Just the title of the post from Mashable makes me sad. It doesn't get any better because the first sentence of the post reads:
Marketers are hopeful that this will be the year that they finally link social media marketing to ROI, a new survey says.
So far, we marketers are not sounding like the sharpest tools in the shed. The post goes on to say:
For the past few years, marketers have been content to measure “soft” metrics, such as the number of “Likes” or followers their brands have acquired. These numbers, though, are usually not indicators of an active community.
While those soft metrics still rank highly in importance, marketers are now turning to more traditional metrics that showcase true value. Site traffic tops the list as the most important factor for CMOs measuring social media ROI, as it did last year. In 2011, though, twice as many marketers plan on incorporating conversions — the total number of completed desired actions, such as “Likes” or clickthroughs, divided by the total number of impressions — as compared to 2010.
Take a look at yesterday's piece by Jay Baer on another recent social media survey for greater context.
For professional service firm marketers like me, it all boils down to what is making the phone ring (with the right kind of business from the right kind of prospects). Maybe I'm not the sharpest tool in the shed, but none of this helps me much. Maybe these posts will help you.
Einstein supposedly kept a sign in his office that read: "Not everything that counts can be counted, and not everything that can be counted counts." Hmmm. More later. My phone is ringing ...
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