So we all thought that social media was strictly a B2C medium…at least from a marketer’s perspective. While the same is more or less accurate if you look at the numbers and the "consumer" propensity towards youtube, myspace, facebook et al, it may be worthwhile to note certain social inroads into the B2B space, that are getting bigger by the day…

Good reasons for us to keep an eye out on these considering our huge IT client line-up!

LinkedIn offers a pretty basic but comprehensive opportunity: a company puts up a profile and connects with LinkedIn members, then it can promote and supplement profiles with targeted display ads, dedicated e-mails, and sponsorships of the "Answers" category. For instance, if you are a B2B technology company, you might want to sponsor the IT category. This way you reach people who are actively seeking information about your product/industry, and you get to engage with them in a community setting.

ITtoolbox also offers great ad opportunities for enterprise IT companies. You can set up a vendor profile; have a variety of ad units, text links, dedicated e-mails, and newsletter sponsorships; and even help with lead generation through Webcast promotions and white paper programs.

TechRepublic where you can tap into a huge professional IT community is my personal favourite!

Minyanville Exchange (a financial social networking site)

Designer Pages (for architecture and design)

And let’s not forget YouTube. Some B2B companies might dismiss YouTube as simply a youth-oriented, amateur-video site, but it is far from that. YouTube has turned into such a powerful and relevant social media tool that anyone can leverage its reach and viral effectiveness. There are thousands of education, science and technology, news, and how-to videos about and produced by various B2B brands and companies. For example, a quick search for "software as a service" on YouTube generated 1,220 videos. One video has been viewed more than 38,000 times!