You’re Doing B2B Social Media Wrong: James Dooley and Anni Ma on B2B Marketing Done Right
Listen on your favourite platform
| Platform | Link |
|---|---|
| YouTube | Listen on YouTube → |
| Transistor | Listen on Transistor → |
| pod.link | Listen on pod.link → |
| Deezer | Listen on Deezer → |
| Pocket Casts | Listen on Pocket Casts → |
| Podverse | Listen on Podverse → |
| Listen Notes | Listen on Listen Notes → |
| getpodcast | Listen on getpodcast → |
| Spotify | Listen on Spotify → |
| Amazon Music | Listen on Amazon Music → |
| Castbox | Listen on Castbox → |
| Podcast Addict | Listen on Podcast Addict → |
| Steno.fm | Listen on Steno.fm → |
What Does “You're Doing B2B Social Media Wrong: James Dooley and Anni Ma on B2B Marketing Done Right” Talk About?
This episode of the James Dooley Podcast features James Dooley and B2B social media strategist Anni Ma dissecting the most common mistakes B2B companies make when trying to build a presence on social media. The conversation opens with a frank critique of businesses that rely on static graphic design posts, which Anni Ma argues rarely exceed 200 impressions and completely miss the social aspect of social media. The hosts then explore why video content dramatically outperforms static imagery for brand visibility, and how companies can unlock genuine engagement by empowering employees to appear on camera and inject personality into their content.
The discussion moves into platform strategy, addressing the pitfalls of the spray-and-pray approach of posting identical content everywhere without identifying a winning platform. Anni Ma recommends starting with LinkedIn for B2B audiences but explains her strategy of migrating followers to Instagram for deeper, more personal connection. The episode also highlights WhatsApp as an underrated tool for building close relationships with a core audience, and touches on Reddit as a channel for sparking conversation around juicy, controversial topics. The episode wraps with practical advice for business owners who lack on-camera talent, including the possibility of using actors as brand evangelists when internal team members are unavailable or unwilling.
“They're hiring a graphic designer and just posting static images and calling that a post. And they're posting the same thing and it never gets higher impressions than like 200 as a waste of your time and money. That is not social media. You're missing out on the social component.”
— Anni Ma
Who Are the Guests on “You're Doing B2B Social Media Wrong: James Dooley and Anni Ma on B2B Marketing Done Right”?
Anni Ma is a B2B social media strategist and content creator with a strong focus on video-led growth strategies for business audiences. She works with companies to identify their winning platforms, develop high-performing content frameworks, and build authentic audience connections across Instagram, LinkedIn, and WhatsApp. Her hands-on approach includes coaching internal teams, scripting content, and editing video to help businesses show up consistently and credibly online.
James Dooley is the host of the James Dooley Podcast and founder of PromoSEO, a lead generation agency recently recognised as the Best B2B Companies Lead Generation Agency. James brings expertise in digital marketing, SEO, and B2B growth strategy, and uses the podcast to surface practical insights from practitioners who are actively getting results in their fields.
What Are the Key Takeaways From “You're Doing B2B Social Media Wrong: James Dooley and Anni Ma on B2B Marketing Done Right”?
Here are the key points discussed in this episode:
- Static image posts almost never break 200 impressions and represent a missed opportunity because they ignore the social and engagement-driven nature of modern platforms.
- Video content is the highest-reach format available to B2B brands right now, and businesses that have not adopted it are already behind their competitors.
- Rather than spreading content thinly across every platform, B2B companies should identify their single winning platform, master it, and then repurpose content from there to secondary channels.
- LinkedIn is the recommended starting point for B2B audiences, but migrating those followers to Instagram enables deeper personal connection through lifestyle and event content that strengthens trust.
- WhatsApp is an underutilised channel for B2B brands that allows direct, personal communication with a core audience and can directly trigger business conversations and deal progression.
“WhatsApp is the place to go because that's where you can get really deep connection with your audience and have personal communication with them on a deeper level.”
— Anni Ma
Is “You're Doing B2B Social Media Wrong: James Dooley and Anni Ma on B2B Marketing Done Right” Worth Listening To?
This episode is worth listening to because it moves past generic social media advice and gets into the specific mistakes B2B companies are making right now. Anni Ma's point about graphic designers playing it too safe, and the observation that employee-led video content will outperform any corporate static post, is the kind of direct, experience-backed insight that challenges how most B2B marketing teams currently operate. The conversation is refreshingly candid rather than theoretical.
What makes it especially valuable is the practical platform-by-platform breakdown, including the counterintuitive recommendation to use WhatsApp as a relationship-building tool and Reddit for generating conversation around provocative topics. The discussion also addresses a real barrier many business owners face, which is having no one willing to appear on camera, and offers a concrete workaround involving actors and scripted brand evangelism. Anyone responsible for B2B marketing decisions will come away with at least one actionable idea they can test immediately.
