Influence Marketing B2B: expert advice and customer examples 2025

Introduction

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B2B marketing evolves in a world in perpetual turmoil. Decision-makers are overwhelmed with content and requests, making visibility more difficult than ever for brands. In this context, theB2B influence marketing stands out as an innovative and effective lever. In fact, this sector is experiencing rapid growth: LinkedIn is now considered to be the No. 1 platform for B2B lead generation., and the global influence market (B2C + B2B) is estimated at $24 billion at the end of 2024, up 45% in two years, about a quarter of which only for B2B. In other words, B2B marketing influence is not a fad but a fundamental trend in B2B digital marketing.

In 2025, B2B brands are facing three major challenges: emerge in a saturated context, stay remembered (top of mind) and strengthen the credibility of the B2B brand for a demanding public. THEB2B influence marketing responds precisely to these challenges by focusing on people and expertise. Of LinkedIn influencers — these professionals who are recognized and followed on networks — can relay your messages in a more authentic and powerful way than traditional corporate communication.

In this article, we'll explore how B2B influencer marketing can:

1. Gain visibility despite media saturation,
2. Anchoring the brand in the minds of your targets,
3. And build lasting trust through expertise — all with concrete examples and strategic advice inspired by our guide.

Spoiler: At the end, an FAQ awaits you to answer frequently asked questions and convince you that B2B influence could well become your number one marketing asset.

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Why launch a B2B influence marketing campaign? Key methods and new trends

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To precisely meet your challenges of visibility, memorization and credibility in 2025, it is essential to understand how to launch a B2B influence campaign effectively. According to our A complete guide to creating a brand platform, a successful strategy always starts by clarifying its strategic objectives by precisely aligning your campaign with your business challenges: growth, recruitment, lead generation. Then, co-build an effective brief, select LinkedIn influencers adapted to your sector (like Antoine Keraudy or Florence Bernier-Debbabi), and choose the most efficient formats on LinkedIn (videos, podcasts, long-form posts). Finally, consider distributing this content intelligently in your 360 ecosystem to maximize the overall impact. These methodical steps are detailed in our ebook B2B Influence Marketing — The Ultimate Guide.

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How to stand out in a saturated market thanks to B2B marketing influence?

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In an environment saturated with ads and formatted content, it is increasingly difficult for a B2B brand to emerge. Decision makers often filter out and ignore overly promotional messages. This is where B2B marketing influence comes in. By collaborating with opinion leaders credible in your sector — for example experts active on LinkedIn — you give your communication a human dimension and authentic that attracts attention. A post From a LinkedIn B2B influencer Anyone who shares their feedback or a business tip will have much more impact than just another commercial press release. This type of content Break the ambient noise and captures the interest of a qualified audience, because the message is carried by a neutral and legitimate voice.

The numbers confirm this trend: a recent Ogilvy study indicates that 75% of B2B businesses already use influencers in their campaigns marketing, proof that the practice is becoming widespread, and that 93% of marketing managers (CMOs) plan to increase this use in the coming years. In other words, the majority of your competitors understood the potential of B2B influence. To emerge, it is therefore crucial to activate this lever in turn. Working with the right influencers allows Stand out from the crowd by offering content with higher added value (advice, opinions, feedback) where so many others are content with advertising messages. For example, HubSpot — a marketing software publisher — knew how to innovate by launching in 2024 a LinkedIn miniseries Baptized ”HubSprint” bringing together 6 B2B influencers around content creation challenges (initiative co-built with The Roaring Twenties). This original format, broadcast over a week, allowed HubSpot to creatively occupy media space and capture the attention of marketing professionals. This example illustrates how a professional influence campaign Well thought out can make you emerge in a spectacular way, even in a saturated news feed.

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How to anchor your brand in the minds of your targets with B2B influence?

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Attracting attention is good; the build loyalty, it's better. One of the key assets of B2B influencer marketing is its ability to strengthen the memorizing and the presence in the mind of your brand among your target audience, this famous “Top of Mind” so sought after in marketing. How? On the one hand, B2B influencers create high added value content (videos, illustrated posts, podcasts, etc.) that make an impression. On the other hand, by multiplying the contact points in the form of regular publications, they maintain your message at the top of the news feed decision makers. One B2B influence strategy can thus be sustainable with “always-on” campaigns (rather than one-off actions), ensuring a positive repeat of the brand in the minds of the audience.

