Social Media Blueprint (Shane Burford & Jack Day)

The Social Media

Blueprint

An investigation into consumer usage of social media and the implementation of social media into organisational strategy.Jack Day and Shane Burford

THE SOCIAL MEDIA BLUEPRINT2

Jack Day & Shane Burford: 2010

Executive Summary

This report was commissioned to examine the impact social media is having on

organisations. It looks specifically at consumer behaviour with social media and

to what extent organisations are incorporating it into their marketing strategies.

Social media is a relatively new medium that has grown rapidly in recent years;

it now represents almost a billion users worldwide. This exponential growth has

uncovered new opportunities for marketers to reach large audiences in

developed countries, where social media has significant penetration. It has

provided a genuine opportunity for marketers to interact with consumers in

creative new ways that were previously impossible.

The research draws attention to the education gap between organisations and

their understanding of social media. Findings indicate that 56% of organisations

believe that social media is a crucial medium to have an advertising presence,

however only 37% of organisations incorporate social media into their existing

marketing strategy. Of further interest is that only 19% of organisations use

scholarly articles to source information as to how best use social media. Further

compounding the issue is that a majority organisations believe social media is

an effective channel for reaching new customers (43%), however the majority

of users who interact with brands in social media are existing users of the brand

(64%), suggesting a disconnect between organizational beliefs and consumer

behaviour. Finally, contrary to popular opinion, social media operates in a



similar way to traditional advertising. Therefore, an integrated marketing

communication strategy, and maintaining a share of voice in line with market

share are paramount in developing an effective advertising communication.

The report evaluates these critical issues and provides informed advice

regarding social media integration into strategy. It is recommended that an

organisation should:

•Maintain a share of voice in line with market share

•Regulate organisational behaviour to facilitate social media integration

•Choose carefully when investing money into social media based on what

criteria?

•Develop an integrated marketing communication strategy

•Use cut-through tactics in creating social media content to increase its

effectiveness.

In order to facilitate these recommendations it is advised that businesses create

a policy to regulate employee interactions with the medium. It is also advised

that organisations monitor the activity of their key competitors to ensure that

share of voice is maintained. Finally it is advised that companies who lack

appropriate knowledge should seek expert instruction as a means to closing any

education gaps. This report provides a blueprint to ensuring successful

integration of social media into marketing strategies.



Table of Contents

..............................................................................................................Introduction 7

................................................................................................Methodology 8

....................................................................................................Market Analysis 10

.........................................................................Holistic view of the market 10

.........................................................................................Size and growth 12

........................................................................................................Trends 13

......................................................................................................Costing 14

...............................................................................................Customer analysis 15

.........................................................................Consumers of social media 15

......................................................................................Global perspective 16

........................................................................................Local Perspective 17

.......................................................Organisations as users of social media 18

...............................................................................................Fortune 500 18

...............................................................................Consumers and brands 20

...........................................................................................Competitor Analysis 21

...................................................................................................Television 22

...........................................................................................................Print 23

..........................................................................................................Radio 24

...............................................................................................Social Media 24

.......................................................Integrated marketing communications 26

...................................................................................................................Research 26



..............................................................................................Methodology 26

...............................................................................................Focus group 27

.............................................................................................Limitations 27

.................................................................................................Findings 28

....................................................................Consumer quantitative survey 29

.............................................................................................Limitations 30

.................................................................................................Findings 30

.......................................................................Business quantitative survey 36

.................................................................................................Findings 36

.....................................................................Advantages and disadvantages 41

........................................................................Advantages of social media 41

....................................................................Disadvantages of social media 43

........................................................................................................Critical issues 44

.................................................................Strategies and recommendations 46

..............................................................................................................Actions list 49

...........................................................................................................Bibliography 53

..................................................................................................................Appendix 57

................................................................................................Appendix 1 57

......................................................................Focus group prompt sheet 57

................................................................................................Appendix 2 60

..............................................................................Focus group findings 60

................................................................................................Appendix 3 63

................................................................Consumer survey and findings 63

................................................................................................Appendix 4 77



................................Organisational implementation survey and findings 77

Introduction

In less than three years, social media has become the most common Internet

based activity. Social media is a medium that allows users to interact, create,

share and express. (Qualman, E, 2009) It is the blend of technology and social

interaction that best encapsulates the essence of social media (Wikipedia.com,

2010). The most common social networks include Facebook, Twitter, YouTube,

MySpace, Windows Live, Blog’s and Flickr. Qualman notes the potential of

these websites as the worlds largest ‘referral system’ and suggests that brands

must capitalise on this ‘world-of-mouth’ in order to reduce inefficient

marketing. Beyond social interaction, there is an enormous level of passive

observation amongst users, which can be difficult to quantify (Qualman, E,

2009). Social media provides a platform for businesses to build and maintain

reputations amongst consumers, it allows for direct interaction with brands and

if successfully implemented offers brands the chance to reach consumers in new

creative ways (Wikipedia.com, 2010).

Despite the opinions of sceptics, it is indisputable that social media is here to

stay. Within one year, Facebook alone had 200 million users. As Nuttney states

‘Facebook is the only truly global network’, it has only failed to take on a

meaningful scale in countries where government regimes control Internet

usage’ (2010). A choice no longer exists as to ‘if’ a brand has a presence on



social media but instead the question is how best to incorporate social media

into a marketing strategy and to then measure its impact (Qualman, E, 2009).

For individual brands much of social media’s success is dependent on user

uptake; if you can engage users with content that achieves ‘cut-through’, the

chances of that message being shared ‘virally’ amongst friends becomes so

much greater.

With the rapid growth of social media comes the need to understand how

consumers use the medium. This will have drastic implications on the ways

social media is implemented into strategy. Social media is unlike any other

advertising forum and the way in which it is consumed is unlike any other

advertising medium. The consumer seeks out content within social media at

their leisure (Econsultancy, 2009), therefore we must understand how people

are using it to identify opportunities for organisations.

Methodology

To better understand social media we are going to take a three-pronged

approach to researching it. The first part will be to look at previous work and

opinions on the topic. This secondary data analysis will investigate the overall

media market, the consumers of social media and what alternatives to social

media are available.



With an understanding of how social media fits comparable to other media

options, we will then move to consider how consumers use the medium and the

ways in which they interact with brands. Understanding how consumers are

using social media will better allow us to uncover what is the most effective

method of integrating social media into strategy.

This will be researched initially using a focus group of 16 users of social media.

This will give us direction on where to take the research further.

Complementary to this will be a quantitative survey based on the findings of the

focus groups. From this we will uncover how consumers are using social media

at an aggregate level and how best to tailor a strategy around this.

The third prong to our research will be a quantitative study based on how

businesses are implementing social media into marketing strategies. For this

element of the research an online survey will be distributed to marketing

practitioners via a convenience sample. This will shed light on how

organisations, at an aggregate level, are using social media and where any

education gaps exist.

The results of these three research goals will be an extremely comprehensive

and well-researched investigation into what makes social media an effective

advertising platform.



Market Analysis

Holistic view of the market

Considering the growth of social media, especially in developed societies, it has

become a lucrative mass marketing tool. The opportunities social media has in

relation to advertising are superior to traditional advertising on the Internet.

Clemons (2009) notes that sponsored advertisements are the least trusted form

of advertising on the Internet, in particular organisations that operate their own

corporate blogs. An interesting observation noted by Clemons, that whilst

consumers do not trust commercial advertisements on the Internet they do trust

the product recommendations of their peers.

Social media offers more then advertising on the Internet, a major benefit of

brands having a presence within social media is the potential for Word-of-

Mouth recommendations amongst peers. Whilst this form of advertising is

hardly a new phenomenon, what is a new development is how the accessibility

of the Internet has allowed Word-of-Mouth to stretch beyond ones closest

friends to a global audience. Qualman (2010) has termed this transition as



‘World-of-Mouth’. Becoming a ‘fan’ of a product on Facebook acts as a form of

advocacy for that brand. A Nielsen report of 800, 000 Facebook users outlines

the impact that this ‘earned’ mention amongst peers can have on those who see

it. The occurrence is labelled social advocacy and it is proven to have three

major implications; it increases the likelihood that one will see the ad, improves

their likelihood to remember the ad and increases their propensity to buy that

brand (Gibs, 2010).

So is social media the perfect platform for businesses to reach consumers with

the intention that brands will be endorsed? Another study suggests that only

11% of social media users actually use the profile pages of brands (Precourt,

2009). The sheer number of conflicting studies does little to offer organisations

an explanation as to how social media should be incorporated into a marketing

strategy. A key point worth noting comes from a Forrester study in which a

ladder (Figure 1) has been developed that outlines the different ‘types’ of users

that exist within social networking.

Figure 1: Forrester Ladder of Social Media Users



Forrester’s NACTAS Q4: Highlights each segment of user in social media and the types of

activities they undertake

There are ‘creators’ and ‘critics’ who are the most likely to create and comment

on content within social networks. The ladder (figure 1) shows ‘collectors’,

‘joiners’ and ‘spectators’. These types of users have a presence on social media

yet contribute little in terms of content (Li, 2007). It is these users who can best

be described as ‘passive observers’ although they rarely voice their own opinion

they are exposed to their friends attitudes regarding brands and products and

thus, Word-of-Mouth takes its effect.

Size and growth

The growth of social media in the past 7 years has been rapid, so quick, that by

the end of 2009 there were 971 million unique users on social networking sites.

That number is expected to increase to almost two billion users by 2015, which

equates to 27.7% of the global population. However, the first social networking

site launched was sixdegrees.com in 1997. Each new site launched has learnt

from those that preceded it. In 2010 social networking has become so wide

spread that in North America, Western Europe, several developed Asian and

Australasian markets it is becoming a tool for mass marketing. Although

Facebook is currently the largest online social network it’s sustainable future is



not guaranteed. This is due to the difficulty in monetizing its value and the

threat of improved competition. Myspace offers the ideal example of how social

media can be usurped by new and improved innovations. Nuttney’s report

suggests the social media industry will reach its maturity in 2015. By 2015

China will present the largest user base in the world. Growth is largely

dependent on Internet access: in regions where Internet usage is common

amongst the population social networking is almost mature, as approximately

75% of all Internet users have active social networking accounts (Nuttney, A,

2010).