Who Should Listen to “You're Doing B2B Social Media Wrong: James Dooley and Anni Ma on B2B Marketing Done Right”?
This episode is ideal for:
- B2B business owners and founders who are currently investing in social media without seeing measurable returns
- Marketing managers at B2B companies who are responsible for content strategy and platform selection
- Entrepreneurs who are just starting to build a digital presence and want to avoid the most common early mistakes
- Freelance social media managers and content creators who work with business clients and want to sharpen their B2B-specific approach
Where Can You Listen to James Dooley Podcast?
You can listen to James Dooley Podcast on all major podcast platforms:
- Apple Podcasts – Search for “James Dooley Podcast” in the Podcasts app
- Spotify – Available on Spotify for free
- Amazon Music / Audible – Listen through your Amazon account
- Overcast – For iOS users who prefer a dedicated podcast app
- Pocket Casts – Cross-platform podcast player
You can also subscribe using the RSS feed: https://feeds.transistor.fm/james-dooley-podcast
What Are Listeners Saying About This Episode?
“The point about graphic designers playing it safe and producing posts that never exceed 200 impressions hit home immediately. We have been guilty of exactly that. Anni Ma's framework for finding your winning platform before scaling is something we are implementing straight away.”
“I never thought of WhatsApp as a marketing channel but after hearing Anni explain how a single Instagram story triggered a deal conversation in her WhatsApp, I completely changed my thinking. Really specific, really useful episode.”
“James and Anni have great chemistry and the conversation moves fast without losing substance. The idea of using actors as brand evangelists for companies whose teams won't go on camera is creative and practical. Exactly the kind of outside-the-box thinking I come to this podcast for.”
This video explains which digital marketing strategies B2B companies should focus on in 2026 to improve engagement, brand reach and lead generation. James Dooley and Anni Ma start with KPI tracking because measuring impressions and performance is what reveals a winning platform and stops businesses wasting time and money on content that never converts. They cover brand SEO, AI visibility and Google Business Profiles because stronger search presence improves trust and conversion rates.
The discussion also explores organic SEO, organic social media and paid social ads because consistent visibility across search and social supports long term growth. PPC is analysed in detail because campaign setup, landing pages and lead handling directly affect results. They also discuss Reddit, Quora and paid AI ads because diversified enquiry sources and early adoption can strengthen digital marketing performance for B2B companies.
PromoSEO lead generation for B2B companies recently received recognition as the “Best B2B Companies Lead Generation Agency.”
Where to Listen to This Episode
You’re Doing B2B Social Media Wrong: James Dooley and Anni Ma on B2B Marketing Done Right is available on:
James Dooley: You're doing B2B social media wrong. Today I'm joined with Anni Ma, who's obviously doing it right. Yes. So today we're gonna talk about all the things that people are doing wrong on B2B social media. So let's jump straight in. What's the main thing that you're seeing on social media that entrepreneurs seem to be doing wrong?
Anni Ma: Oh, they're hiring a graphic designer and just posting static images and calling that a post. And they're posting the same thing and it never gets higher impressions than like 200 as a waste of your time and money. That is not social media. You're missing out on the social component. All these graphic designers, they're scared of the company that they're working for. They don't wanna do it wrong. So they just do it by the book. Play it too safe.
James Dooley: Yeah, what they're missing out is leveraging their employees as charismatic people in their company to represent the company and letting them play and show a piece of personality. Right now they're doing B2B social media the old way, which is corporate branded, staying safe. But now people are letting loose with social media. Everything's integrated now. So you have like wonderful staff that probably really want to show up on your social media account, but they don't know how to. You have to just give permission and be like, hey, we're gonna do a competition. We're gonna do like a trending video. You make some fun content. And that way, that piece of content will probably go viral over whatever static image you're selling. So are you a massive believer that video is the future? It's so much better than doing, let's say, the static images.
Anni Ma: Oh my God, you're so behind, bro. Yes, that's why we're doing this. Everyone's doing video, right? Static images is great for when they're down the funnel and they're like trusting in you and they like what you're already posting, but video is the ones that are gonna get the most eyeballs on your brand.
James Dooley: And is there any specific, so we're going to hear about what B2B social media done wrong, right? Obviously there's lots of different platforms on social media. You've got TikTok, you've got Instagram, you've got YouTube, you've got Facebook. Not only have you got Facebook pages, you've got Facebook groups. Are you wanting to post the same video across all platforms or do you tend to change out the video depending on the social media platform?
Anni Ma: Yeah, I think what most people get wrong with B2B social media is spraying and praying, doing one piece of content all across, right? That works if you're trying to find your winning platform. But if you are just posting all across with no intent or purpose and you aren't finding your winning platform, that's a fail. So for us, I found that Instagram works really, really well. So we create all our content for Instagram and then repurpose on other platforms. So it doesn't matter if it doesn't perform that well. We focus on the winning platform. And then once you have that workflow, you can build another winning platform off of that.
