Under 8% of Social Marketers Happy With Results

Less than 8% of social media marketers are satisfied with their social media results, reports Joseph Carrabis, founder and chief research officer for NextStage Evolution. The finding was based on a 2013 NextStage survey of 1,700 U.S.- and Canada-based businesses ranging from mom and pop shops to Fortune 100 companies. All interviewees were director level and above, and all qualified themselves as knowledgeable social managers with two or more years' experience in social media marketing. A good 21% of those surveyed labeled themselves "dissatisfied with social marketing" and ready to replace it with more traditional buys in 2014. And the biggest chunk, 54.75%, said they are taking a wait and see approach, with many classifying themselves as "social media agnostics." This largest group hasn't made any decisions about next moves in 2014. So, with more than half the businesses interviewed saying that the jury is out on social marketing's value and that they are prepared to sit out 2014 rather than continue to invest, Carrabis unsurprisingly suggests that, at best, "social marketing seems to be losing its pull." For more on the survey, go to http://www.imediaconnection.com/content/35711.asp?imcid=missedarticle#singleview