Earlier this year, SmartBrief and Summus Limited asked the readers of various SmartBrief newsletters to complete a survey about their businesses’ use of social media. We heard back from about 6,500 readers and compiled their answers into a report: “The State of Social Media for Business.”
We heard from readers in a variety of industries and across a range of company sizes — and the comparisons among those groups are really interesting. But my favorite section looked at the differences in social-media use between companies that have been using social media for a few months and the companies that have been at this for several years.
Compared with companies that have been using social media for less than six months, companies that have been using social media for more than three years are more likely to:
- Say they have a fully developed or well-developed social-media strategy (65.7% of veterans compared with 13% of rookies)
- Measure the return on investment of their social-media efforts (36.1% of veterans compared with 9.6% of rookies)
- Say they would not be able to operate without a strong presence in social media (27.9% of veterans compared with 3.6% of rookies)
What are those three-year-plus veterans doing differently? Looking over the data, there are five behaviors that set the two groups apart:
- Veterans invest more in social media, with 21.8% saying they devote at least 2 full-time staffers to social media — compared with 5% of respondents in the four-to-six-month range.
- Veterans are more likely to have support from their leadership. The report showed 32% of three-year-plus veterans say social media is being championed by their leadership — compared with 17.7% of respondents in the four- to six-month bracket.
- Veterans are more likely to diversify their tools. Across the board, veterans social-media users are more likely to use social networks outside of the big four (Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and YouTube). They’re also more likely to say these other tools are important to their social-media efforts.
- Veterans use social media for more than just marketing. When asked which departments use social media in their organization, 62.1% of respondents in the four-to-six-month category said marketing — compared with 55.9% of the three-year-plus group. But a higher percentage of veterans say they’re using social media in every other department listed — including public relations, IT, human resources, sales and product development.
- Veterans are more likely to listen. The rookies are about as likely to say they use social media to put out news releases (38.7% of veterans compared with 39.3% of rookies) and maintain active fan pages (39.5% of rookies compared with 36% of veterans). But when it comes to listening, engaging, soliciting feedback and other activities that involve having a more open, fluid relationship with customers, the veterans lead the way in every category.
Of course, it bears mentioning that this is all historical data. Think about what social media looked like two or three years ago. It was a different world then — and we’re never going back. But while these figures shouldn’t be taken as exact markers of how social-media campaigns unfold, I expect that their core lessons will endure. Veteran social-media practitioners listen, they experiment, and they back up what works with manpower and leadership support.
Want to know more? You can check out a free topline version of the report or purchase the full version.
How has your company’s social-media strategy changed over time?
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[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by SmartBrief on SocMed, Maggie Lang, Kathy Meyer, Andy Hanselman, Jeff Gibbard and others. Jeff Gibbard said: What separates social-media veterans from rookies? http://bit.ly/gL2DiF [...]
[...] What separates social-media veterans from rookies? [...]
It is interesting to review the specific differences in veterans' strategies, and I'm sure lots of less-experienced firms and individuals would be right in taking notes from this informative post. Experience in business, though, helps you learn what works and what doesn't. As you say, it would be interesting to see this same report a year from now, when the atmosphere would likely have evolved once again.
[...] SmartBlog on Social Media [...]
[...] What separates social-media veterans from rookies? [...]
[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by Laurel Zacher, Gage. Gage said: How diversified is your social media portfolio? http://bit.ly/dE4rzf [...]
I feel encouraged and confident, Nick, Thanks. My website just went live and I really have to be motivated to constantly learn. You article is just a good lesson to me.
Hmmm. I wonder how I landed here. A Veteran or a Rookie? Interesting to hear 6500 responses. Guessing a veteran might be involved somewhere to pull my attention off the land of rodeo and get me to come here….
[...] here is an artical by Jesse Stanchak from the SmartBlog on Social Media where he talks about what separates social-media veterans from rookies. It is mostly designed for companies and organizations. Share This [...]
I think I have to learn more from those social media veterans.
[...] While using Twitter or Facebook may seem simple, using it effectively is not. You can get some insights into what I mean by that by reading what separates veteran social media users from rookies at SmartBlog on Social Media. [...]
Jesse –
I, too, like diving deep into market research survey data to find the patterns and distinctions revealed. I recently did a similar survey among nonprofits, Nonprofits and Social Media: It Ain’t Optional (http://www.ventureneer.com/sites/default/nonprofits-and-social-media-it-aint-optional_0.pdf), and found that amount of time spent per week on social media was a more discriminating variable than length of time using social media. Power-users (those nonprofits using social media 25 hours or more per week) are more likely than veteran users (who have been using social media 2 years or more):
*to be strategic in their use of social media
*to use social media for essential mission and business functions, such as advocacy, raising money, mobilizing and coordinating people, and cause marketing
*to be sophisticated in the way they evaluate the effectiveness of social media, using a wider variety of metrics
I've included this item in a Social Media in Organizations (SMinOrgs) S.M.A.R.T. News Digest focused on "social leadership." Here's a link to it: http://www.sminorgs.net/2010/12/smart-news-social….
Although the participants in this study may not reflect the characteristics of (the majority of) enterprises that have not begun to leverage social media, with an impressive sample size of 6500 respondents the results provide reliable insights into some of the key social media success factors for organizations that have engaged. And even though experience alone isn’t the best teacher, it appears from the summary report that the “veterans” are reflecting, learning, and adopting. People may have to purchase the report to get more in-depth insights, but the price seems reasonable.
Thanks!
Courtney Hunt
Founder, SMinOrgs Community
My recent post SMART News- Social Leadership I
I've learned that the only constant in social media is change. And you are right, the core message will always stay in tact. While technology may change, the human side of it never will.
[...] spotted this over on the smart blog They pulled up some great findings from over 6,500 respondents and compared those who have [...]
[...] 5 ways to spot a social-media veteran Companies with several years of experience running social-media campaigns tend to be more committed to social media and more reliant on social tools for their day-to-day operations than are social-media newcomers, according to a study by SmartBrief and Summus. Veteran companies are also much more likely than novices to use a variety of social-media platforms, to have high-level management support for their campaigns and to harness social tools for public relations, human resources and product development rather than using them purely as a marketing device. SmartBrief/SmartBlog on Social Media [...]
[...] found this post over at smartblogs.com, that lends some excellent learning points for improving influende. Please share your comments, and [...]
[...] November, SmartBlog on Social Media released a report called “The State of Social Media for Business,” asking whether social media veterans or rookies — companies that have been using social [...]