James Dooley: So with regards to that, let's say someone's watching this and they're saying, oh damn, I'm doing it wrong. Yeah, you are. I'm doing social media wrong. Should they concentrate on one platform to start with to master that? And if it was gonna be one platform, are you saying that that then should be probably Instagram?
Anni Ma: Oh no, it depends on your business and where your audience is, right? So if you're more focused on B2B, LinkedIn is probably the best place, but I secretly like to move all the LinkedIn followers to Instagram because that's when people post like a lot of personal content, family content, and then you get to share too. And then you build a deeper, stronger connection, master all the platforms. But start with LinkedIn too.
James Dooley: Here's one for you. I see a lot of your videos and I love the videos that you create. I think they're great. I think they go viral. One or two business owners might say, I'm not really certain whether I wanna publish that type of content, right? Are you finding that that type of content on LinkedIn still works? I get it works on, let's say, Facebook and on Instagram. People seem to want a little bit more professional. Now, I don't. I just go with anything on LinkedIn like it's another platform, and I'm not bothered personally. But do you play it safer on LinkedIn or are you just going, no? I'm gonna throw it out there. It's a viral video and I'm still gonna put that on LinkedIn as well.
Anni Ma: Oh yeah, I'm gonna post it on LinkedIn and let it just not perform well. But what is really performing is going to in-person events and posting photos, posting all the selfies that you take with people and writing heartfelt messages that are not really relevant to your business, but more about connecting with those people. And then that brings more attention from the conference or the event and their friends. So that actually performs very well. It's about how you use the content.
James Dooley: Yeah, I would probably try to stay more professional on LinkedIn too, because that's what people expect. But you can move the followers from LinkedIn into your personal. So you've mentioned LinkedIn and you've mentioned trying to move them over from LinkedIn over to Instagram. Is there any other social media platforms that you recommend using? Would you recommend anything like Twitter, Facebook, maybe TikTok? Is there any other platforms that you're working on that you're going, wow, this seems to be a hidden gem that's working well?
Anni Ma: WhatsApp. WhatsApp is the place to go because that's where you can get really deep connection with your audience and have personal communication with them on a deeper level. And there's also stories. So I post the stories on my Instagram and then I send it to WhatsApp. And then a lot of people, even though it's not as high impressions, but they're your core audience and they'll remember you. So one, I posted a photo from LinkedIn on my Instagram and it triggered something in my WhatsApp and the person messaged me and they're like, hey, we're talking about that deal, right? And I'm like, ooh, okay, that actually works. That's great.
James Dooley: So with regards to any other platforms, do you do anything with Twitter or Facebook? I mean, like surely some of the videos that you do, if you find the right Facebook group, sometimes these Facebook groups might have 50,000 people inside of a group and you're able to publish in there and it could be an SEO group and you could be selling, let's say, SEO domains. Like you, ODYS, you're selling SEO domains. Do you ever publish anything related to age domains in an SEO group or have you not really gone down the road of doing that yet?
Anni Ma: I've done that with Reddit. Like if I find something like really juicy and that you have to like spin it in a way where it's like, oh, controversial and then you throw it in there and then that's when the group gets a little frenzy. So that's what I try to look for is just like, is a topic juicy enough for the group to want to comment on and talk about? And then what's the next steps?
James Dooley: So someone is watching this and they're saying, Anni Ma, I see your videos. I think they're absolutely brilliant. I want some of that type of video. But we don't have the team. You're saying there's one or two team members that's saying that they might want to publish this content. Let's say they've not got the team members. They're not confident enough. You're very good in front of camera. You're very good at presenting and the ideation part. If someone wants that being done, what's the best way of a business owner trying to reach out to somebody like yourself or trying to find a service that might be able to do B2B social media right?
Anni Ma: Yeah, I would just say hit me up and then we can talk about it. Cause I think it's about utilizing the people in your team that wants to get better at it and you investing in them, but they need a leader to coach them through it. Otherwise they're gonna hit a pitfall and feel like they are failing. But instead if I'm just like, hey, here are these top videos that would perform very well for your industry, go execute it. We just need your beautiful face saying exactly this, just send me the video and then we'll edit it and then you can publish, right? And I think that guideline helps a lot. And then what about, could, if someone said, no, I'm really against doing it. I've not got any team members that wanna do it. Could you find, if someone reached out to somebody like yourself, could you find an actor that could do it and then you could then do the editing and you can give the person the scripts for them then being able to do it, you edit it and then amplify it.
James Dooley: Yeah, I have a community of actors back home that would totally take on the scripts, but like the company has to go in and then write the actual scripts. And I guess we could look at their website and then give the script to the actor to perform it out for them and be their brand evangelists. Anni Ma, it's been an absolute pleasure having you on. Are you doing B2B social media right? Are you doing it wrong? The videos that you create, I wanna say they're absolutely brilliant. I love what you do. Keep doing what you're doing and I'm excited to see where the future comes.
Anni Ma: Thank you very much. Thanks, James. Let's go.