Trends

In 2015 social networks will offer advertisers access to 80% of global consumer

expenditure. Other social networking sites have realised the difficulty in

competing with giants such as Facebook and instead have offered niche services

for smaller markets. Linkedin best represents this and has been able to present

itself as a social site that links employees with employers. Mychurch is another

example which is a network targeted towards Christians. Certain social sites are

more popular in certain countries, however; at an aggregate level Facebook

clearly remains the global leader. Certain regions such as the United Kingdom

have diversified needs and many social sites can operate successfully in niche

markets. More affluent countries have higher usage levels and therefore social

media is a more powerful marketing tool in these regions. It should be noted

that under-developed countries have low Internet usage levels and therefore

those with social media accounts represent a minority in such regions. The US



market is the most competitive for social networking sites; despite this,

Facebook still has an 81% user reach.

Costing

Monetising social media has long been a difficult endeavour. While

advertisements have proven to be a popular income method for some sites like

Facebook, social media has still failed to reach its income potential. Other

methods for monetizing the media exist, such as pay-to-use game playing, but

these alternatives have little or no relevance to marketers. Therefore advertising

is the primary and most useful method of monetizing social media for marketers

(Webb & Burgoyne, 2009).

However, one key draw back to this is that people seldom use social media for

connecting with brands. Forrester research found that while 59% of social

media users use it for sharing and viewing photos and videos, only 11% of

consumers use social media for viewing company profiles and just 8% use it for

interacting with brands (Precourt, 2009).

This then begs the question, if we are going to spend money on raising

awareness for a social media presence, what is the value of someone who

interacts with a brand using a social media page? A recent report conducted by

Syncapse looked at this. They found on average, fans spend $71.84 more than

non-fans. They calculated therefore, that a fans value, on average is $157.18 to



the brand (2010). However, with Forresters research into how few people

interact with brands on social media, we believe that fans of brands could

simply be heavy users. This of course means it is logical to assume they would

spend more with the brand than non-users. Therefore, the validity of Syncapse’s

study is relative to the individual companies view of the importance, or lack

thereof, of heavy users. This will be explored in the research conducted within

this report.

Customer analysis

Consumers of social media

Our customer analysis will be two-fold. The first part will look at consumers as

customers of social media. This part will look at the growth of the medium, the

demographic skews with regard to age and gender and location, and consider

the main reasons for adoption of social media. The second part of this analysis

will consider organisations who ‘use social media for marketing purposes’ as

customers.

For this part we will revisit the growth of the medium year-on-year for business

purposes, consider organisational uptake of the new media including spend. The

result will be a well-rounded look at how the medium is used by people and

businesses.



Global perspective

Figure 2: Growth of social media

Social Network User Growth, 2009-15 by Region: comScore, Business Insights: Highlights

what regions the majority of social media users come from



Social media is a massive medium with incredible marketing significance. In

2009, it was estimated that over 900 million social media users existed

worldwide. Not only is it an extremely large platform, but also it is growing. It

is expected to reach close to two billion users by 2015 (Figure 2) representing

an estimated quarter of the population and reaching 80% of the world’s

consumer expenditure. Consumers of social media vary in demographics based

on region, however it can be generalized that in many developed nations

including the United Kingdom, Western Europe and the United States, social

media is becoming a mass-market advertising method (Nuttney, 2010). In other

regions where the Internet is restricted or inaccessible, social media is mainly

used by younger, more affluent members of the population.

Local Perspective

Figure 3: Australia’s Uptake of Social Media

Social Network overview for Australia: comScore, Business Insights: Breakdown of users in

Australia and the most popular social networks

Australia is a developed nation and, as such, social media is a mass-marketing

tool. It is estimated in Australia there are over nine million users, representing

almost half of the Australian population. While this does not have the reach of



television or radio, the growth of the medium is exponential. As social media

grows, other media alternatives such as television have remained stagnant in

usage and are fragmenting. In Australia the largest medium used by consumers

is Facebook, used by more than 7 million Australians (Figure 3) making it an

excellent mass marketing tool.

Organisations as users of social media

This then raises the question of how social media can be integrated into an

organisations marketing strategy? As with consumers, social media has grown

in its organisational uptake in recent years.

Fortune 500

Barnes and Mattson found in a study of 200 of the ‘Fortune 500’ companies that

organisations are using social media more year-on-year, affirming that social

media in marketing strategy is growing (Figure 4).

Figure 4: Year-on-Year Growth of Social Media



Barnes & Mattson (2008): Year-on-Year growth of social media

Furthermore, of the 209 companies researched, 44% said that social media was

very important to their marketing strategies (Figure 5). This has risen sharply

from just 26% the previous year. With brands increasingly using social media in

their marketing mix, it has become more important than ever to use social

media to interact with consumers.

Figure 5: Importance of Social Media

Barnes & Mattson (2008): How important is social media technology in your business/

marketing strategy



Consumers and brands

We have looked at consumers as users of social media and have looked at

companies as users of social media; now we shall shift our attention to how

consumers use brands on social networks. Nielson has recently published a

report (Figure 6) that describes what activities consumers most commonly

partake in and the year-on-year changes. It has noted similar findings to Barnes

and Mattson with usage of social media increasing. Naturally, this means that

consumer’s interaction with brands has increased too. In 2008 only 23% of

users of social media had interacted with a brand. In 2009, however, this had

increased to 38%, an increase of 15%. With consumer usage growing, company

implementation growing year-on-year and the number of consumers using

social media for interacting with brands increasing, it means social media is

truly becoming a mass marketing tool desired by both consumers and

companies.

Figure 6: Activities on Social Media



Neilsen (2008): Fastest growing social media activities 2008 to 2009

Competitor Analysis

For the purposes of the report, we will limit competitors to other forms of media

in which organisations allocate part of their advertising budget. However, rather

then suggesting ‘one’ medium is superior to another, the report will identify the

capabilities of all mediums and stress the importance of creating a marketing

mix that integrates all mediums into marketing communication (also known as

an integrated marketing communication).

In order to provide perspective as to how quickly social media has grown

amongst consumers, it is worthwhile comparing it to other mediums and the

time in which each platform reached 50 million viewers/users. Radio took 38

years, television 13 years, the Internet 4 years and Facebook, just one social

media website, added over 200 million unique users in less than one year

(Qualman, 2010).



Television

Television is one of the most popular mediums for advertising. It reaches a wide

audience, as 94% of Australians tune into watch television at least once a week

and the average household will watch for approximately 3-5 hours per week

(ROI.com.au, 2010). Television is a proven platform for maximising the reach

of advertisements and it allows organisations to present a controlled dialogue

about their brand. Organisations are able to strengthen the distinctive elements

of their brand to an audience, utilising sight, sound and motion.

However, it must be noted that television advertising is not cheap: there are

production costs as well as the costs associated with airing the commercial.

Advertising theory suggests that campaigns are most effective when they reach

as many people as possible. This is because when a person sees an

advertisement more than once, diminishing returns can be observed (figure 7)

so therefore reaching as many unique viewers as possible is best to get the

greatest value (Jones, 1995).

Figure 7:



Diminishing Returns for Multiple Ad views

The X-axis shows the number of views of an advertisement. The Y-axis shows the increased

effect of advertising on ones propensity to buy. Note: one exposure is more effective than

multiple.

In addition to diminishing returns, ad avoidance also has implications on the

cost of the medium; meaning ads must be run more then once to reach

everyone.

Print

Like television, print is a traditional form of advertising and comes in the form

of advertisements in newspapers, magazines, brochures and direct mail.

Comparatively, print advertising is far cheaper than television; typically there is

a higher readership than circulation and the ‘life’ of the advertisement is longer

then a television commercial. In regard to magazines there is potential for

organisations to segment and target consumer groups.



Disadvantages of print are the costs involved per person, whilst it may be a

cheaper alternative than television, in terms of consumers who will see the ad

the cost is proportionally high. In addition print lacks the audio element of other

mediums such as television, which can increase ad avoidance.

Radio

Another traditional medium is radio; advantages are the cost compared to

television. Production costs are lowered, as the visual aspect is lost. Radio

commercials are quick to produce and are easily endorsed by a host.

However, an organisation that advertises on radio struggles to strengthen the

distinctive elements of the brand, as there is no visual element. Radio is a

passive medium by nature as such there is a large degree of ad avoidance.

Social Media

Social media is the newest medium; it provides a platform upon which

consumers can interact with a brand. Unlike traditional advertising media in

which communication is one-way, social media offers a channel in which two-

way communication is possible. As such some brands have used the medium as

a customer service channel. The potential for consumer interaction allows for

brands to engage with customers regarding product changes, offer feedback

regarding promotions and testing markets.



Social media, in particular sites such as Facebook, have a global reach.

Facebook includes a facet that allows users to ‘like’ brands and for friends of

the user to notice; this is an endorsement that is not possible through other

mediums, it acts as a type of recommendation.

Unlike typical advertisements on the Internet, social media allows consumers to

source brands, which removes the occurrence of ad avoidance more common

with other forms of advertising.

Disadvantages of social media include the lack of control the brand has over the

comments consumers make about it. There is a perception that negative

comments can tarnish a brands image and as such a brand must control the

message.

Despite the growth, currently only half of Australians have an active social

media account, so reach is not as extensive as television or radio.

Social media at an aggregate level is actually made up of a vast number of

different websites, which creates a highly fragmented platform for

organisations. Despite the popularity of Facebook, deciding in what platform to

advertise becomes a complication?



Integrated marketing communications

Integrated Marketing Communication (IMC) refers to the ability of one

organisation to amalgamate all their marketing material into one consistent

message.

The sum of the total is worth more then the sum of the parts; in order for

organisations to fully capitalise on their marketing expenditure there must be

consistency of the brand across all advertising.

