Half of brands using social media have no strategy - study

Over half of companies are using social media as a marketing tool but half of those doing so claim to have no social media strategy, new research has shown.

However, Catalogues 4 Business, polled 123 UK organisations and found many organisations intend to introduce social media and digital marketing into their marketing plan over the next 12 months. The findings revealed Just over a third (36%) are adding it to their marketing activities this year, with a fifth (19%) looking to add a website with e-commerce functionality for the first time.

Ian Simpson, MD at Catalogues4Business, said: “It’s great to see so many companies embracing social media and digital marketing. It can be a very powerful tool, but as with most marketing activities, there must be a strategy in place, and some joined up thinking. This will ensure each marketing activity is working with each other and working to the max. Otherwise you can quickly find you’ve wasted a lot of time, and money, and not got much to show for it.”

Additionally, when asked to name what currently delivers sales, respondents cited their ecommerce website, email marketing and their catalogue as the top three driving tools. However, 13% said they don’t have a catalogue because their customers prefer using the net, said the research.

Simpson added: “It’s strange to hear companies say they don’t need a catalogue, because their customers only shop online. Yet it is clearly a powerful sales tool, making the top three of sales drivers listed by those interviewed. If a business has products or services that it sells online it is likely to be able to deploy a catalogue. Consumers are driven to websites via catalogues and direct mail. It’s about integrating the two, offline and online tactics, so that consumers are reached through all mediums and channels.”