Again, the data speaks for itself: 70% of B2B marketers find that influencer marketing has improved brand awareness. Better, 67% of B2B influencer campaigns generate more impact than campaigns without influencers — in terms of overall marketing performance — according to a recent survey. By calling on recognized experts, the brand benefits from increased attention and stronger memory, because the brain is more likely to remember expert advice than an advertising slogan. Where classic brand content can quickly be forgotten, content embodied by an inspiring person will tend to mark lastingly spirits. For example, a business executive who discovers your solution through a B2B influence case study presented by an expert on LinkedIn will remember you much more. The “top of mind” objective is no longer a distant dream: with a regular presence alongside the right influencers, your brand remains present in the business conversation day after day.

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5 mistakes to avoid for a successful B2B marketing influence

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Even if B2B influence marketing is a great accelerator of visibility and credibility, some classic mistakes can sabotage your efforts. To ensure the success of your B2B influence campaign, it is imperative that you avoid these pitfalls:

• Confusing B2B and B2C
  Do not transpose B2C codes (product placements, lifestyle content, TikTok formats, etc.) into the B2B universe. Here, what works are expert-to-expert relationships, credibility, and the provision of concrete value to a demanding professional audience.
  
  
• Do not co-create the message with the influencer
  Imposing a discourse or an angle that is too “corporate” is counterproductive. Efficiency comes from co-construction: involve the influencer in defining messages to guarantee authenticity, commitment and relevance to their community.
  
  
• Neglecting the selection of the right influencer profiles
  Prioritize quality over quantity: a B2B influencer must be recognized in your sector, share your values, and have a real affinity with your target. The simple number of subscribers is never enough.
  
  
• Forget measurement and continuous optimization
  Not managing your campaign with specific KPIs (impressions, engagement rate, leads generated, conversion rate...) is like navigating blindly. Analyze, adjust and capitalize on the content that is performing to maximize your ROI.
  
  
• Ignoring the human aspect and the relationship of trust
  In B2B, trust is key. Relying solely on the dissemination of the message without establishing a real dialogue or embodied storytelling means missing out on the potential of influence.
  
  

To go further:
Discover the complete and detailed list of 10 mistakes you should absolutely avoid in your B2B influence campaigns. Don't miss our dedicated article to maximize your chances of success: 10 mistakes to avoid in your influencer campaigns

An indispensable tool for any company wishing to structure its influence strategy and avoid common pitfalls.

By avoiding these five major mistakes, you are putting all the chances on your side to succeed in your B2B influence marketing strategy and generate concrete results!

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Strengthen the credibility of your brand with the expertise of B2B influencers

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Beyond visibility, the trust is the lifeblood in B2B. Your prospects will only buy your products or services if they consider credible and legitimate in your market. B2B marketing influence excels precisely in this field. By partnering with influencers who are experts in their field, you benefit from a Credibility transfer : the audience trusts the influencer, who himself trusts you, so your brand gains credibility by extension. We often talk about “social proof” — peer proof. Here, it is the implicit recommendation of a Influential peer that will reassure your targets. They say to each other: “If this industry expert is talking about this solution, it's because it's worth it.”

• This mechanism makes it possible to strengthen B2B brand credibility significantly. According to the 2024 report by TopRank Marketing, 72% of B2B managers believe that influencer marketing has improved their brand reputation, in addition to having boosted notoriety. In other words, B2B influence installs a climate of trust around your offers. Contrary to commercial communication perceived as biased, the speech of an external expert appears objective and sincere. Of course, this means selecting influencers who are aligned with your values and who have a genuine professional legitimacy. In B2B, they are often former professionals, consultants, managers, former satisfied customers or even your own employees (the famous Employee Advocacy). For example, a legal publisher such as Lefebvre Dalloz worked with profiles of lawyers and finance HR experts who are highly followed on LinkedIn to de-dramatize the use of AI in the exercise of legal or financial professions and highlight its advantages. By embodying information through the voices of practitioners, the brand has been able to gain the trust of professionals on complex topics. Likewise, a professional influence campaign conducted in 2023 for a human resources consulting firm, mobilized two recognized HR directors who hosted a series of business podcasts. The result: not only did the campaign reach thousands of qualified professionals, but the feedback was unanimously positive, reinforcing the brand's image of expertise. The trust generated by these influence operations is ultimately reflected in an accelerated sales cycle and a B2B lead generation more effective, because a prospect who trusts you is already halfway through the conversion.

