When you’re a brand looking to use social media to raise awareness of your products and services, boost website traffic footfall and drive sales, where do you turn? Which social network is right for you?

Largely, it depends on your goals. What are you trying to achieve? While a broad presence across two or more social platforms usually pays dividends for businesses, if resources are limited and time is strained, finding the best social channel for your needs is the most sensible way forward, based on audience size, relevant demographic and target profile.

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Did you know that almost three-quarters (71 percent) of internet users are more likely to purchase from a brand that they are following on a social networking site such as Twitter or Facebook?

Indeed, social media now accounts for almost one-quarter (22.5 percent) of all time that U.S. citizens spend online, and this weight of activity transcends down to all levels – an incredible 91 percent of searchers say that they use Facebook to find local businesses online.

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Did you know that almost one-quarter (22.5 percent) of all time spent online is used for social networking?

This, of course, presents a huge financial and marketing opportunity for businesses of all shapes and sizes across almost every industry worldwide. Indeed, global social commerce revenues are expected to reach an estimated $30 billion by 2015.

So how are brands capitalising on this social smorgasbord?

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Did you know that a recent study revealed that almost half (47 percent) of companies are not monitoring their online social media communities?

At all?

More than one-third (38 percent) said that they only measure Likes, comments and interactions on Facebook, with fewer than one in four (24 percent) actively measuring the ROI of their social media campaigns.

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Despite a downturn in the global economy, just one in five respondents to a recent survey said that they have travelled less for business since 2008, and 85 percent said that they find business travel more enjoyable today than they did five years ago.

So what’s changed? Certainly, the ability to interact with travel brands via platforms such as Twitter and Facebook has empowered the business traveller to make better decisions whilst planning their trip. More than eight out of ten (85 percent) business travellers said that they would follow a travel brand on social media to learn more about travel deals (61 percent), other travellers’ experiences with that brand (29 percent) and to stay updated on the brand’s latest news (28 percent).

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Did you know that two out of every three adults with investment accounts have social media profiles?

As you might expect, nine out of ten financial advisors already use LinkedIn, with some success – 60 percent have acquired clients directly from the business social network. Understandable, given that LinkedIn users are, on average, wealthier than the folks on the other major social networks.

But there are also opportunities across Facebook and Twitter, too.

The business is there. Are you taking advantage?

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Did you know that while 91 percent of online adults use social media regularly, just over one-fifth (22 percent) of businesses have a dedicated social media manager?

Social platforms such as Facebook and Twitter have changed the world, and brands are struggling to keep pace – just one-third (33 percent) of social media marketers spend more than eleven hours per week implementing their digital strategies, and, on average, companies respond to just 30 percent of all feedback they receive from their social media fans.

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Social media has revolutionised the business world, allowing companies of all shapes and sizes across almost every industry to reach vast audiences, raise brand awareness and drive website footfall and sales.

But which corporates are leading the way? Who heads the social business power rankings?

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Did you know that 43 percent of small businesses dedicate six or more hours per week to social media, and that, in the past year, four times as many SMBs have increased their social media budget compared to those are spending less?

Facebook is still king – 90 percent of small businesses have a Facebook Page – but almost three-quarters (70 percent) use Twitter and one in five tweet several times a day.

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A new report from the Internet Advertising Bureau (IAB) and global marketing and technology agency, LBi, has revealed the extent to which companies in the United Kingdom have modified their business structure so that it better incorporates social media.

In the past 12 months, more than half (55 percent) of the firms polled said that their organisation had made changes to their business in order to become more social. However, less than one in five say that they are able to successfully record their return on investment (ROI) from these tools.

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