Social media has gone mainstream. And for businesses, it represents an unprecedented marketing opportunity to connect companies directly with customers. This is why nearly every business on the planet is exploring social media marketing initiatives.

Two years ago, businesses were uncertain about social media. Now social media is here to stay, and companies are rapidly responding to new social media opportunities. eConnectivity is your local social media go-to for all of your business’ social media needs.

Improving sales

It takes time to develop relationships that lead to actual business. However, a large percentage of marketers who take the time find great results. For example, 72 percent of marketers who have been using social media for more than three years report it had helped them close business. More than half of those who spend 11 or more hours per week find the same results. The self-employed and small business owners with two or more employees most achieved this benefit (48 percent).

Generating exposure for your business

Even with a minimal time investment, the vast majority of marketers (81 percent or higher) indicated their social media efforts increased exposure for their business. Owners of small businesses (two to 100 employees) were more likely than others to report greater exposure (89.2 percent reporting benefits). Nearly all marketers who’ve been employing social media marketing for a year or longer report it generates exposure for their business. A significant 72 percent of those conducting social media activities for more than three years strongly agree.

Resulting in new business partnerships

Those who invest the most time in social media marketing gain the most business partnerships. However, 45 percent of people who’ve only invested 12 months or less in social media marketing report new partnerships were gained. Even the majority of those investing six to 10 hours per week in social media were able to build new partnerships. The self-employed and small business owners with two or more employees were significantly more likely to benefit from partnerships, with at least 59 percent reporting a benefit. Marketers selling to other businesses were more likely to achieve this benefit (61 percent) than those selling to consumers (51 percent).

Generating qualified leads

By spending as little as six hours per week, 52 percent of marketers see lead generation benefits with social media. Small businesses were more likely than others to strongly agree that qualified leads were generated (21 percent strongly agreed, compared to 14 percent or less with other types of businesses).

Reducing overall marketing expenses

The main financial cost of social media marketing is the time it takes to gain success. However, a significant percentage of participants strongly agreed that overall marketing costs dropped when social media marketing was implemented. The self-employed (59 percent) and small business owners with two or more employees (58 percent) were more likely than others to see reductions in marketing costs when using social media marketing.

• YouTube/video: Surprisingly, marketers indicated that YouTube/video was the top area in which they plan to increase their social media efforts. A significant 77 percent of marketers plan to increase their YouTube and/or video marketing. Businesses with 1,000 or more employees indicated this is a key growth area, with 82 percent responding affirmatively.


• Facebook: is clearly a top winner. Ninety-two percent of marketers are using Facebook, and 75 percent plan to increase their activities. Only 3 percent of marketers surveyed do not plan to utilize Facebook. Second only to YouTube/video and tied with blogs, Facebook is an area in which marketers feel they can achieve substantial results. Eighty percent of B2Cs plan to increase Facebook efforts, and 83 percent of large businesses will increase their Facebook activities. Facebook is also the top focus for people just getting started with social media.


• Twitter: Seventy-three percent of marketers will increase their activities on Twitter. Large businesses are most likely to increase their activities on Twitter, with 77 percent reporting.


• LinkedIn: As expected, B2Bs are significantly more likely to plan on increasing their use of LinkedIn (71 percent of B2Bs vs. 51 percent of B2Cs). The self-employed (68 percent) were more likely to increase their use of LinkedIn.

eConnectivity has a team of experts to assist you with affordable packages tailored to meet your business’ needs. We think keeping things simple is smart. Our motto is “It’s not who you know ... It’s who knows you.” We look forward to speaking with you.

Source: the 2011 Social Media Marketing Industry Report

For more information, contact Sarah Lee Penix at 210-865-0862 or 210-447-2340. You can also send an email to sarah@econnectivity.org.