Social media is gaining respect at a critical time – when budgets are being formulated. And this attitude adjustment is having a major effect on marketing spending.

How Social Media is Perceived at Budget Time
The question was – Which statement best describes how social media marketing is perceived within your organization at budget time?

Considering that social media is at a very early stage in its lifecycle, a 7% confidence rating that it’s producing measureable ROI and should be funded liberally is outstanding.

Conservative budget increases by half of all organizations at budget time — based on the promise that social media will eventually produce ROI — is another vote of confidence in the medium for the longer term.

The 17% of organizations who still believe social media marketing is basically free and should stay that way, are destined to get what they pay for.

Not surprisingly, those who have reached the strategic phase of social marketing maturity are far more likely to be producing measurable ROI or at least seeing signs of a return on their investment on the horizon.

On the other hand, marketers in the trial phase of social marketing maturity are more than four times as likely to not recognize the value this tactic has for organizations willing to invest appropriate time and resources.

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