Are businesses successfully using social media as a lead generation tool? If so, how is that strategy working for them? These are a couple of the questions SocialMediaToday, along with sponsor SharpSpring, sought to answer in a recent survey.

The 320 marketers who participated in the survey are split on their opinions regarding social media’s use as a volume generator of leads. Here’s how they answered the question:

• Somewhat satisfied 38%
• Somewhat dissatisfied 30%

Social Media Lead Quality

Similarly, when researchers asked marketers about the quality of leads they’re getting from social media, the answers weren’t overwhelmingly positive. About 26% are somewhat satisfied, 30% are neutral and 27% are somewhat dissatisfied.

Marketers most frequently use Facebook (82%) for lead generation. Another 48% use LinkedIn and 43% say Instagram yields the best results. To get these results, businesses use a variety of post types. The following post types yield the best leads:

• Still images 41%
• Video 40%
• Stories 11%

These results aren’t much different from what the average business experiences as a result of content marketing on their website. In general, blog posts (405), videos (38%) and original research (25%) bring in the best results.

How Marketers Are Using Social Media As A Lead Generation Tool

Analysts wonder if part of the problem stems from how marketers use social media. If your clients lack a good strategy for generating leads from their social media investment, now would be a good time to make changes. We’ve moved far beyond the days when counting the number of ‘likes’ means much. Your clients are spending real money to pump up their social media presence. They should be getting measurable returns on their investment.

The CMO Survey published in August 2019 found that businesses plan to continue investing in social media. The spending level currently consumes between 11% and 12% of the marketing budget. The CMO Survey findings highlight the fact that businesses rank social media at 3.3 on a scale of 1 to 7 based on its contribution to the bottom line.

Historically, when marketing formats failed to contribute significantly to a business’s economic well-​being, members of the c‑suite made swift cuts. But, businesses hesitate to take that step with social media because they know consumers spend hours on these platforms every day. Going forward, you can help your clients succeed by changing their social strategy.

These days, consumers are too savvy to give up their personal contact information without getting something in return. To encourage people to enter the sales funnel, your clients should consider:

• Making offers: Prospects who want a discount on a product, free shipping, or who are interested in online events will enter personal information into an online form.
• Call to action: Are your clients’ social media posts encouraging prospects to take specific action? Consumers are accustomed to scrolling through social posts and ‘liking’ them. Then, they move on. If your clients don’t ask them to click through to buy a product or explore the next step in the purchase process, they are missing an opportunity.

To change your clients’ approach to social media marketing, show them where they stand by running a Digital Audit on them. The tool is available at AdMall from SalesFuel. Then you can sell them on your social media management services.