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Almost half of UK marketers (41%) say that a lack of understanding is the main reason stopping them from using social networks for their marketing campaigns.

The online survey by Sapient Interactive found that a fifth of respondents said that there was no clear measurement of return on investment (19%) and that social networking was still in an experimentation phase (17%). However, despite the negative feedback, half of the marketers felt that 2009 would be the year of social networking for marketers. With nine per cent of online time spent on social networks (source Nielsen), the market is largely untapped.

"When we did the research we did not expect the numbers to run so low," said Sapient Interactive director of digital strategy Freddie Laker. "On a positive note, there is a real opportunity for companies to leverage their presence on social networking sites."

In the past six months, 54% of respondents had run a social networking campaign. The majority of these were part of a wider marketing campaign rather than a standalone campaign, which highlights the cautious approach that UK marketers are taking to social networking.

Digital Divide

"Britain is a little behind the US digitally in some regards. It is a paradox as the percentage of social network users is much higher in the UK," said Laker. "There are very common misperceptions that social networking sites are very youth-focused, but the two largest user groups on Facebook are the 25 to 34 and 34 to 45 age groups. Social media is as mainstream as it can get.

"Business social networks like LinkedIn and Xing are a little more challenging to market on as they are more of a closed platform, but LinkedIn has improved its services and launched some new applications, on a limited scale, for marketers."

Sapient Interactive expects the ratio of social networking in campaigns will grow in the next six months as companies look to increase its use as part of their integrated marketing campaigns.

Sapient Interactive Europe vice president and head Nigel Vaz said: "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 it doesn't resonate, it fails."

The lack of models to measure return on investment (ROI) is one drawback for marketers, particularly in the current economic climate. However, Sapient Interactive plans to publish a white paper on ROI and cost of advertising on social networks and will issue further details later this spring.