sproutsocial.com • pr@sproutsocial.com • @SproutSocial 7
Introduction
There is no questioning the value of social media.
Social is a venerable powerhouse, supporting nearly
every marketing objective from brand awareness
to advocacy over the past decade. And this value
forces social teams to think more critically about their
integrated marketing strategies as a whole.
To understand the full potential of social and how
it can provide the most value to brands, we went
right to the source. For this Index, we surveyed more
than 1,000 social marketers about their social goals,
challenges and expectations, and we cross-referenced
their responses with those of more than 1,000
consumers to understand what people really want
from brands on social.
Seventy percent of social marketers say their biggest
goal with social is to increase awareness, and more
than half (59%) use social to support their sales and
lead generation objectives. Other goals include
increasing community engagement and growing brand
audiences, making social an incredibly rich marketing
channel. But with such a versatile resource at their
disposal, marketers can find it challenging to prioritize
their goals and hone their focus.
Social also remains the optimal channel for marketers
to achieve their lofty goals. In the last six months
alone, 44% of consumers reported an increase in their
personal use of social media platforms. That increased
social usage bodes well for marketers seeking to drive
their social audience further down the purchasing
funnel: when consumers follow a brand on social, 87%
say they are likely to visit that brand’s website or app.
Despite the potential of social, marketers
still struggle to fully embrace its eectiveness.
Forty-seven percent of marketers say developing
social strategies that support overall business
goals is their number one challenge. And 22%
of marketing leaders worry their brand’s social
strategy is ineective.
While 71% of all social marketers agree they are
able to provide helpful insights to teams outside
of their departments, only 12% of social teams
say their primary function is to provide business
insights for their entire organization. At a time
when social is more accessible than ever before,
its value is still downplayed because of the
historical disconnect between social and
bottomline business metrics. The time is now for
marketers to learn how to eectively communicate
the significance of social data, elevate their
strategies to serve larger business goals and
secure a seat at the table for social teams.
In the latest Sprout Social Index, we explore
how social marketers can refine their goals and
improve social performance by tapping into
consumer insights and rising trends. We’ll dig into
the challenges holding social teams back from
reaching their fullest potential and uncover how
marketers can demonstrate the value of social
beyond the marketing department. Empowered
with these insights, marketers can expand social’s
influence through the entire organization and even
demonstrate how social data positively influences
business growth.
sproutsocial.com • pr@sproutsocial.com • @SproutSocial 7
