Social media is currently most often used as a general communications tool in public relations and marketing, but there is a major shift underway. In my research for the new white paper The Coming Change in Social Media Business Applications, I found that companies are now viewing social media as a primary tool of customer engagement, enabling lead generation, immediate customer contact, and customer interaction.
This study is the first to measure a coming shift in how companies will use social media.
There are several factors driving this trend.
First, with more people spending time on online social media sites, companies are realizing a lot of their customers can be found there.
Second, the shift to online communications has made it easier for potential customers to dodge traditional lead generation and sales strategies. Social media can help break the ice.
Finally, a recession is causing every company to rethink its customer engagement strategy.
The report offers a overview of the shift toward uses in social media as well as measurements specific to Twitter and social networks like Facebook and LinkedIn.
Along the way, I had to good fortune to interview social media gurus Brian Solis, Shel Holtz, Dan Schnabel, Ari Herzog, and Dan McCarthy.
If you are involved in the business side of social media this could be an extremely important trend to get in front of.
I am excited to have worked with Robin Carey and the Social Media Today team to be the first to share these findings.
Download the study here. No registration required.
