A whopping 80 percent of Enterprises say social media is the most important tool for digital marketing success, according to a survey by B2B ratings firm Clutch, but continual changes in the social media landscape mean businesses must keep an eye on strategy.

In the survey intro, Clutch notes that throughout the past four years, social media has dominated the marketing industry’s news cycle – from Instagram’s integration with Facebook, to countless algorithm changes across multiple platforms, to Microsoft’s acquisition of LinkedIn.

What do these changes mean for businesses that view social media as a key part of their marketing strategy?

Key Findings

  • Social media is most important for digital marketing success, say 80% of enterprises
  • YouTube is one of the most popular social media channels for 61% of enterprises
  • Video outperforms images, offers and promotions, and articles on social media
  • Facebook yields the best results for 62% of enterprises
  • B2B companies more likely to choose LinkedIn over YouTube but don’t shy away from Instagram either

Recommendations

  • Pair social media with other digital marketing efforts, like SEO and email marketing, if your end goal is to generate revenue and leads.
  • Embrace creativity in the social media strategy development process. For example, business-to-business (B2B) companies do not need to limit themselves to using Facebook and LinkedIn only.
  • Select social media channels based on the audience you want to reach, the amount of users on a platform, and the type of content you plan to share.
  • Consider incorporating video into your social media plan in order to appeal to users’ interest in interactive and live content.
  • Dedicate additional human and financial resources for social media. Consider working with a social media marketing agency or consultant.
  • Take advantage of social media’s benefits by investing in paid social advertising, regularly interacting with customers, and using targeting features to reach appropriate audiences.

The report on the survey includes numerous graphics summarizing its findings, such as content that performs best on social media, which channels enterprises use most and more. See the full survey report: Social Media Marketing Survey 2016