Cutting through the “noise” has been revealed as the biggest social media challenge facing B2B brands, according to B2B Marketing’s 2015 Social Media Benchmarking Report.

38% of respondents cited cutting through the “noise” as the main stumbling block when it came to social media.

Companies are also struggling to determine their social worth, with 35% encountering ‘difficulty proving ROI’.

However, the study also showed only two in five (40%) senior managers expect their social media channels to accurately demonstrate ROI, while 34% rarely or never expect any proof in regards to ROI.

Yet, respondents were largely confident in their ability to improve ROI over the next year, with 55% expecting a slight improvement and a further 23% anticipating significant gains.

Other significant challenges for social media marketers included ‘lack of time’ (30 % and ‘lack of strategic planning’ 25%).

The report also revealed just 35% of companies use paid-for social media monitoring platforms, perhaps explaining why marketers are struggling to present comprehensive analysis.

An over-reliance on standard website analytics could explain some reservations, with
75 % of companies using platforms such as Google Analytics, which only focuses on web traffic from social rather than audience breakdowns, engagement and interactions.

Let’s look at some of the statistics:
– Only ½ of marketers say social media is an important part of their marketing:
56% critical or important, 44% of some importance/limited importance or no importance
(Interesting note: not much has changed since 2014 when 62% said critical or important & 38% said of some importance/limited importance or no importance)

– Marketing allocates: 12% of budget & 20% of time on Social Media

– Marketers are focusing on reach, rather than engagement:
16% use Social Media to interact, 69% broadcast own content, 13% direct conversations

– Top challenges: Cutting through the “noise”, followed by difficulty proving ROI & finally, lack of time

– Most B2B actively used platforms: 76% Twitter, 71% Linkedin, 47%YouTube

– Most effective B2B platforms: 58% Linkedin, 24% Twitter, 9% Facebook

– Most effective content formats are: Infographics, videos, images
(Interesting note: the most used content formats are: Links to longer content, videos, written copy)

– Measurements to measure success: 56% web visits, 58% interactions, 42% downloads of content

Contact Debbie @ Radsick Ad Group to plan & implement your companies 2015/2016 Social Media Program – we can help you cut through the Social Media “noise” – saving you time & getting a greater ROI.