How much does YOUR company spend on social media?
Internet marketing firm Hubspot recently released data showing that businesses are, on average, doubling their spending on social media between 2009 and 2011.
What is really interesting about this data is that small businesses are spending as much as three times more (as a percentage of their overall lead generation budgets) on social media and blogs as their larger competitors. Why are small businesses spending so much more? It might have something to do with Hubspot’s discovery that organizations which focus on inbound marketing channels (such as social media) experience a cost-per-lead up to 62% less than those focused on outbound marketing.
Or, in laymen’s terms, you get more bang for your buck with social media.
This is reflected in the number of companies that have taken up blogging. Businesses are now in the minority if they do not blog – from 2009 to 2011, the percentage of businesses with a blog grew from 48% to 65%. It is also a reflection of the value that businesses derive from social media. Hubspot found that 57% of companies using blogs reported that they acquired customers from leads generated directly from their blog.
What does all of this mean for your business? At a time when budgets are tight, it’s more important than ever to analyze the cost of marketing and compare it with the results you are getting from the various channels. As a small business with a low marketing budget, chances are you can generate more leads for less money with social media than you can with traditional advertising. Food for thought…