Social Media Engagement Leads to Increased Revenue

In a compelling study just released by Charlene Li and the Altimeter Group, a link was firmly established between social media engagement and better financial performance for 100 most valuable corporate brands. This was accomplished by correlating the company revenues of these brands with their social media activities over the past 12 months. The brands that had the most strategic interaction through social media platforms enjoyed revenue increases of 18%, while the least engaged companies saw revenues drop by 6% on average over the same period.

To sum up the study’s findings, the key to brand success for the top 10 companies was effective engagement across more than 10 discrete social media channels, including blogs, Facebook, Twitter, wikis, and discussion forums. The winners took a conversational approach to social media channels, and really listened and responded to the comments of constituents.

The reason I like this study is that it helps to validate the ROI of Social Media Branding for companies, and from there it is just a short intellectual leap to understanding the importance of Social Media Branding for CEOs as individuals.

Others have written about the urgency for professionals to make the most of their own unique “personal brand” to advance their careers. I know from experience that executives can derive great benefits from leveraging social media to brand themselves, and to use this platform to wield a great deal of influence among their peers. In other words, social media can solidify personal brand reputations and help executives realize their full potential in the marketplace.

If there is one thing we’ve learned at BRANDfog, it is to believe in the power of social media branding as a tool to broaden life experiences, reshape reputations, and cultivate a wider circle of influence. Social media branding provides senior executives with the means and opportunity to become thought leaders, influence the market, attract new talent, build relationships and expand professional networks.