Consumers distinguish a brand from the competitors through distinctive

elements; therefore those distinctive elements must be prevalent through

television commercials, radio ads, print and of course social media. Despite the

unbelievably quick rise of social media, it must be treated as another part of a

brand’s marketing mix. The logo, colours, taglines, imagery and sounds that

exist in other advertising material should be transferred to social media and the

end result will strengthen those cues in the consumers mind.

Research

Methodology

Our market research has two main parts. The first part broadly considered how

consumers use social media. We did this research firstly with a focus group for

exploratory purposes. We then did a quantitative study on consumer behaviour



based on the information uncovered in the focus group. In the second part of the

research, we investigated how businesses implement social media into practice.

For this part of the research, we did a quantitative survey targeting marketing

practitioners.

Focus group

Limitations

The focus group was conducted with a group of 16 people. Participants were

aged between 20 and 30 years of age. There was a clear skew towards people of

a younger age demographic, we didn’t see this as a major implication as we

only wanted to talk to users of social media. Based on a report by Nuttney

regarding the demographics of social media users, there is a positive

relationship existing between age and the uptake of social media.

Of the 16 participants, five were male and 11 were female, representing a

gender bias. This was seen as a potential issue, however a ComScore study on

gender and social media usage found that users of social media did not differ

greatly based on gender, with a slight skew toward women using social media

more. This skew will also be investigated in our quantitative study on consumer

usage.



Findings

A prompt sheet directed the focus group, (see appendix 1) and a concise

summary of the findings can be found in appendix 2. From the focus group we

identified key areas of interest, which we felt warranted further investigation.

Firstly, regarding the demographics of the group, we found people used the

medium more hours than at first thought. This could be due to the skew toward

younger participants. Most of the participants used the medium more than 10

hours a week. Most participants had a Facebook account while other websites

that were used were twitter, MSN, MySpace and one respondent claimed to use

Tumblr, a social blogging website.

In relation to brands, all respondents in the focus group said they interacted with

a brand to some extent, respondents suggested they would be more likely to

notice an organic impression then a paid advertisement.

The overwhelming majority of participants said they had been ‘annoyed’ by a

brand spamming them via social media. However, comparatively only a small

number of participants said they would block a brand from contacting them as a

result.

People said that they were most likely to talk about brands because they were

either a high-involvement decision or because they had had a negative

experience with the brand.



The clear majority of the focus group said that they owned the product before

they began using the brand in social media. This suggests that users of brands in

social media are heavy users of the brand already.

Of the social media campaigns people can recall, most people recalled

campaigns that were, fun, humorous, or relevant, suggesting that cut through is

still of paramount importance.

Finally, not-for-profit organisations were frequently used in social media. While

most people said that they had used one in social media, only a couple of

participants said they had donated to the organisation. This suggests that there is

an opportunity for not-for-profit companies to raise awareness through social

media as it is a ‘likable’ cause, but the medium may not encourage donations.

Consumer quantitative survey

The second part of our research was a quantitative study regarding consumer

behaviour with relation to social media. This was an extension to the focus

group. We sent an online survey out to Facebook users, and by email to

university students and friends. This resulted in a skew toward Facebook being

the dominant platform of use. But this was not surprising considering the

market share of Facebook in Australia. The survey was 18 questions long with

skips so that people only were required to fill out relevant questions.



Limitations

There were 222 respondents, with our target respondent being someone who

uses social media. The respondents were skewed toward Facebook users; they

were younger in age and were heavier users of social media. This was seen as a

limitation in our research as they are not an accurate representation of the

population but did not render our results invalid as they fitted our target

respondent.

Findings

Facebook, YouTube and Windows Live were listed as the favourite social media

websites. 36% of people said they use social media less than 6 hours a week,

30% said they used it more than 6 hours, but less than 10 hours and 28% said

they use it more than 11 hours a week (Figure 8).

Figure 8: Usage of Social Media



The above graph shows the users of social media divided into heavy, medium

and light users

The predominant reasons people use social media is to maintain contact with

friends (96%) and for entertainment (74%). However, one key finding was that

respondents were not consciously aware of their interaction with brands. Only

13% of people said they used social media to talk about brands; however, 41%

of people said they have updated a status, tweeted or blogged about a brand.

Indicating that consumers don’t necessarily feel as though they use social media

to talk about brands, when clearly, they do. This finding is further strengthened

as 82% of people have befriended or followed a brand via social media; again

this contrasts the smaller 13% who admitted to interacting with brands on social

networks.



Figure 9: Uses of social media

The above graph shows how people use social media with ‘talking about

brands’ not being a good reason for using it.

A possible explanation for this phenomenon is that one’s attitudes will not

always influence their behaviour, hence the lack of consistency between

respondents initial views and their actual actions.

In relation to the status updates, tweets and blogs regarding brands it was

typically in a positive context. 69% of respondents have made/seen positive

comments in comparison to 22% who have seen negative comments (figure 10).

A major factor as to why organisations are skeptical about social media is the

lack of control they have over the message consumers are exposed too.

However, this finding highlights that there is an overwhelming positive

response compared to negative.



Figure 10: Comments about brands in social media

The above

graph shows

how people

talk about brands in social media with most consumers talking positively

Other key insights from the survey include the 64% of people who are friends

with a brand are already existing users of that product. Also, consumers become

fans/follow brands as a means to keep up to date with brand information (56%),

because the brand reflects their own personal image (47%) and to receive

exclusive offers or discounts (39%). This indicates that social media is a more

useful service channel to existing customers rather than a tool that can ‘grow’ a

brand.



One category of notable difference is fashion labels, 56% of respondents claim

to have become a fan or followed some sort of fashion label. This percentage is

significantly higher than other categories. Fashion labels are arguably regarded

as brands that reflect one’s image, a major factor as to why people have

befriended brands on social media. In addition, it offers a plausible explanation

as to why many consumers interact with fashion labels compared to other

categories on social media.

However, it should be noted that 84% of respondents are sensitive to spamming

from brands, and 65% said they would take action to stop the spamming. This

indicates that there is a definite threshold as to how much product information

consumers are willing to absorb before they become ‘annoyed’ by a brands

communication.

Of particular significance is the 82% of respondents who stated they were

prepared to share advertising content with friends on social media, especially if

they thought there friend would enjoy it (figure 11). Of the attributes that make

advertising memorable people are more inclined to share the content if it is

interesting (53%), relevant (48%) or humorous (44%).

Figure 11: Sharing of brand communications



The above graph shows that people are prepared to talk about brands in social

media.

Heavy users (11+ hours a week) are more likely to interact with a brand and

notice advertisements compared to lighter users. In fact this finding holds strong

in almost every aspect, as heavy users are more likely to:

• Become a fan/follow a brand

• Update status about a brand

• Befriend a brand that reflects image, to get exclusive offers and to keep

up to date with brand information.

• More likely to interact with not-for-profit organisations

• More likely to share a brand

• More likely to delete brands for spamming

In relation to generational differences there was a distinct difference between

usage amongst Gen X & Y compared to the Baby Boomers. Younger

respondents are more likely to use social media more frequently.



Business quantitative survey

The third part of the research was a quantitative study into the behaviour of

businesses integrating social media into strategy. The target respondent was

marketing practitioners or business people. Its primary objective was to

understand how respondents used social media personally and in their

businesses. From this survey, we received 304 responses. The findings of this

survey go hand-in-hand with the aforementioned survey on consumer usage.

Findings

The results of the survey found that most organisations think that social media

is important (55%) and urgent (43%) to their business (figure 12), however only

38% of respondents said they had a marketing plan in place that incorporates

social media (figure 13). Respondents who said they did not incorporate social

media into strategy pointed to a ‘lack of expertise’ as the main reason for not

using the medium suggesting an education gap with marketing professionals.

Also of interest is that almost half of businesses believe they do not have the

technological resources to support a social media strategy, representing a major

obstacle to implementing social media into a marketing strategies.

Figure 12: Is social media important to the business?



The above graph shows that most organisations believe that social media is

important

Figure 13: Is social media in the businesses marketing strategy?



The above graph shows that most organisations do not incorporate social

media into their marketing strategy

Social media was seen by organisations as a good tool for driving brand

awareness (54%) and generating traffic to the website (65%). In addition 48%

of organisations used social media for raising awareness (figure 14). When we

asked how this was defined however, we received extremely varied responses

suggesting it is not a good measurement because there is no universally

accepted definition. Moreover, traditional measures of advertising were right

down the bottom for the measurement of social media effectiveness. This

included salience (18%) and recall (33%) which are arguably better measures of

effectiveness.

Figure 14: Measuring social media

The graph shows how organisations are measuring social media success



Furthermore 41% of respondents found that social media was effective in

adding value to other marketing activities suggesting that most organisations

believe an integrated marketing communication is the most effective method of

including social media into advertising communications.

For the above reasons, social media is receiving more budget allocations year-

on-year. 36% of respondents said it has taken more than 5% of their marketing

budget this year, while 51% of respondents said they plan to use more than 5%

of the budget on social media next year (figure 15).

Figure 15: Social media budgets



The graph shows how organisations are increasing their budgets year-on-year

for social media with less organisations giving less than 5% of their budget and

a significant amount more offering 5-10% of their budget to the medium

The social media budget was being increased by most organisations and is

being used to facilitate research (39% of organisations) and hiring new staff for

social media purposes (18%). Larger organisations were more inclined to hire a

new staff member for social media than smaller companies. Only 8% of all

companies planned to spend the budget on hiring an external advertising

agency.

To learn about how to implement social media into strategy, 68% of

respondents said they used the Internet while only 19% of people claimed to use

scholarly articles (figure 16).

