Social media for B2B PR?

It strikes me that it’s a lot easier to get going on this social media wave if you’re working for exciting consumer brands than if you are trying to sell more widgets in a B2B market. Thinking about farfetched applications for Twitter, communities around Facebook groups and the need to influence (or at least have a relationship with relevant bloggers) is one thing if you are a Nike or Apple of this world. A tweet about the latest iPhone app seems a bit more appropriate than one about the latest version of a large format printer that costs over £150K? Those social media experts amongst you may tell me that it’s all about the relevant audience, but even then... So what applications for social/digital media are appropriate in B2B markets? Well, as ever I’m told it depends on your message, your audience and your objectives. Search engine optimisation of your website would seem a decent start, then it’s back to identifying your target market and the key influencers in this market. At this point you may decide to go through the media or you could attempt to go direct. If going direct a web chat hosted on your website could provide some interesting content or maybe, if you’re feeling brave, you could opt for a branded online game? I guess purchasers of large format printers are just as likely to be online and using social media as the rest of us. Or are they? Maybe they are just too hard to find? Despite my desire for innovation, if it was my money I was spending and I needed to show actual ROI rather than just traffic, I’d happily justify spend on a good website with decent SEO, but after that I’d need some convincing of where to spend my “B2B social media” budget...