What should the social media strategy be for an industrial B2B retailer?

We’re already working on some social media projects, but instead of sharing what we’re doing, which may influence the ideas you propose, I wanted to see if I could get some clean ideas from you guys to see what you would do. So the basic question is, what should the social media strategy be for a company whose primary goal is to sell industrial products (electrical supply equipment) to contractors and other other businesses? Keep in mind, that this market is different from other e-commerce markets in that we’re not blowing out iPads or other products that are impulse buys. We sell products that people mainly search for when something fails, and they’re looking to replace it. We sell to contractors who are working on jobs. We also sell to distributors who sell to contractors. The products we sell are, in a sense, “needed” as opposed to “wanted”… which can make sales and some other popular tactics a little less effective. It also makes social media strategies a little different.

Would love to hear some of your thoughts. Just want to see if my strategy comes close to what some of you would do. Thanks in advance.

There are some strong similarities between your website and any supporting marketing activities.
They should all have value for the reader/visitor. They should provide facts and figures, tips and tricks, training and advice, and so on. Nobody wants to read about how good and wonderful you/your products are, how much better priced and so on.
The only difference between your website and your social media/blog, is that the website is one-way and the rest is interactive. Help your readers/visitors, train them, teach them show them how they can benefit from using your product, show them how they can get more out of it, how they can use it better and/or for more purposes/applications. Show them how they can get more than they ever thought possible.
But most of all, make them want to interact.
And remember: a social media campaign is NOT a cheap alternative for radio/tv/printed advertising; the consumer does NOT want more propaganda.

You should place adds on social media like facebook and LinkedIn etc. I hope this strategy will work for you as you are offering products which people buy just in a need.

So the basic question is, what should the social media strategy be for a company whose primary goal is to sell industrial products (electrical supply equipment) to contractors and other other businesses?

I agree that you can place ads in the social media sites that are recently on the trend like facebook, twitter, instgram, etc. You can also create an account there and then promote your business with your friends on social media.