No matter how much conversation there is about the importance of social media, several new reports suggest that many individuals – and organisations – still don’t understand the true potential of social, or the risks of NOT doing social well.
A report from Scredible this week suggests that professionals in the UK are not making the best use of social media at work.
The majority of the 1000 people surveyed viewed social media mainly as a way to socialise and maintain contact with family and friends. An incredible 38% felt that social media should be banned from the workplace entirely because it drives down productivity. Only 39% of UK professionals felt social media would be important for their career in five years' time – a stark contrast with 54% of Americans.
Meanwhile, Marketing Land investigated the Senior Marketing executives of the top 100 global brands and found that less than a third of them had active Twitter accounts despite the brands themselves having a significant presence on the platform.
Perhaps the issue for senior level executives is a fear of social media mis-steps. In a study by Lithium Technologies 42% of senior level executives said that consumers had used social media to shame their organisations.
We’re not listening
It’s not just individuals who are failing to recognise the value of being active and proactive on social media. The Northridge Group has found that up to a third of people who contact brands via social media never get a response. And even when they do get a response, many brands are still failing to live up to consumer expectations.
The challenge for organisations is that social media drives high consumer expectations – consumers expect a suitable reply or resolution within the hour and as more organisations strive to achieve this, those that lag behind are losing out.
Additional sources: ITProPortal; SocialMedia Today.