IN-SOURCING SOCIAL BECOMING THE NORM
Sophisticated measurement still an issue
An infographic from Go-Gulf.com, featuring data from Ragan.com, is making the rounds and provides some insight into how brands are managing social media and the marketing aspects surrounding the social space. The information contained in the infographic shows that companies and brands understand the power of social media, with only 3% of those surveyed outsourcing their social marketing completely. In fact, 27% said they have a dedicated team to nothing but social media. The big eye-opener comes from the 65% that are assigning social media tasks on top of employees’ regular duties. Ask yourself this: if an employee has an entire job to do, and then is given the task of representing your brand in social media, how much time is that going to get?
The fact is, many brands just don’t have a grasp on the strategy for utilizing social media in their consumer engagement. This leads to just 5% of respondents saying they are highly satisfied with their social media campaigns. This is not surprising, when brands are assigning the tasks to employees who cannot fully dedicate themselves to the plan, and are likely posting just because they were told to. This disconnect can lead to campaigns that do not have goals tied to business objectives, but are instead focused on something easier to manage, like awareness. A dedicated team, or a partner agency, can take the time to meet with those “in the know” and manage social campaigns to meet with other business units and objectives. In other words, they can see the whole picture, not just what is in front of them on today’s to-do list.
Beverley Macy of the Huffington Post minces no words when it comes to her feelings on how brands should think about social, “Fortune 500 companies need to get smart about social business — and fast. I can’t emphasize enough how important it is for senior teams — from the CEO on down — to buck up and get educated on what social means and how it should be implemented throughout the organization.” To put that another way, there is no reason why social media and social marketing should be an afterthought, or something being assigned to just anyone. It is a part of the world today, and social is not going away.
In addition to a disconnect in satisfaction and dedication, brands are usually ill-equipped to prove the efficacy of their social engagements. The percentage of brands in the survey reporting on race-horse numbers such as new followers was 86%. This was followed closely by web-traffic measurement at 74%, and brand reputation at 58%. True business objectives, like leads, sales, and customer satisfaction trailed the easy to measure numbers by a large margin. Only 41% were measuring customer satisfaction, 40% for leads, and a paltry 31% for sales. If only 31% of companies measured their sales, how quickly do you think they would go out of business?
Altimeter recently reported that “66% of companies cannot link social to business goals.” If a business doesn’t care about sales and how happy their customers are, why bother measuring at all?
The roadblocks to measurement are numerous, but the main roadblock is time. It takes time to develop a strategy and focus in on business objectives and business growth, rather than just growing the number of followers. The “lack of staff resources” response goes hand in hand with the “non-priority” response, as they are one in the same. If measuring social was a priority, the resources would either be found, or hired. None of the roadblocks listed in the infographic are too vast to be overcome with simple solutions, and a little non-routine thinking.
Only a total of 8% of respondents said they outsource any of their social. Partnering with an agency that has expertise and experience in social business, and more importantly in developing strategy and reporting on social marketing, is critical to understanding the true ROI of your brand’s marketing investment. Experts aid in alleviating many of the roadblocks to measurement, and they know how to help craft strategies that make most sense for your brand. In addition, experts have the time and resources to either be your social media team, or to help guide them through the process when needed.
Brands know social is important. They know it to the point that they have to invest in doing social the right way. Then, too often, it becomes something that just anyone can do, it is passed around, and by the time it gets back to measurement, excuses are made and no one is happy with the result. Brands need to make social a priority, and to measure the results against business goals. To do anything else, you may as well give it to an intern, and pre-program the “we were hacked” posts for when they mess it up.
If you are ready to get your social media house in order, give us a call. We’d be happy to sit down and discuss it with you.