According to a new study, over 80% of UK marketing professionals do not believe that Social Media currently has any impact on their brands.

Further, almost 2/3 have no social media strategy for their company!

Although it seems as though signs are everywhere that social media is a long term trend that is having a major impact on the communication habits, social habits, internet browsing habits and even purchasing habits of a wide section of the population, apparently social media has not yet made its way into the mainstream of UK marketing.

Creston is an insight and communications group that launched the survey of 250 marketing professionals in the UK to understand the current views towards social media. The most interesting finding concerned the low overall impact of social media.

According to the Crestion release, “only 14% of respondents agree social media currently has a significant impact on the brand reputation of their organisation and this lack of immediacy concerning social media activity also carries through to other parts of the business, including product development, new customers.”

Some other interesting findings include:

• two thirds of respondents believe that the Board of their company does not understand social media, and 88% think that the Board chooses not to support it.
• only a third of marketers said it fell to them to take the lead in social media, but most were not clear as to who should be responsible outside of marketing

However, despite this lack of current support and impact, a large majority do believe that social media will be important in the future.

• 88 per cent expect it to have an impact on the business in the future.
• 71 per cent think it will impact market share.
• 79 per cent think it will impact on customer retention and acquisition.
• Almost 70 percent believe that it is a long term trend which won’t fade, not simply the latest business fad.

Don Elgie, CEO of Creston plc, comments: “We were very surprised to see that there was such apathy around social media from marketers… Eighty per cent of the UK’s online population are now using social media, and the concern is that many marketing professionals are ignoring the impact social media activity could have right now on both their business and their own career.”