Social Media Survey: Sprinkling Some Reality On The Hype

If there was a Billy Mays for the PR industry, he would be relentlessly selling social media as the next must-have, miracle product.

But if you are still unsure about how to effectively deploy social networking tools in your marketing-communications program, you are not alone.

Close to half of all companies (49%) do not have a specific approach regarding the use of social media on behalf of their brand, according to the first annual MS&L/PRWeek Social Media Survey. We’re rolling out the results today, and it’s already getting some notice.

The findings of the survey of 271 marketing professionals nationwide underscore the as-yet untapped potential and often misunderstood power of social media to help advance business or institutional goals. Interestingly, marketing pros reported that the two biggest barriers to successfully incorporating social media tools are lack of internal resources and time (53%) and lack of knowledge and expertise (43%).

Clearly, these are both areas where MS&L’s award-winning experience can be valuable. No company or institution should adopt social media tools simply because “everyone else is.” Our counsel has been and remains that there should be a sound strategy behind social media tactics, and that they should be embraced as an integrated facet of your larger plan.

The MS&L/PRWeek survey found that more than one third (37%) do not include any social media tools as part of marketing. Of the 63% that do, 67% use social networking; 46% use digital video and audio tools; 45% use blogs; 33% use microblogging services like Twitter; 28% use RSS feeds; and, 16% use Wikis.

Those using social media in marketing report different reasons for doing so –
47% manage and monitor customer feedback, while 40% reach key influencers. Other uses include understanding the consumer and competitive landscape (39%), creating brand communities and fan pages (32%), media relations (31%), lead generation (31%), product launches (28%), product reviews (19%), and monitoring conversations (6%).

I know you are being bombarded with hype and sales pitches regarding social media as some kind of nuclear-powered Swiss Army knife. But if you are looking for calm, experienced and professional strategic advice about it, please call or email me.

Remember: Social media is a tactic, not a strategy. It may very well prove invaluable for your organization. We can help you think it through.

~ Ed Cafasso, Managing Director