Measuring impact of social media

Some very interesting data from Laura Ramos of Forrester Research. It seems that marketers are not practicing what they preach. I invite you to read Laura’s entire presentation, but here’s a quick snapshot

Back on June 3rd 2009, Laura Ramos gave a presentation entitled Engagement: Measuring the Impact of Social Media. I summurize her findings here for my readers.

569 B2B marketers answered the question “What are your top five B2B marketing challenges?” (Multiple answers were allowed.)

Reaching decision-makers (54%)
Measuring marketing results (53%)
Improving lead quality (48%)
Generating more leads (44%)
Other concerns
Deepening customer relations (40%)
Retaining/deepening loyalty (25%)
Improving sales relations (20%)

However, when asked what they had already deployed, the picture is very different.

Have agreed-up metric definitions (29% agree strongly; 31% agree somewhat; and 40% disagree)
Account for marketing’s contribution to revenue (26% agree strongly; 46% agree somewhat and 28% disagree)
Marketing programs include metrics (37% agree strongly; 29% agree somewhat; and 34% disagree)
Measure using financial metrics (26% agree strongly; 31% agree somewhat; and 43% disagree)
Have a closed loop system for wins and pipeline (18% agree strongly; 35% agree somewhat; 47% disagree)
Have effective technology to measure ROI ( 17% agree strongly; 37% agree somewhat and 45% disagree)

Here’s Laura’s summary:

Social media measurement must start with objectives and take a long term perspective.
Social media metrics should track community engagement. Use engagement to see beyond traffic and clicks.
Marketing’s job is to communicate and educate about social medias impact on the business.
- Align metric to social objectives: Listening, talking, supporting, etc.
- It’s not the result, but the process.

Bottom line: Social media is here and now. It’s untested and in many ways unmeasurable, but businesses make a big mistake if they are not doing it.

For companies looking for best practices in b2b lead generation who wish to improve the way they acquire new customers, Find New Customers is the place to go. CSO Insights says companies need to improve the way they generate leads and implement processes for business to business lead generation.

Jeff Ogden, the Fearless Competitor, is a demand generation expert and sales leader, as well as the President of Find New Customers, a lead generation company, who helps businesses create lead generation campaigns and continually publishes the best lead generation ideas, so his readers can determine the best lead generation strategy to find new customers.