Here’s your ROI for social media: for every $1 spent, brands earn $3

One of the questions often asked of social media marketing is this: what’s my ROI?

Ask that question of Scott Stratten (@unmarketing) and he’ll happily tell you…or slap you.

However, a new study from IAB claims to have found the answer! After analyzing 4,500 survey responses and over 800 interviews about the brands Heinz, Kettle and Twinings, [highlight color=”yellow”]the IAB determined for every £1 spent on social media as much as £3.34 could be generated[/highlight] (which we assume translates to dollars, deutschmarks and yen).

Now, while that is a study of just 3 brands AND the “could” acts as an important caveat, it’s one of the first clear answers to the social media ROI question. The study further concludes:

All three brands experienced an uplift in sentiment after implementing their social media campaigns, Heinz 22%, Kettle 17% and Twinings 19%. The study also showed that social media is particularly effective in positively shifting likelihood to recommend, propensity to trial new products and brand loyalty. [highlight color=”yellow”]Four out of five consumers said they would be more inclined to buy a brand more often in the future after being exposed to a brand’s social media presence, while 83% of consumers exposed to social media would trial a brand’s product.[/highlight]

So, the next time your boss asks you why you’re spending your time on Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest or some other social network channel, you can now tell them that you’re generating a 3x ROI for his annual report. 😉