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Case studies: how B2B influence marketing makes a difference

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Nothing like concrete cases to illustrate the real impact of B2B marketing influence. In our eBook “B2B Influence Marketing — The Ultimate Guide”, we come back in detail to several campaigns successfully carried out alongside our customers (HubSpot, Lefebvre Dalloz, Ayming, etc.), with supporting figures. Here are two inspiring examples:

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➤ HubSpot — “HubSprint” mini-series on LinkedIn: How do you dust off content marketing and get the attention of B2B marketers? In 2024, HubSpot co-created with The Roaring Twenties a new LinkedIn challenge in the form of miniseries of 6 episodes broadcast over 6 days. Six LinkedIn B2B influencers (marketing experts, HR, web, innovation, etc.) took up challenges directly around the use of HubSpot, with the help of AI and under the supervision of a presenter. This creative campaign generated a huge amount of enthusiasm in the marketing community. HubSpot was able to “staging” its expertise produces in a fun and educational way, while benefiting from the cumulative audience of the influencers involved. The operation was successful and even won a Award for the best B2B influence campaign In 2025 — proof that going off the beaten path and integrating humans into your communication is bearing fruit. (You'll find all the details about HubSprint and behind the scenes in our ultimate guide.)

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➤ Ayming — “The Voice of HR” podcast and viral campaign: Ayming, an international performance consulting firm, wanted to increase its visibility among HR decision-makers and establish its expertise on human resources issues. To achieve this, our agency has orchestrated an innovative campaign centered on a B2B podcast titled “The HR Voice”. Four episodes were recorded, hosted by two renowned LinkedIn influencers (a recruitment expert and a social law lawyer), then broadcast and promoted on LinkedIn. The results exceeded expectations: more than 100,000 qualified views publications, 250,000 impressions and 13,500 HR professionals affected in a few weeks. Above all, the commitment was there with +1,000 “like” reactions, +250 comments and 100% positive comments from the HR community. By promoting high value-added content (here in-depth audio exchanges) carried out by legitimate experts, Ayming has not only gained visibility, but also considerably strengthened its credibility with its target. This example shows how a well-managed B2B influence campaign Can at the same time increase notoriety of a brand and building trust around its offers — while generating rich interactions with the community (the holy grail of B2B digital marketing).

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These B2B influence case studies are just a few examples of what a good strategy can do. In the eBook “B2B Influence Marketing — The Ultimate Guide”, you will discover other success stories, deciphered step by step (objectives, device, results), in order to help you replicate these successes for your own organization. The lesson is clear: in 2025, B2B influence marketing is no longer a simple matter “Buzz word”, it's a powerful, sustainable and human strategic lever to meet the major challenges of brands. It's up to you to play to take advantage of it now!

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Take action: deploy your B2B marketing influence strategy

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Emerging despite the media noise, etching your name in the minds of your prospects, gaining their trust through the voice of experts... all this is within the reach of your brand thanks to B2B marketing influence. As we have seen, this approach provides concrete answers to the current challenges of businesses: it offers a qualified visibility, a reinforced memorization And a increased credibility. The numerical results speak for themselves, and many B2B brands — from innovative SMEs to large groups — are already taking advantage of them. If you too want to integrate influence into your strategy, we invite you to discover our complete and free eBook “B2B Influence Marketing — The Ultimate Guide”. You'll find a 6-step action plan for launching a successful influencer campaign, expert advice, KPIs to monitor, and Inspiring customer cases that will set you up for success. Do not wait any longer: download the eBook hither and join the B2B influence movement! Your brand has everything to gain — and your future customers will thank you for it.

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Best practices for successful B2B marketing influence (2025 and beyond)

To conclude, keep in mind these Unmissable trends that will make the difference in your B2B influence strategy:

• Put people at the heart of your approach
  Authentic content, embodied by real experts on LinkedIn, gets more attention and generates lasting engagement.
  
  
• Prioritize credibility and expertise
  Forget B2C codes: professionals recognized and respected in their sector are the ones who inspire trust and create value for your audience.
  
  
• Innovate in formats
  Video mini-series, specialized podcasts, quirky interviews... These original formats allow your brand to stand out from the crowd and strengthen its memory.
  
  
• Measure the impact of each campaign
  Track your key KPIs: qualified traffic, leads generated, engagement, conversions. B2B marketing influence must always prove its effectiveness through concrete and measurable results.
  
  

By applying these best practices, you are laying the foundations for an effective, sustainable and differentiating B2B influence strategy for your company, regardless of the size of your structure. The future of B2B visibility depends on people and expertise: it's up to you to play!

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FAQ — Frequently asked questions about B2B influence marketing

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Q1. What is B2B influence marketing?