Figure 16: Social media research



The graph shows how organisations are seeking information about social

media

Putting these findings in context we must look at Jones’ Share of Voice-Share of

Market theory (1990). Share of Voice describes the necessity for organisations

to invest marketing dollars in proportion to their market share. Thanks largely to

a degree of brand equity; companies with high market share need not spend as

much, as their brand is prevalent in consumer’s minds. Similarly, growing

brands need to invest heavily into marketing communication as a means to

raising awareness. Therefore the practical relevance is that if your competitors

are utilising social media it becomes essential that your organisation implement

a similar strategy in order to have a ‘share-of-voice’ in the medium.

Advantages and disadvantages

Advantages of social media

1. Social media has grown exponentially and will be used by almost 2

billion people in 2015

2. Social media has become the most popular Internet activity

3. 75% of internet users have an active social media account

4. Advertising on social media is inexpensive compared traditional media



5. Social media provides a global peer recommendation network

affectionately called world-of-mouth

6. People are more likely to trust the recommendations of their peers than

paid advertisements.

7. Consumer advocates in social media can increase likelihood to see the

advertisement, likelihood to remember and propensity to buy.

8. Social media has the potential to be used for reach and frequency

9. Social media is a good mass marketing tool

10. Good tool for raising awareness of brands

11. As consumers find the brand with social media an element of ad

avoidance is removed

12. Social media is not as fragmented as traditional online – a few big social

media sites

13. Relatively cheap to create and easy to amend once in market

14. Online shopping is a popular category to interact with on social media

15. 56% of people interacted with a fashion label in social media

16. Entertaining advertising can be spread virally in social media

17. Most people would share an advertisement with friends if it was

entertaining

18. Social media allows businesses to interact in a two-way conversation

with consumers.

19. Social media can be used as a customer service channel

20. Advertising in social media can strengthen a brands distinctive elements



21. Social media allows users to interact, create and share information

including brand communications

22. Paid advertising can be extremely targeted

Disadvantages of social media

1. No empirical generalisations exist as to how consumers are using social

media in relation to brands.

2. Cannibalistic media landscape, unknown whether or not Facebook will

always be the biggest social network

3. Social media is seldom used for interacting with brands

4. People use social media for staying in touch with friends and for

entertainment

5. Comparably, social media does not reach as many Australians as not

television or radio

6. Most people who interact with brands in social media already have

purchased the brand

7. Fans of brands tend to be heavy users of the product

8. Tendency to reach people multiple times rather than reach unique

viewers

9. Businesses lack complete control of any advertising massage shared

through social media

10. Most businesses do not have a social media policy in place to regulate

employee behavior with the medium



11. Uptake of social media within organisations is increasing

12. 80% of people do not like being spammed with social media brand

communications

13. But only 60% of people said that they would proactively delete brand

communications as a result

14. Social media is difficult to monetize

15. Most companies lack the technological resources to support a social

media strategy

Critical issues

1. Consumer advocates in social media can increase likelihood to see the

advertisement, likelihood to remember and propensity to buy.

2. Social media has the potential to be used for reach and frequency

3. Social media is a good mass marketing tool

4. Social media is a good tool for increasing salience for brands



5. Most people would share an advertisement with friends if it was

entertaining

6. Advertising in social media can strengthen a brands distinctive elements

7. No empirical generalizations exist as to how consumers are using social

media in relation to brands.

8. Most people who interact with brands in social media already have

purchased the brand

9. Fans of brands tend to be heavy users of the brand

10. Social media is seldom used for interacting with brands

11. Businesses lack complete control of any advertising massage shared

through social media

12. Most businesses do not have a social media policy in place to regulate

employee behavior with social media

13. Uptake of social media within organisations is increasing

14. Social media can strengthen a brands distinctive elements

15. Most companies lack the technological resources to support a social

media strategy

16. Cannibalistic media landscape, unknown whether or not Facebook will

always be the biggest social network

17. Social media has grown exponentially and will be used by almost 2

billion people in 2015

18. People are more likely to trust the recommendations of their peers than

paid advertisements



Strategies and recommendations

1.Maintain share of voice in line with competitors

a. Monitor competitor activity

b. If your key competitors are using social media it is important for you to

follow to maintain a share of voice



c. If your competitors are not using social media for marketing

communications use it as a first player advantage may exist

d. Develop a social media campaign in proportion to market share and share

of voice

2. Regulate organisational behaviour

a. Develop a social media policy to regulate employee behavior

b. Create an organisational culture that facilitates social media integration

c. Be prepared to lose some control of marketing communications

3. Advice on social media investments

a. Seek expert advice as required to close any education gaps

b. Do not invest in social media as a platform to facilitate growth

c. Invest in suitable technological resources

d. Use multiple social media sites not just one platform

4. Develop an integrated marketing communication

a. Do not neglect other media choices in favour of social media

b. Keep your distinctive elements consistent across platforms to reinforce

memory cues

5. Advice on increasing the effectiveness of social media advertising

a. Where possible develop a strategy to facilitate peer recommendations

b. Develop advertising communications that achieve cut-through



Actions list

Strategy 1: Maintain Share-of-Voice in line with

competitors

Strategy 1: Maintain Share-of-Voice in line with

competitors

Recommendation Actions

Monitor competitor’s

activity

- If your competitors have social media

accounts then you must create your own

accounts

- Create social media accounts that can be

used to watch your key competitor’s

- Monitor their strengths & weaknesses to

identify opportunities & threats

First player advantage- Act swiftly if your competitors have no

social media presence

Keep social media

content in line with

market share

- Monitor your own market share in

proportion to competitors

- Use Jones Share-of-Voice Share-of-

Market model to aid budget expenditure



Strategy 2: Regulate Organisational BehaviourStrategy 2: Regulate Organisational Behaviour


Develop a social

media policy to

regulate employee

behaviour

- Decide on what you want your employees

to do regarding social media

- Create a list of what is acceptable and

unacceptable behaviour of employees

- Develop consequences for unacceptable

behaviour

- Train staff so they are aware of the policy

and it’s advantages

Create an

organisational culture

that facilitates social

media integration

- Create an environment in which staff are

encouraged to blog

- Ensure suitable websites are available for

staff to access

- Consider altering the over-arching

business plan to facilitate social media if

they conflict



Be prepared to lose

control of your

marketing

communications

- Be transparent in communications,

especially in regards to negative feedback

- Embrace two-way communication

- Let your brand advocates work to your

advantage

Strategy 3: Advice on social media investmentsStrategy 3: Advice on social media investments


Seek expert advice as

required to close

education gaps

- Social media consultants can be extremely

useful when looking to find answers

- Be careful not to place too much

significance on industry based opinion

pieces

- Use scholarly articles, preferably

empirically tested to aid decision making

Do not invest in social

media as a platform

to facilitate growth

- Instead use reach based campaigns with

TV, radio and newspaper to grow your

brand



Invest in suitable

technological

resources

- If your organisation doesn’t have the

technological requirements then invest to

ensure you can implement your social

media campaign

Use multiple social

networks

- Invest in the biggest networks (Facebook,

Twitter, Youtube)

Strategy 4: Develop an Integrated Marketing

Communication

Strategy 4: Develop an Integrated Marketing

Communication


Do not neglect other

medium choices in

favour of social media

- Don’t absorb the cost of social media at

the peril of other mediums

- Ensure you continue to invest in the

medium that is the most effective for your

brand

Keep distinctive

elements consistent

- Each medium needs to reflect the others,

in relation to logo, colour, sound & taglines



Strategy 5: Advice on increasing the effectiveness of

social media advertising

Strategy 5: Advice on increasing the effectiveness of

social media advertising


Facilitate peer

recommendations

- Create content that your users can

comment on

-Encourage two-way communication & treat

your brand pages as customer service

channels

Develop advertising

that achieves cut-

through

- Commission humorous, creative &

interesting advertising

- Allow your users to share your content

with their friends

Bibliography

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Conversations’ Admap, Is 508, London

Clemons, E. 2009, ‘Why Advertising is failing on the Internet’, accessed from

http://techcrunch.com/2009/03/22/why-advertising-is-failing-on-the-internet/,

on 20/8/2010



Dholakia, U & Durham, E. 2010, ‘One Café Chain’s Facebook Experiment’,

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London

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LTD

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on 20/9/2010.

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Precourt, G. 2009 ‘Digital Media Measurement and Pricing Summit 2009’,

Warc Online, London



Precourt, G. 2008 ‘Listening to the Future of Social Media’, Warc Online,

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ROI, 2010, accessed from http://www.roi.com.au/, on 20/9/2010

Stuart, D. 2009 ‘Social Media Metrics’ Online Mag, London

Syncapse. 2010 ‘The value of a Facebook fan’ Syncapse, New York

Taylor, S. 2010. ‘What’s Wrong with Social Media Marketing?’ Admap,

London

Qualman, E. 2009 ‘Socialnomics: How Social Media Transforms the Way we

Live and Do Business’ Wiley, New York

Webb, J. Boygoyne, B. 2009 ‘You’ve got a friend: Measuring value of brand

friending on social network’, Market Research Society, London

White, R. 2006 ‘Consumers and Media – multi-media, multi-tasking’ Admap,

London

Wikipedia, 2010 ‘Social Media’ ‘www.en.wikipedia.org/wiki/social_media’



http://www.roi.com.au/

http://www.roi.com.au/

h t t p : / / w w w . r o i . c o m . a u / i n d e x . p h p / g e n e r a l _ m a r k e t i n g /

tv_advertising_v_s_internet_advertising.html accessed on 21/08/2010

Appendix

Appendix 1

Focus group prompt sheet

Introduction



• We are doing research for Fusion Media around social media

• How it can be implemented by businesses as a way to raise awareness

• We want to know how you use social media

• What is social media? it is where technology blends with social interaction.

• Some of the social media channels include, facebook, myspace, twitter,

youtube, Flickr, Google Buzz and windows live.

