put the right message in front of the right person via the right channel. This also helps you prioritize resources and find growth opportunities within different segments.

The importance of customer segmentation cannot be overstated. Segmentation allows you to tailor your sales and marketing to different types of customers in ways that matter to them. They’re more likely to notice your campaigns when you speak directly to their needs. 

It also gives you a more accurate picture of who your target customers are and what makes them buy from you. Segmenting is powerful for surfacing your competitive advantages, and you can build on these insights to attract more customers.

Want to see how Meltwater Consumer Intelligence can help you create new customer segments? Click here and fill out the form below for a personalized demo!

Let’s dig deeper into our software business example of B2B segmentation. Here are customer segmentation examples to put things into perspective.

Your customers might include small businesses, mid-size companies, and large enterprises. A B2B customer segmentation strategy might include:

Smaller storage packages, basic features, and lower monthly fees for small businesses

More storage, advanced features, and scalable pricing plans for medium companies

Extensive storage, enterprise-level security features, dedicated customer support, and custom pricing for large companies

Companies of all industries rely on software for many aspects of their business. Knowing which industries you serve can help you better segment your customers and tailor your products to them. 

Segmentation for B2B in this case might include the following:

Technology firms might need fast, scalable solutions and integrations with other tech tools.

Healthcare organizations focus on data security and compliance with regulations like HIPAA.

Schools and universities could be interested in discounted pricing for educational institutions.

In this case, you’re looking at the characteristics that stand out to each type of industry. You want to align your messaging with what they think is important in a software solution.

Segmenting customers by geographic location is a common option for B2C marketing, but it can also apply to B2C. 

Here’s how segmentation for B2B might look:

Customers in North America may prefer local data centers and 24/7 customer support in their time zone.

European clients might prioritize GDPR compliance and multilingual support.

Businesses in the Asia-Pacific region might gravitate to flexible pricing and local partnerships.

Another option is to pay attention to your customers’ buying behaviors. Various customer behaviors can indicate their loyalty toward you and their willingness to buy from you in the future and refer you to others. 

The Meltwater Blog

The Best Time to Post on LinkedIn in South Africa

Song of the Summer 2024: A Meltwater Analysis

Top 5 Gaming Influencers and How to Work With Them

B2B Customer Segmentation: Unlocking Business Growth

2024 Back-to-School Topics and Trends

How to Create an Effective Market Positioning Strategy

Food Prices and Inflation: What’s Trending in Online Conversations and Media Coverage

Target Group Analysis: Understanding Your Ideal Customers

37 Tips for How to Get More TikTok Followers

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