Michael Stelzner, of Social Media Examiner, released the 2012 Social Media Marketing Industry Report today. The 42-page document aggregates an enormous amount of insight from over 3,800 social media professionals. The report provides information on how businesses are using social media, what challenges they’re facing, the direction they intend to go in the future, as well as how and how much marketing professionals are using social media.
The report is an exceptionally valuable resource, especially if you’re an independent social media strategist. There are a wealth of statistics that will help persuade even the most difficult potential clients.
Here are a few highlights from the report that I found particularly interesting:
- “58% of marketers who have been using social media for more than 3 years report it has helped them improve sales.”
- “By spending as little as 6 hours per week, 61% of marketers see lead generation benefits with social media.”
- “Most businesses (67%) plan on increasing their Google+ activities.”
- “40% of marketers indicated determining how to measure social media results and how to find customers or prospects were the top social media marketing questions they want answered.”
- “The majority of marketers (59%) are using social media for 6 hours or more each week, and a third (33%) invest 11 or more hours weekly.”
The report is completely free and absolutely worth the read. You can download the report on Social Media Examiner’s website.
What is the most shocking statistic you found in the report? Let me know in the comments!
[Image courtesy: Michael Stelzner/Social Media Examiner]
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