In a poll reported in USA Today 61% of small business customers could not document or prove any direct return on their investments in social media activity yet 51% said they were increasing time and money commitments. – and only 7% said they were cutting back!
Consumers are most likely to share articles, news, and content related to science but only 9% of person to person recipients click on the shared links regarding the topics.
Timely news and political items are less widely shared at 2% but the click rates are 86% and 74% respectively.
Business related content: only a 4% share and a 24% click on shared links
Health: 3% share 15% click
Celebrity and entertainment: 2% share but a 40% click
Consumer reviews of products and businesses: 1% share, 4% click
Personal Finance: 1% share 11% click
It’s thought that the disparity between share and click rates as “ego sharing”. Senders share content they believe boosts their perceived intelligence, informed status, etc regardless of whether they think the recipients will find it interesting or not!
The overall average is 3% sharing of content, 24% of recipients clicking on shared links. (Statistics from 33Acrosscom based on 500 publishers of online content)
What can we take from these findings?
– Firstly the only secure strategy is a multimedia marketing strategy utilising a variety of different media both online and offline and the second is the requirement to have a well thought out multi-channel sales strategy.
– The marketing success triangle has not changed.
– Your MOST COMPELLING message, delivered to the RIGHT audience using the RIGHT media.
– Measurement of effectiveness of your campaigns is the key to success.
– As William Edward Demming once said “In god we trust, all others bring data”
– As we’ve mentioned many times on our blogs, webinars and seminars it’s absolutely vital to measure the success of your pipeline and the ROI of every campaign.
– Test the media used against the results.
– Social media, like direct mail, like press advertising, has a role in a successful Club marketing plan. However to over egg its importance and to short cut traditional activities in favour of this media could well be folly!
A final thought on social media and in fact all the marketing tactics Club operators can use…..
Test small, don’t commit what you can’t afford to lose and live by the old adage, “If it’s not going to get me the results, I am not going to do it!”