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R: It is a B2B digital marketing strategy which consists of collaborating with professional influencers — usually experts or opinion leaders who are very active on networks like LinkedIn — in order to promote your brand, products or services to an audience targeted professional. Concretely, instead of communicating alone, you mobilize recognized personalities in your sector to create content (LinkedIn posts, articles, videos, podcasts...) that highlights your offer in an authentic way. B2B marketing influence thus aims to increase the visibility of your company, to generate qualified B2B leads and to strengthen your credibility thanks to the support of the expert. It is a “win-win-win” approach: for the influencer (who enhances their content), for your brand (who gains in reach and trust) and for the audience (who benefits from advice with high added value).

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Q2. Is B2B influence marketing suitable for all B2B businesses?

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R: Yes all businesses with a professional target can take advantage of B2B influence marketing, whether it is a startup, an SME, an ETI or a large group. The important thing is to have clear goals and a well-defined B2B audience. Even with a modest budget, it is possible to launch a professional influence campaign by partnering with a micro-influencer who is very specialized in your niche, for example. Of course, the approach may vary: a small company may seek to gain local visibility or to give credibility to a niche innovation, while a large group will use B2B influence to humanize its corporate communication or promote a new offer to a large community of decision-makers. In any case, the key is to find The B2B influencer whose audience corresponds to your personas (your ideal target) and whose image is consistent with your brand. If these conditions are met, influence marketing can benefit any B2B company, from the tech sector to industry to services.

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Q3. How do I find and choose the right LinkedIn influencer for my B2B campaign?

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R: Identifying the right one LinkedIn influencer may seem complex, but a few simple criteria help you sort it out. First, target profiles who speak to your audience : for example, an expert followed by CFOs will be relevant if you sell a financial management solution in B2B. Take an interest in the audience quality of the influencer (sector of activity, functions of subscribers...) more than the number of subscribers per se. Then, evaluate his level of commitment : an influencer who gets a lot of interactions (comments, shares) has an active community, which is a good sign. Also check the relevance of its content in relation to your field — his speeches must be in line with your themes, and his credibility must be established (e.g., a recognized consultant, author, respected executive). Do not hesitate to chat directly with him to test the Feeling : the best collaborations are with influencers who share the values of your brand. Finally, you can get support from specialized agencies (such as Les Années Folles) which have monitoring tools and a B2B influencer network proven, in order to recommend the ideal profile for your campaign.

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Q4. What are the KPIs to follow to measure the success of a B2B influence marketing campaign?

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R: As with any action of B2B digital marketing, it is essential to define and monitor performance indicators (KPIs) accurate. Among the main KPIs of a B2B influence campaign, we find: number of prints (how many times the content has been viewed, to assess the reach), the number of views or plays (especially for videos, webinars, sponsored articles...), the engagement rate (measured via likes, comments, shares in relation to the size of the audience reached), the Number of clicks to your site or landing page (if a trackable link is shared by the influencer), the number of leads generated (for example the forms, downloads of white papers following the campaign) and of course, the conversion rate of these leads into commercial opportunities. You should also not neglect more qualitative indicators: analyze the content of comments, the general feeling (positive or not) around the publications, or even the feedback from your prospects during appointments (did they hear about you via the influencer?). This qualitative data will tell you whether the professional influence campaign has effectively strengthened your brand image. In summary, define from the start 3 or 4 key KPIs aligned with your goals (visibility, engagement, lead generation, conversions...) and follow them closely throughout the campaign, with the help of the influencer or agency that supports you.

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Q5. What budget should you plan to launch a B2B influence campaign?

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R: The budget to be planned can vary from simple to triple depending on your ambitions, the number of influencers mobilized, their reputation and the campaign format chosen. The good news is that there are options for all budgets. For example, a one-off campaign with a micro-influencer A niche market (a few thousand qualified subscribers) can be set up from a few thousand euros, including content production. Conversely, ask for several influencers Premium for a video series or a live event will require a larger budget (several tens of thousands of euros). What is encouraging is that the spillovers can largely justify the investment: let's not forget that B2B influence marketing has an impressive average ROI (some studies talk about $5.2 generated for $1 spent, i.e. an ROI of +520%!). The important thing is to reason in cost per goal achieved (for example cost per lead generated or per thousand impressions on the target) to properly assess the profitability of the operation. For a first campaign, you can start by pilot with a controlled budget, then reinvest more once you see the results. In short, You don't need a huge budget to get started : B2B marketing influence is modular and scalable. The key is to determine an envelope consistent with your goals and to optimize it by choosing the influencer partners who will offer the best return on investment potential for your business.

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Finally, remember that a well-run B2B influence campaign is not an expense, but a strategic marketing investment. By downloading our ultimate guide to B2B influence, you will have all the keys in hand to accurately estimate your budget and maximize the impact of each euro invested. Good influence!

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