Introductory questions (5 minutes)

1. Who here uses social media? (if no, you can leave)

2. Would you consider yourself a

a. Heavy user (10+ hours a week,)

b. Medium user (5+ hours a week)

c. Light user (-5 hours a week)

3. Do you use multiple social media sites? FB, Myspace, twitter?

Interaction with brands (15 minutes)

4. What was the last organization you remember seeing on social media?

5. Do you notice brands when using social media?

6. Do you interact with brands in social media? If yes,

a. Fan of a brand

b. Video sharing (youtube)

c. Paid ads

d. Friends fan of brands

7. Why do you interact with brands

a. Discounts

b. Exclusive offers

c. Brand reflects your image – (clothing brands)

d. Customer service channel

8. Of the brands you interact with, do you already own a product?

a. What brands are these?



b. Would you consider yourself a heavy user of these brands?

9. How much time would you say you spend interacting with brands a week?

a. 10+ minutes

b. 5+ minutes

c. -5 minutes

d. none at all

10. People who do not interact with brands on social media, why?

a. Not interested

b. Annoyance

c. Don’t spend enough time on social media

d. Has it lost its impact

11. There are two main types of having an ad in social media, paid and organic.

Would you be more likely to interact with the paid ad or the organic ad?

Usage (5 minutes)

12. Do you use a mobile device to access social media?

13. If so, where do you use it?

Awareness (5 minutes)

14. What is a organization that you remember seeing on social media?

15. How long ago was that?

16. Have you shared information about a brand

a. Videos

b. Advice

c. Bad experiences

Conclusion

17. Do you have anything else you want to add to the topic?



Appendix 2

Focus group findings

1. Users of social media

Everyone in the focus group used social media. The Social Media sites mentioned were, MSN, Twitter (2 people), Facebook, LinkedIN and Tumblr

2. Usage (hours)

Most people used social media a lot. 10 people said they would use it more than 10 hours a week, 4 people saying they would use more than 15 hours a week and only two people saying they would use it less than 7 hours a week

3. Usage of brands in social media

Everyone in the focus group had used a brand in social media. respondants claimed to notice organic impressions more than any other form of branding.

4. Why did people use brands in social media

People used brands in social media because they were fun, humourous, luxury items, and one person because they had a friend who worked for the company he was friends with.

5. Were annoying brands deleted

Most people said that they had at some point been annoyed by the updates of brands but only a few participants said they would delete the brand altogether.

6. Which ones do you talk (status update, tweet, blog) about

Most respondants said they would talk about brands on social media if they were high involvement decisions or had had a negative experience

7. Not-for-profit organization usage



Most people said they wanted to appear generous by using not-for-profit brands on social media but only a couple said they would donate to the charity.

8. Were people buyers of the brands in social media

Most people had already purchased the product they were friends with in social media suggesting that heavy users of a brand are the main audience of social media campaigns.

9. Mobile usage

About half the focus group had used social media on a mobile platform. A lack of ads on the mobile versions was seen by a couple of respondents as a plus. But overwhelmingly the group preferred a internet browser for using social media.



Appendix 3

Consumer survey and findings

Initial ReportLast Modified: 10/25/2010

1. What is your gender?

# Answer Response %

1 Male 91 38%

2 Female 149 62%

Total 240 100%

Statistic ValueMin Value 1Max Value 2Mean 1.62Variance 0.24Standard Deviation 0.49Total Responses 240

2. What age range do you fit into?

# Answer Response %

1 15 - 25 177 74%

2 26 - 40 44 18%

3 41 - 55 13 5%

4 55 + 6 3%

Total 240 100%

Statistic ValueMin Value 1Max Value 4



Mean 1.37Variance 0.49Standard Deviation 0.70Total Responses 240

3. A social media website is any website that you can use to interact with people such as Facebook, Twitter, Youtube, Myspace, Windows Live ect. Do you use social media websites?

# Answer Response %

1 Yes 227 95%

2 No 13 5%

Total 240 100%


4. How often do you use the following social media websites and rank your usage?

# Question None Hardly ever

Occasionally

I use this website

frequently

I use this

website the

most

Responses

Mean

4 Youtube 10 16 79 95 12 212 3.391 Facebook 3 2 11 48 156 220 4.608 Windows

Live91 24 42 35 13 205 2.29

2 Twitter 142 23 18 13 3 199 1.557 Other 82 1 7 12 3 105 1.609 Tumblr 169 11 9 6 4 199 1.325 LinkedIn 167 14 15 5 0 201 1.29



11 Foursquare 191 6 4 2 0 203 1.106 Flickr 160 27 12 1 1 201 1.293 Myspace 137 51 12 1 0 201 1.39

OthermanhuntDeviantArtgmail/gmail chatnon-english oneslast.fmRenrenAdium (msn chat client for Mac)SkypebloggerblogspotbloggerxangaCar club siteswww.ultimate-guitar.comblogspotsSkypelastfmorkutLast.fmSkypeyahooDailyBoothVarious forums.Wordpress

Statistic Facebook

Twitter

Myspace

Youtube

LinkedIn

Flickr

Windows Live

Tumblr

Foursquare

Other

Min Value

1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1

Max Value

5 5 4 5 4 5 5 5 4 5

Mean 4.60 1.55 1.39 3.39 1.29 1.29 2.29 1.32 1.10 1.60Variance

0.56 1.01 0.39 0.79 0.51 0.42 1.83 0.73 0.19 1.43



Standard Deviation

0.75 1.00 0.62 0.89 0.71 0.65 1.35 0.86 0.43 1.19

Total Responses

220 199 201 212 201 201 205 199 203 106

5. How many hours would you spend using social media websites each week?

# Answer Response %

1 1 or less 10 5%

2 2 21 10%

3 3 19 9%

4 4 16 7%

5 5 19 9%

6 6 5 2%

7 7 19 9%

8 8 16 7%

9 9 5 2%

10 10 27 12%

11 11 2 1%

12 12 10 5%

13 13 6 3%

14 14 6 3%

15 15 3 1%

16 15 + 36 16%

Total 220 100%

Statistic ValueMin Value 1Max Value 16



Mean 8.18Variance 24.15Standard Deviation 4.91Total Responses 220

6. Why do you use these websites for? (Mark all appropriate boxes)# Answer Response %

1 Staying in touch with friends

211 96%

3 Entertainment 164 75%

4 Sharing videos & photos 147 67%

2 Networking 121 55%

6 Talking about brands 26 12%

5 Other 19 9%

OtherSelf-promotionCorporate Social Media Marketingsharing ideas, learning other people's ideasUni /worklinked to events eg. 10 yr highschool reunionwork and study purposes, staying in touch with familyprocrastinationlooking up peoplecourse requirements for uniprocrastinating - lookingGamesEvent managementUniversity Study Discussion & Assistancesheer boredomBloggingBoredem

Statistic ValueMin Value 1



Max Value 6Total Responses 220

7. Whilst using any social website; have you ever interacted with a brand? If so how? (Mark all appropriate boxes)

# Answer Response %

1 Become a fan/followed a brand

163 82%

14 Noticed a friend who has updated a status/blogged/tweeted about a brand

108 54%

7 Noticed paid advertisements

108 54%

4 Noticed a friend interact with a brand

86 43%

2 Updated your status/blogged/tweeted about a brand

80 40%

9 Entered a brand's competition

62 31%

8 Clicked on a paid advertisement

58 29%

11 Watched a brands video 54 27%

3 Commented on a brands page

49 25%

10 Suggested friends join a brand page

44 22%

6 Asked advice regarding a purchase

41 21%

5 Shared content about a brand

40 20%

12 Other 2 1%

OtherLocal business pages

Statistic ValueMin Value 1Max Value 14Total Responses 200



8. The friends comment about a brand that you noticed, was it?

# Answer Response %

1 A positive comment 74 69%

3 Neutral 33 31%

2 A negative comment 24 22%

4 In regards to a high involvement decision (House, Car, Holiday etc)

22 20%

5 Other 6 6%

Otheri've seen all types of comments about different brands, depending on the friends experience with i'd sayall of the aboveIt was a 'Like', not comment. Either way its a positive notification.Both positives and negativesBoth negative and positiveboth positive and negative comments


9. Why have you not interacted with a brand? (Mark all appropriate boxes)# Answer Response %

3 Not Interested 7 47%

1 Haven't noticed any brands

5 33%

4 Don't spend enough time on social media

4 27%

2 Annoyed by the presence of brands

2 13%



6 Other 2 13%

5 Too many brands; they have lost their impact

1 7%

OtherDon't have a reason to/see the benefit to/does not interest medont like giving too much away about myself


10. Think of a brand you have seen or interacted with on a social media website. Were you a buyer of the product/brand before you encountered it on social media?

# Answer Response %

1 Yes 127 64%

3 No 38 19%

2 Not Sure 32 16%

Total 197 100%




11. Think of a brand you have seen or interacted with on a social media website that you did not already use. Did you buy the product/brand after you encountered it on social media?# Answer Response %

3 No 84 43%

1 Yes 62 31%

2 Not Sure 51 26%

Total 197 100%


12. Of the brands you are a fan of or follow, why did you do so? (Mark appropriate boxes)# Answer Response %

3 Keep up to date with brand information

111 57%

1 Brand reflects your image

92 47%

2 Exclusive offers/Discounts

76 39%

6 Friends recommendation 48 24%

4 Customer service channel

22 11%

5 Other 18 9%

8 I have not become a fan or followed a brand

16 8%

9 Not sure 8 4%



OtherGood causeCompetitor ResearchentertainmentCool updates ie Red Bull X Ray hahahahahahahahaLike the brandJob opportunities, knowledge on branding in generalconvinience of internet shoppingjust like the branddon't follow brands very oftenLike the brand, want to support itgenerally to 'review and see what they are doing'work relatedbrand created by a friendBrand I worked for or a friend worked forcause i liked the brandNostalgiajust to show that i like that brandto support friends promoting their services on Facebook


13. What types of brands do you interact with on social media websites? (Mark appropriate boxes)# Answer Response %

3 Fashion Labels 108 56%

5 Entertainment (TV programs, Movies, Radio, Magazines)

106 55%

1 Stores 96 50%

2 Online Shopping 88 46%

7 Friends Brands 63 33%



6 Not-for-Profit Organisations

55 28%

4 Luxury Items 44 23%

8 Services 24 12%

9 Other 22 11%

OtherSporting Clubski resorts, beercarsfoodFriends businessMakeupRed Bull HAHACuisinedont really interact with brandsSelf care productsSA & Aust news, worldwide newsLocal businessesWineries, local businessSportsEducation, Museums/AttractionsBands and other event and music retailers/promotersMy own brandMusic Blogsfood, eg vegemite


