Apr 21

Written by: Insights Account
4/21/2010 3:17 PM

 

 

 

 

While a majority of marketing professionals and company decision makers view social media as essential to their business, most have not made any money using it according to a recent survey by R2integrated (R2i), a leading Internet marketing and technology company. Further data analysis suggests that companies using social media profitably are more likely to possess defined social media strategies, dedicated social media managers, and follow social media thought-leaders.

When R2i asked 262 marketing professionals about their perception of social media, 54 percent of them thought it “innovative and invaluable to their business.” Thirty-seven percent thought “useful and helpful, but could live without it.” Sixty-five percent of respondents, however, said that their companies have not increased revenue or profited using social media.

Those who responded that their company had profited or increased revenues using social media were:

-       About twice as likely to have a formal social media strategy

-       Almost twice as likely to have a dedicated headcount for managing social media

-       About twice as likely to rate themselves as “proficient” or “expert”

-       Almost three times as likely to have read a book on social media

Having a defined social media strategy was confirmed by 50 percent of respondents. Fifty percent did not have a strategy. Most companies (57 percent) have someone dedicated to managing social media.

“The data we’ve compiled suggests that marketers clearly recognize the need for, and see the potential of, social media, but are still trying to develop models that increase real engagement which then leads to profitability —if that’s a goal for implementing a social strategy,” said Matt Goddard, CEO, R2i. “Despite the presence and popularity of social media, many companies remain relatively unfamiliar with its practices, pundits, and principles.”  

When it comes to using social media, 53 percent of respondents stated they were “still learning” or “behind the curve” compared to 44 percent who stated they were “efficient” or “expert.” Forty-four percent of respondents “don’t know much about” location-based social networks like Foursquare. And when asked if there was such a thing as social media expert, 40 percent of respondents said “yes, a couple,” 32 percent said “yes, lots,” while “no, not really” and “hard to tell” combined for 27 percent.

Respondents were also asked if they’ve heard of several social media leaders: Shel Israel (16 percent yes, 84 percent no), Pete Cashmore (17 percent yes, 83 percent no), Chris Brogan (37 percent yes, 63 percent no), Guy Kawasaki ( 50 percent yes, 50 percent no), Seth Godin (63 percent yes, 37 percent no), Lady GaGa (81 percent yes, 19 percent no), and Chester Chowlinski—a fictional person—(two percent yes, 98 percent no).

Data was also collected on respondents’ familiarity with leading social media books. When asked if they’ve read Twitterville, 10 percent said yes, 90 percent said no; Free,  nine percent yes, 91 percent no; Trust Agents, nine percent yes,  91 percent no; Reality Check, six percent yes, 94 percent no; The New Community Rules, six percent yes, 94 percent no.

Alternatively, 43 percent of respondents have read Malcolm Gladwell’s The Tipping Point, while 17 percent have read Twilight, the vampire romance novel by Stephenie Meyer. Most respondents selected Mashable, TechCrunch, or Digg, as their most common source for information on social media from a list of popular sites.

R2i conducted this survey from March 26 – April 5. For a copy of the anonymous data set, contact Matthew Pugh at mpugh@r2integrated.com 

 

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