Brands Ignore Social Media in Favor of More Traditional Digital Channels

Research Finds Marketers are not Embracing Tools Such as Twitter as Quickly

NEW YORK, August 10 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Marketers are failing to embrace social media, with only three per cent looking into channels such as blogging and micro-blogging via tools like Twitter.

This is according to research from Emailvision, which surveyed 102 companies at the recent Online Marketing Show.

With Facebook set to catch up with Google in terms of unique user figures1 and Twitter expected to attract its 25 millionth user by year-end,2 Emailvision is warning that marketers are missing a trick by ignoring social media.

As a result Emailvision, a global market leader in email marketing automation, has put together three top tips for integrating social media tactics into marketing campaigns:

1. Cross-channel consistency - getting the basics right and ensuring you have consistent messages across multiple channels is key to controlling the identity of your company brand. Linking email content to social media updates will drive interest in both channels.

2. Encourage engagement - offering prospects a discount or incentive for following your brand will encourage extra buzz in the social media sphere. As Dell recently proved by making $1 million advertising special offers on Twitter, it might just increase revenues too.

3. Test those Tweets - measurement is vital for the success of any marketing campaign. Monitoring click-throughs from social media sites and reviewing the online chatter surrounding your brand, will help you to develop and improve its multi-channel approach.

Additional survey findings reveal that businesses favor traditional marketing channels. Almost half of respondents cited SEO and email as being among their leading tools. Yet in spite of the high level of companies employing these channels, the lack of uptake of newer social media tools indicates that many organizations are failing to use this method to supplement more their more traditional approach.

"It's understandable that many brands are wary about investing limited resources in new and emerging marketing channels," said Olivier Piscart, Regional Manager, North America at Emailvision. "Getting the basics right with existing channels can free up time and money, offering a solution to these brands," he added. "This time and money can be used to integrate social media into established approaches; allowing businesses to develop new strategies, while refreshing existing techniques at the same time."

1 According to site analytics for 2009 from Compete.com

2 The Inside Numbers on Twitter

NOTES TO EDITORS About Emailvision (http://www.emailvision.com)

Emailvision is the global market and technology leader in "on-demand" software for email marketing automation. The Emailvision flagship software product, Campaign Commander(TM), has become the industry standard email marketing software service for E-commerce and publishing companies with over 4500 users worldwide. The company has a staff of over 200 and offices in the major international markets including US, UK, France, Germany, Switzerland, Belgium, Netherlands, Scandinavia and Spain. Emailvision (ALEMV) was founded in 1999 and is listed on the NYSE Euronext Alternext stock exchange.

http://www.emailvision.com

SOURCE EmailVision