14. Do you donate to this not-for-profit organisation?# Answer Response %

1 Yes 26 48%



2 No 28 52%

Total 54 100%


15. Think of a memorable brand you saw on social media. What made you remember it? (Mark appropriate boxes)# Answer Response %

3 Interesting 97 53%

2 Relevant 87 48%

1 Humorous 80 44%

4 Engaging 59 32%

5 Other 7 4%

OtherImportantJust like the brand.Friends in competitionsMost frequent updates on facebook, making it the most prominent in my mind and easy to rememberIt was the wallet used by Samuel L Jackson in pulp fiction 'Bad Motherf***er. Niche/Nostalgic/collectors item.Visually appealing




16. Would you share a brand/advertisement that you liked with other people?

# Answer Response %

2 If I thought they would like it too

100 52%

1 Yes 57 30%

3 No 26 14%

4 Not Sure 8 4%

Total 191 100%


17. Have you ever been annoyed by a brand's 'spamming'?# Answer Response %

1 Yes 160 84%

2 No 31 16%

Total 191 100%




18. Have you ever deleted a brand as a friend or stopped following a brand as a result of 'spamming'?

# Answer Response %

1 Yes 123 65%

2 No 66 35%

Total 189 100%




Appendix 4

Organisational implementation survey and findings

Initial ReportLast Modified: 10/05/2010

Filter By: Report Subgroup

1. How many staff does your organisation employ?

# Answer Response %

1 less than 50 employees 111 36%

2 Between 50 and 500 employees

91 30%


32 10%

4 More than 1000 employees

68 22%

5 Unsure 5 2%

Total 307 100%



# Answer Response %



91 30%


32 10%


68 22%

5 Unsure 5 2%

Total 307 100%

# Answer Response %



91 30%


32 10%


68 22%

5 Unsure 5 2%

Total 307 100%

Statistic ValueMin Value 1Max Value 5Mean 2Variance 1Standard Deviation 1Total Responses 307

2. What sector does your organisation fall into?

# Answer Response %

1 Manufacturing 20 6%

2 Service 48 15%

3 Retail 23 7%

4 Tourism 3 1%



5 Education 32 10%

6 Construction 7 2%

7 Health 18 6%

8 Wholesale 8 3%

9 Hospitality 7 2%

10 Finance 24 8%

11 Government 47 15%

12 Other 75 24%

Total 312 100%

Otherjkjkjkjkjcommunity servicesSport leisure hospitalityresearchTelecommunicationssales and marketingentertainmentITmarketinglandscape architectureInformation TechnologyMediaResearchAdvertisingadvertisingManufcturing, Horticulture,hospitality, Service, primary productionmarketingEnvironmentalmediaMarketing/CommunicationsConsultancy, PRnon for profitDefencewine



Print & MailMarketingReal EstateEntertainmentNot for profitCommunicationRetail and Commerical salesFuel StorageSportsTechnologyEmploymentCommunity ServicesLegalNot for ProfitAutomotiveSportCharityUtilitiesTransport and LogisticsArtsrecyclingArtsTransportSportNatural ResourcesSportadvertisingMediaDisability Employment ServiceNon-profitResources - Oil and GasmediaMediaNot for profitMediaCorporate TrainingInsuranceMediamediaUtilities



Mining & MetalsDefenceresearchMediaLegalAgriculturenot for profit


3. What is your organisation's turnover (AUD)?

# Answer Response %

1 Less than $1m 52 17%

2 Between $1m and $10m

61 20%

3 Between $10m and $100m

61 20%

4 Greater than $100m 80 26%

5 Unsure 51 17%

Total 305 100%




4. In what region is your head office based?# Answer Response %

1 UK 4 1%

2 USA 16 5%

3 Australia 270 89%

4 Europe 2 1%

5 Asia 7 2%

6 Other 4 1%

Total 303 100%

OtherAustraliaNZ


5. Into what age bracket do you personally fit?

# Answer Response %

1 Younger than 25 41 13%

2 Between 25 and 35

99 33%

3 Between 36 and 45

86 28%

4 Between 46 and 55

59 19%

5 Older than 55 19 6%

Total 304 100%




6. How would you 'best' describe your job role?

# Answer Response %

1 Co - ordinator 63 21%

2 Supervisor 35 12%

3 Senior manager 90 30%

4 Director 49 16%

5 Other 61 20%

Total 298 100%

OtherkokokOwnerProject OfficerAnalystproprietorMarketingOwner/OperatorCasual workerAssistantConsultantMarketing ManagerConsultantAssociatebrand managerMarketing ManagerAdvertising ManagerCEOOwner, operator



Human Resources AdministratorassistantAdmin and Marketing AssistantEmployeefinance and adminManagergraduate / sales & marketing associateAssistantAdministrationProfessionalTraineeOwnerAdmindesk jockeyExecutivecustomer serviceconsultantHR AdministratorSnr HR ConsultantOffice Administrationmiddle managerOfficerjunioremployee




7. How would you describe benefits of social media to your organisation? (mark all that apply)

# Answer Response %

1 Drives brand awareness 153 55%

3 Increases traffic to our website

128 46%

8 Reaches new customers 126 46%

13 Helps us to connect to our customer base

124 45%

7 Reaches existing customers

119 43%

5 Adds value to our other marketing elements

112 41%

12 Drives positive word of mouth

109 39%

4 Improves our reputation

87 32%

9 Reminds people that we are in the category

78 28%

17 Gives our customers a voice

75 27%

18 We don't use it, so there are no benefits

73 26%

6 Increases customer loyalty

58 21%

10 Good for targeting micro segments

59 21%

2 Drives sales 44 16%

11 Helps us with staff recruitment

44 16%



16 Helps us monitor competitors

40 14%

15 Offers us a competitive edge

40 14%

14 Persuades customers to buy our brand

29 11%


8. On any average day, how often would you log on and personally use social media?

# Answer Response %

1 Never 53 19%

2 Only once 91 33%

3 More than once, fewer than ten

94 34%

4 Often, more than ten 39 14%

Total 277 100%

Statistic ValueMin Value 1Max Value 4Mean 2Variance 1



Standard Deviation 1Total Responses 277

9. To what degree do you think social media is a fad?# Answer Response %

1 Completely 7 3%

2 Somewhat, but not really sure yet

22 8%

3 Neutral 29 11%

4 Quite sure it is not a fad, but time will tell

95 35%

5 Not a fad at all, social media will become a key component in marketing strategy

118 44%

Total 271 100%




10. To what degree do you feel a sense of urgency to implement social media strategy?

# Answer Response %

1 No urgency whatsoever 37 14%

2 Feel small sense of urgency

63 23%

3 Neutral 55 20%

4 Feel quite strong sense of urgency

92 34%

5 Extreme, we need to implement urgently

24 9%

Total 271 100%


11. Would you say that what you have implemented so far has been reactive or planned?# Answer Response %

1 Very reactive 32 12%



2 Somewhat reactive 78 30%

3 Unsure 54 21%

4 Somewhat planned 69 27%

5 Very much planned

26 10%

Total 259 100%


12. How would you describe the importance the organisation places on social media as a marketing tool?

# Answer Response %

1 No importance whatsoever

29 10%

2 Not very important 67 23%

3 Neutral 36 12%

4 Some importance 103 35%



5 Very important 62 21%

Total 297 100%


13. Is there anything else you would like to add regarding your perception of social media integration?Text ResponseWe are interested in pursuing social media as a means of reducing loneliness amongst our client base (older people at risk of isolation)When I am on the telephone, or sitting in the park or on a bus trip with family or friends I am in a 'social norm' context. I do not want to be interrupted by someone I don't know, with a falsely ingratiating smile, trying to sell me something. When I am in this sort of social context (talking with other people about things that matter; like what happened last night, who slept with who, where I'm going tonight etc) I am not going to take time out to view, read, consider, interact with a lame "experiential" marketing communication from a brand. In fact, I would be irritated by the very fact of their attempted intrusion. There are, as always, small exceptions to the rule. These could be, i) media analogy; poster ads that that I see on the street, or on the bus when I am going about my daily business, on my own or with friends, are fine. They are just there, they fit in to the environmental context. Appearing on someone's Facebook page in a way that is analogous to this is probably fine. ii) If, for instance, there is an ad that is genuinely hilarious (like the recent examples of the Old Spice 'Man' or the Heineken 'Walk-in cupboard') which people see as rewarding entertainment then these will probably be talked about across social networks. But these are exceptions and difficult to plan for. iii) Brands which have their own social network sites and which people can 'choose' to visit are legitimate. I am just not sure they will reach that many people in given geography.It's a big, juicy learning curve. And we are ravenous. Whether or not it's a worthwhile meal will take some time to determine.I believe it is particularly valuable in this sector as "socialising" is a key benefit of attenting eventssocial media is more of a cost to a small business given time spent by staff on it



