Brand Marketers Embrace Social Media

"The survey of US brand marketers found the majority already using social media."

Interestingly, the top reason for not using social media seems to be a lack of understanding of how best to do it. That would seem to be a gap that could be easily closed, and leads me to believe that we will see a much greater adoption of social media by businesses in the near future.

It seems to have too much power and potential to be allowed to languish because of a lack of understanding.

At the same time, the method given as the best means of measuring effectiveness is tracking website traffic.

My own investigation so far leads me to believe that social media can have a huge impact on certain kinds of businesses, while it is problematic for other types. One report I read about who is effectively using social media pointed toward what I would consider very connected communities like high tech businesses and people in communication-oriented businesses. In the cases described, people within the industry kept up with one another to stay on top of their field. This is more a "community" function than a "business to consumer" model, but still an important and beneficial use of the tools.

In fields where businesses are looking for a B2C function, it seemed to depend upon the demographics of the target audience and the characteristics of the business product or service. For example, younger consumers clearly have adopted these tools much more fully than older consumers, and businesses trying to reach that audience will have more opportunities. Also, products or services that can generate some excitement or "buzz" within their audience have much more to work with in using these tools.

For a better view of the charts or more discussion, visit eMarketer by clicking on the title of this posting.