Social Media Forecast to Deliver 50% of Web Sales

A new "infographic" is amping the buzz on social media advertising by forecasting that social media will generate $30 billion in web sales a year by 2015 -- with half of all web sales to occur via social media. Using statistics from Gartner Research, marketing software provider Vocus put together the infographic, with a heavy focus on Facebook advertising trends. According to the data, Facebook already drives 26% of referral traffic to business websites, 20% of shoppers already prefer buying through a brand's Facebook page rather than its website, and one in three businesses already reach out to consumers via Facebook. The general takeaway, however, is that social media marketing has momentum for growth and will need to be a part of most marketing budgets. So figuring out how to use social media effectively should be high on the agenda for marketers in 2013. To see the infographic, go to http://mashable.com/2012/11/01/facebook-sales/