It offers us another channel to getting the brand message to market. We liaise with a variety of people through social media, both clients and associates, and in doing so we keep our brand visible.A web presence and direct news feeds are vital for todays organisation. Qualified data feeds and sites that encourage users to visit or site are the most important. Tweets and facebook are not helpful to us yet.We are not keen to push our business interests through social media but can see some opportunities to improve brand recognition.this is an internal chat system- there are no facebook/twitter et al programs in place- infact these are blocked in our internet filter.It's just a substitute for talking to peoplewho would want to communicate with a financial institution via social media?I'm a sole trader. Social media has brought me in work - kind of like online word of mouth.the new front barI think that it is a good, cheap and easy medium for businesses to get into, especially for smaller businesses who have a limited budget and a young customer base who will frequently be exposed to social media, and more likely to take it in. Even if it is just a fad, the costs of increasing brand awareness can do no harmIt is still too early to know what the benefits of S/M are. Some "experts" say it's great, other "experts" say it's not.too many people dont get how important this is. the leaders rarely, if ever, use it. out of sight, out of mindSocial media is very important to us; should be integral to all PR agencies.stop calling it social mediapersonally social media should be just that social - marketing through social media I think long term will be negative. Aparently popularity in Sweeden has peeked & fallenit is only a component of the marketing strategy not the whole strategy itself.yet again, i think the excitement of a new medium means FAR too much emphasis is being put on the MEDIUM instead of starting with an IDEA and then working out where best to implement it...There are not enough senior marketing managers with digital experienceIt's a great branding and mareting tool, especially for non-for-profits like our organisationDon't fully understand it but feel we need to be part of itcritical to at least incorporate some small test in any marketing planI am in a developing market and social media has "gone off" like we never imagined it would 2 years ago. The takeup in phenomenal and while our company has a very targeted global approach to SMI, I think adeuqate and appropriate response to local nuances are going to be what drives the value we get.As a local government - social media is seen as a good mechanism for engaging with what is often a difficult market to engage with.Has been done by organisation personnel, rather than being based on a strategic organisational level



Many miss the mark with a focus on 'talking' rather than conversation. Not for busineses who don't know their point of difference or don't have anything interesting to say.internet newsdepending on companies' product typeOlder workers may be slower in accepting the communication platform as they may not support change easily.Time used to develop strategy and monitor success needs to be accounted for. Significant $ investment is required for significant success.Social media is difficult to quantify in terms on return on investment. It is also unknown what benefits it delivers to businesses and consumers that are not already delivered through other mediums such as a website.It can be too intrusive at times.nomy company is not prepared to invest in SM until we can justify a fulltime resource to monitor it and ensure we are in control of the conversationit also has an adverse effect providing ground for untrue or exagerated comments and hard to measureAcceptance is difficult with older Senior Managers that do not understand how social media works or how people use it.It is of little to no relevance as we are in a B2B, industrial sales to people predominantly over 45 and who buy in groups.Social media integration has been specifically embraced to appeal to the demographic my organisation seeks to recruit.it is almost necessary to keep up with it as the target market for education industry is heavily using it. even if it means just having presence in the social media...Too early to say, it's one of our marketing toolsWe haven't chosen to go down that path due to conflicting issues regarding government funding - but believe it is a great tool to get your brand out thereSeem to need to go slow and steady using it for it to have any effect. It is an additional tool rather than replacing other media toolsSocial Media is only used as a recruitment tool by corporates - on a personal level people use it obviously.I think it depends on the company and its products as to whether or not social media is relevantnoSocial media y just SOCIAL. Strategy at the end are numbers and results.sound bitesnoMany organisations block it, consider it evilMy govt organisation has yet to realise that, with part of its mission to reach out to community, this media is a strong tool. Being govt, they need to be cautious, though.nilresearch showing people like social media but don't want to deal with government on it should be noted



Statistic ValueTotal Responses 55

14. Does your company have a strategic marketing plan?# Answer Response %

1 Yes 171 66%

2 No 58 22%

3 Unsure 32 12%

Total 261 100%


15. Does the existing strategic plan incorporate social media# Answer Response %

1 Yes 97 37%

2 No 106 41%

3 Unsure 57 22%

Total 260 100%




16. If not, why?Text ResponseBecause the principals are a bit reluctant & don't understand it well enoughlack of expertiseSee more value in directing funds in other areas of marketing at this stage of brand buildingWe don't have S.M.P. so the question is moot.Planning is guessing - may as well just do it and see what happens.organisation does not value social media as a marketing toolnot considered important or cost effectivetoo small to be in the planWe are not keen to mix business with pleasure - our key contact points with current and future customers are through more traditional channels - mail , email, telephone.See last comment please.We have a plan, it's called doing thingswho would want to talk to an FI via social media? our compliance manager would not allow itVery limited awareness of how it could benefit the business & fear from IT dept re: employee access to itsee my previous comment. the leaders dont take it seriouslyMarketing plan not establishedPlan pre-dates organisational decision to incorporate social media.social media currently used only for sub-projects that don't have their own strategic plan - it's getting into too much detail to include this level in the high level strat planvery small business, all repeat customers and word of mouthnot considered appropriatenot convinced that it will work for our industryIt was not being used by other similar organisations when the plan was writtenHigh overhead cost of implementing and running a social media campaignWe are focused on what we know, and what has worked for us in the past. Still to determine how Social Media would most benefit our business.Not a core part of the businessBeing a services company, the benefits of social media are not quite clearNot seen as essentialHealth is conservative and our strategic managers see social media as risky and a dangerSenior management does not take this seriouslyThe industry we are in does not require Social Media MarketingHistortically company has not placed sufficient focus on marketing



Not relevant to our target audience, would require extra resources to manage it properlyWe just got left behind......also lack of awareness among senior managersBusiness to Business transactionsIt is seen as 'time wasting' by the ownernot considered critical to the overall success of the SMPnot necessary, my company doed B2B service, not to general publicOur marketing manager does not agree that we need it.We have yet to decide what our brand identity actually is and have no structured action plan for the future.Not appropriate for the maritime shipping industryPrefer to spend on traditional media with high reachGovernment monopoly so not applicableA community legal Service prefers to relate to clients on a face to ace basis. Social media has presented a number of problems for our clients, ie forming pseudo relationships being targets for inappropriate behavious etc.dsharing personal information on the public domain is often ill thought out.i dont know - i guess other areas are seen as more important, our socil media is just for addign value to existing communication stratigies/processes. we dotn have a huge following/friendsno infrastructure to support itNo call for its benefits.Simply do not have any plan nor thoughts of using it for the moment.Waste of spacerefer previous commentThere is not a keen sense of urgency about it for our sector at this stageWe sell in a B2B, industrial market where buyers are usually in groups, trades-based and buy due to personal relationship to sales reps.waste of timenot having a dedicated person for the roleManagement don't value social media, don't have a firm grasp of what it is and what it can do!We are government funded and so have to be careful what we doIt hasn't been on the radar at an organisational level, but at a project level it is being worked into our strategic plans.Noone has considered its relevance to marekting until recentlyCurrent Strategic Marketing Plan did not see online/social media as a Marketing tool...Not really relevent for our business goalsDo Not have a Marketing PlanHead office are developing a policy on social media first, before it can be implemented at a local levelIt is SOCIAL MEDIA and we are more into open new markets using proper serious market strategy, we are not selling cookiesUnsure



Our business does not deal directly with consumers, we're a distributer dealing with RetailsPrivately held company that does not rely on direct to public salesNot really applicable to our industry. In future we are considering using Linked In- as this is more corportae basedNot considered appropriate for workplace useBusiness nature doesn't allowNot sureNot seen as beneficialNot deemed a priority in our industry. Internet access availability for our target market is limited due to remote locations.no planned.


17. What do you use as success measures in a 'traditional marketing' context? (mark all that apply)

# Answer Response %

2 Brand awareness 158 66%

1 Direct traffic to website 150 63%

4 Sales 135 56%

3 Leads 94 39%

8 Brand recall 83 35%

5 Profitability 73 30%

7 Shifts in attitude 65 27%

10 Salience/memory measures

53 22%

6 Reach based measures 49 20%

9 Purchase intent 45 19%

11 Other 23 10%



18. What do you use as success measures in a 'social media' context? (mark all that apply)

# Answer Response %

1 Direct traffic to website 132 65%

2 Brand awareness 110 54%

12 Engagement 98 48%

6 Reach based measures (i.e. fans, followers, subscriptions)

79 39%

8 Online mentions 80 39%

9 Brand recall 66 33%

4 Sales 65 32%

3 Leads 64 32%

13 Buzz volume 54 27%

7 Shifts in attitude 46 23%

11 Salience/memory measures

36 18%

10 Purchase intent 32 16%

5 Profitability 30 15%

14 Other 22 11%

19. Why do you use these measures for social media? (mark all that apply)

# Answer Response %

1 Easy to gather 89 43%

2 Inexpensive to gather 82 39%

3 Easy to understand 83 40%

4 Aligned to our other marketing strategy

65 31%



5 Don't know 44 21%


20. How do you define 'engagement' in context with your social media marketing? (rate each element)

# Question Do not define it this way

Somewhat define it this way

Definitely define it this way

Responses Mean

2 Consumer feeling better about themselves

62% 28% 10% 160 1

1 Consumer clicking on a social media channel

31% 43% 26% 163 2

13 Other 48% 24% 27% 33 28 Consumer coming to

you for entertainment/escape

41% 28% 31% 157 2

7 Consumer coming to you for specials/offers

30% 32% 37% 158 2

9 Consumer connecting with people like them

27% 30% 43% 159 2

6 Consumer coming to you for inspiration

26% 30% 44% 160 2



11 Consumer joining/subscribing to a social media channel about you

16% 35% 49% 161 2

10 Consumer commenting/rating or contributing feedback back to you

13% 35% 52% 165 2

12 Consumer generating/distributing their own content about you

20% 27% 52% 161 2

3 Consumer sharing your content with others

11% 30% 59% 167 2

4 Consumer directly interacting with people in your organisation

19% 21% 61% 165 2

5 Consumer coming to you for information

11% 25% 63% 167 3

OtherInternal use of chat systemconsumers interacting with one another within our social media spaceThrough brand health measuresN/AWe don't usenoneDo not use social medianot applicible

