Press Releases

LONDON, March 30, 2009 – Almost half of UK marketers (41%) have stated “lack of understanding” as the top reason preventing them from investing in social networks for their marketing campaigns, according to a Sapient Interactive survey of 110 UK marketing managers and directors.  Sapient Interactive argues that such barriers need to be overcome because one in every 11 minutes* spent online is now on social networks like Facebook and LinkedIn. 

Sapient Interactive’s survey revealed that the other barriers to investment in social networking behind “lack of understanding” were “no clear measurement/ROI” (19%), the fact that social networking is still in an experimentation phase so is “not proven yet” (17%) and markerters “don’t know where to start (there’s too much out there)” (14%). But these barriers are surprising considering that 50% of the respondents feel that 2009 will be the year of social networking for marketers. 

It is encouraging that in the past six months, 54% of respondents to Sapient Interactive’s survey had run a social networking campaign. However, of these campaigns, 63% were as part of a wider marketing campaign rather than a standalone campaign, which highlights the cautious approach that UK marketers are taking to social networking.  The ratio of social networking in campaigns will become more significant in the next six months as respondents look to increase its use as part of their integrated marketing campaigns.

Nigel Vaz, vice president and head of Sapient Interactive Europe, said: “Social networks should be a marketer’s dream!  The time spent on social networking sites is increasing, and the audience has broadened and matured, therefore providing the ideal platform for carefully targeted, creative and personalised marketing campaigns. However, there is still a lot of confusion about how marketers embrace social networking either as campaigns on their own or as part of wider marketing campaigns.  We believe it is about creating the social experiences that personify your brand.  Segmentation and content are key because if doesn’t resonate, it fails. ”

Other useful statistics from Sapient Interactive’s social networking survey include:

•    Only 9% of respondents think that “social networking is overrated”.
•    Outside of social networking campaigns, the most leveraged social media by marketers is media sharing sites like YouTube and Flickr (62%), followed closely by micro-blogs such as Twitter (59.8%) and corporate/campaign blogs (59%). 

Notes to Editor
•    *“Global Faces and Networked Places – A Nielsen report on Social Networking’s New Global Footprint”, March 2009
•    The Sapient Interactive survey on social networking was undertaken by Netimperative Research in late February/early March 2009.

About Sapient Interactive

Sapient Interactive, a division of Sapient (NASDAQ:SAPE), is one of the largest and most innovative interactive marketing and technology services firms in the world. It creates immersive and memorable multi-channel brand experiences that deliver measurable results for clients—including major brands such as Honda Jet, Celebrity Cruises, Sony Electronics and Times Online. One of the only firms to intelligently integrate strategy, creative, advertising, media services, analytics and technology expertise under one roof, Sapient Interactive offers unparalleled experience in emerging channels including social media, mobile devices such as the iPhone, digital in-store displays, self-service kiosks and traditional media. Headquartered in Boston, Sapient Interactive has operations in 22 major cities throughout North America, Europe and Asia.