Statistic

Consumer

clicking on a social

media

channel

Consumer

feeling

better

about the

mselves

Consumer

sharing

your content with others

Consume

r directly

interactin

g with people in your organisation

Consumer

coming to

you for

information

Consumer

coming to

you for

inspiration

Consumer coming to you for

specials/offer

s

Consumer

coming to you

for entertainment

/escape

Consumer

connecting with people like them

Consumer

commenting

/rating

or contributing feedba

ck back

to you

Consumer

joining/

subscribing to a

social media chann

el about you

Consumer

generating/

distributing their own

content about you

Other

Min Value

1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1



Max Value

3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3

Mean

2 1 2 2 3 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2

Variance

1 0 0 1 0 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1

Standard Deviation

1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1

Total Responses

163 160 167 165 167 160 158 157 159 165 161 161 36

21. How important is customer engagement to your strategic marketing plan?# Answer Response %

1 No importance whatsoever

5 2%

2 Not very important 9 4%

3 Neutral 27 13%

4 Some importance 41 20%

5 Very important 121 60%

Total 203 100%




22. Approximately what proportion of your marketing budget do you allocate to social media?

# Answer Response %

1 Less than 5% 125 65%

2 Between 5% and 10% 37 19%

3 Between 10% and 30% 26 14%

4 More than 30% 3 2%

Total 191 100%


23. How would you describe the distribution of time/resources you allocate to different social media platforms? (total must sum 100%)# Answer Min

ValueMax

ValueAverage Value

Standard Deviation



4 Traditional website 0 100 55 351 Social networking sites (i.e.

Facebook, Myspace)0 100 17 22

8 Other 0 100 8 242 Business networking sites (i.e.

Linkedin)0 100 8 16

3 Sharing sites (i.e. Youtube, Flickr, SlideShare)

0 60 5 9

7 User blogs 0 50 3 75 Collaborative websites (i.e

Wikipedia, syndicated blogs)0 80 3 9

6 Social news websites (i.e. Digg, Reddit, del.icio.us)

0 50 2 5

OtherTwitteradvertisingtwitterDon't knowSampling, promotion, product developmenttwitterunsureTwitterDirect news feeds from new media outlets like CrikeyTwitterinternal chat- refer to other commentsTwitterTwitterTwittertwitterTwitterTwittertwittertwitterN/Awe are moving towards a websitetwitteracademicDon't really devote timeNa



24. Approximately what proportion of your marketing budget do you anticipate you will allocate to social media next year?

# Answer Response %

1 Less than 5% 96 50%

2 Between 5% and 10% 64 33%

3 Between 10% and 30% 24 13%

4 More than 30% 8 4%

Total 192 100%


25. Is there anything else you would like to add regarding social media and marketing strategy?Text ResponseWe are using our website but are investigating other social media methods....beyond just what facebook can offerI think this medium probably represents the new mainstream. We need to get on board & use it to aur advantage.we do not have a social media strategy as part of our marketing strategy unfortunatelyLocal Government needs to be aware of generational change in communication. Older genertions are reluctant web users but will seek info and look at coucils web for info and feedback. Specialist programs are a different matter when we want to notify them.No but thanks for askingBoth elements are extremely important to our organisation in terms of demonstrsating innovation in our service businessOnce again, the benefits are not yet clear. A person "liking" my update does not mean they are engaged yet this is often used as a measure of success. More research into the benefits is needed.



We have new leadership in our org. with an increased emphasis on ITC and social media so the resources will now be boosted in this areacustomer research, customer listening, customer engagement, community engagement, facilitation of communityWe tend to use social media more as a channel for our members / consumers to interact and engage with us. To date, we have rarely used for sales, but more for information sharing back and forward.nonoDifficult to find benchmarks to measure performance against.noIt supports the key message of a campaign but has questionable reliability in converting interest or 'i likes' to leadsnonoI have a new business and don't really understand social media and don't really understand the potential/benefits however I think there must be some.I see it as largely irrelevant in B2B, industrial markets where purchases are made on hard specifications, 'lock out contracts' and the strength of the personal relationship between the buyer and my sales reps.For recruitment of the targeted demographic in my organisation, social media is essential to the marketing strategy.nomany young people use it to their destruction ; anything posted is a permanent record accessed by anyone in the worldSocial media is a teenager factor, MASSMEDIAthere is always room for improvementSome of the questions were hard to answer as we're in the planning stages of use only.noThe organisation doesn't unerstand the benefits so doesn't incorproate itnot relevant to this business - we supply product to utilities companies and trading houses


26. Is social media (as part of marketing strategy) taking up more time in your organisation than it was a year ago?# Answer Response %

1 No, we do not allocate time to social media

42 22%



2 Not that much more 23 12%

3 Unsure 15 8%

4 A bit more 65 34%

5 A significant amount more

49 25%

Total 194 100%


27. Where do you access information to assist you with your social media strategy? (mark all that apply)# Answer Response %

1 Internet 132 68%

5 Marketing colleagues

105 54%

4 Own judgment 81 42%

6 We don't 42 22%

3 Scholarly articles 37 19%

7 Other 30 15%

2 Text books 19 10%

OtherOther services, programs, examplesseminarsStaff. Young staff!consultantsunsure



Advertising AgencySpecialist news feedsConference/trainingspecialistsAgenciesMal Chia is a GuruAgencyindustry, competitor activity, articlesagency partnersSocial Media'expert' articlesother mediafundraising forumsMarketing Week Conferencenetworking with other organisationsWe do not have a social media strategyTraining and seminarsMedia Commentarynetworking events/industry seminarsNewspaperMarketing Weekword of mouthAdvertising agency research


28. What human resources do you currently employ to take care of your social media implementation? (mark all that apply)# Answer Response %

1 More than one full time staff

32 18%

2 One full time staff 42 23%



3 Casual staff 33 18%

4 External agency 29 16%

5 Student(s) 9 5%

6 Other 68 37%

Other.5 FTEincorporated into existing rolePart time from several staffvolunteers in work timesmall part of one personnoneNone15% of 1 FTEnonenoneunsureMy spare time!!!1/4 full time staffpart of a full time role.MyselfVolunteersPart of one staff members roleShared by staff membersless than 1 FTEsmall portion of one personNoneas part of their rolenonepart of one full timerNonemyselfPart of a full time staff members timeNo dedicated staffNot full timeNoneBut not dedicated to this area.none



n/aNilnoneVolunteersN/Anoneis part of a full time offers roleNoneNoneselfnoneNo-oneNonewe don'tHead Office digital department - team of at least 20 stakeholdersnonenilShared between existing full time staffnonenone


29. Do you think your organisation currently has the technology to maintain a social media strategy?# Answer Response %

1 No, we don't 38 19%

2 To some degree, but could be improved

50 26%

3 Unsure 14 7%

4 Our technology is reasonable

68 35%

5 Yes, our technology is exceptional

26 13%



Total 196 100%


30. Does your organisation have a ‘social media policy’ in terms of how employees should engage with customers via social media platforms?# Answer Response %

1 Yes 58 30%

2 No 115 59%

3 Unsure 21 11%

Total 194 100%


31. In rank order, what would you consider to be your biggest barrier to better social media adoption? (simply drag and drop each element into rank order)

# Answer 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Responses

1 Lack of knowledge

24% 18% 16% 16% 11% 6% 5% 3% 1% 186



5 Organisational culture

18% 13% 11% 5% 22% 10% 17% 3% 1% 186

2 Lack of time 18% 25% 16% 14% 15% 8% 4% 1% 0% 1867 Do not

consider it relevant to our organisation

13% 6% 5% 4% 5% 7% 19% 39% 2% 186

3 Budget 9% 10% 26% 15% 18% 13% 5% 5% 1% 1864 Lack of staff

availability9% 16% 12% 25% 14% 16% 5% 3% 0% 186

6 Inability to measure

4% 6% 6% 10% 7% 28% 27% 10% 1% 186

8 Lack of technical expertise

3% 6% 9% 10% 8% 11% 17% 35% 1% 186

9 Other 2% 1% 0% 0% 1% 0% 1% 2% 95% 186Total 186 186 186 186 186 186 186 186 186 -

Othernot in control of the messageGovernment policy on using social medialack of understandingunsurenewly re-formed orgnaisationRelevance of our product/service in a social media contextsecurity concernsbudgetNo allowed by law to advertise products to publicWe do not wish to engage in social media adoption at the present time other than to establish a websiteSlow decision makingcan do more harm than good

Statistic Lack of knowled

ge

Lack of

time

Budget

Lack of staff

availability

Organisational

culture

Inability to

measure

Do not consider

it relevant to our

organisation

Lack of technic

al experti

se

Other

Min Value

1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1

Max Value

9 8 9 8 9 9 9 9 9

Mean 3 3 4 4 4 6 6 6 9



Variance

4 3 3 3 5 4 7 5 2

Standard Deviation

2 2 2 2 2 2 3 2 1

Total Responses

186 186 186 186 186 186 186 186 186

32. What things are you putting in place in the future to increase the level of your organisations social media activity? (mark all that apply)

# Answer Response %

6 Research 72 38%

3 Staff training 67 36%

1 Additional budget 63 34%

8 Organisational culture change

57 30%

2 Better technology 47 25%

11 Nothing 46 24%

10 Social media employee policy

39 21%

9 Hiring an external agency

23 12%

4 Full time staff 18 10%

7 Student help 16 9%

5 Casual staff 14 7%

12 Other 9 5%

OtherunsureWe want to find out if it is worth it first before we put more resources to it.Social Media Policy Strategyjust keep doing the sameimprove policies



Raising awareness within organisationminimal restrictions on usageStrategic plansdon't know


33. Is there anything else you would like to add regarding social media resources?Text Responsein government the policy restricts a lot of the options, not marketing dept choiceChatter still seems the most noise. We measure what parts of our electronic space get the most attention - web unique visits bookings etc the rest appears to date to be noise.Social media seems to suit small businesses, sole traders and owner operators. It's less expensive to execute than traditional media - I feel I can do it myself.noIgnore it at your peril!!noExercise caution with external agencies as you need to know brand and pathways to direct people to other areas of the business quickly.nonoNoIf there are students or resources at the uni I would be interested to hear about them.Some social media resources have been blocked in my organisation. The risk of 'inappropriate content' being viewed and 'time wasting' are some reasons espoused to justify this action.ITs a waste of timenoThis survey is to longinflicting tension between culturesno




Social Media Blueprint (Shane Burford & Jack Day)

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