We're Still In the Early Stages of Social Media Marketing

I have been spending a lot of time getting familiar with social media concepts, and exploring how companies are using social media as part of their marketing strategies. I've come to the conclusion that while there is a lot of enthusiasm around social media and its potential, companies are still in the early stages of exploration. Though they have been around for years, blogs, RSS feeds and user forums seem to be the primary tools being used in the social media sphere. This is not a bad thing! It takes time to do these things right, as well as for users to start feeling the community love.

But I suspect the reason not to jump too far ahead is because many companies are not sure how to target, communicate, or measure strategies and tactics in other social media areas (some examples include Facebook, Gooruze, Satisfaction). Heck, many companies struggle to figure this out for their corporate websites, intranets, and now blogs, etc.

And while people are increasingly spending more time online, the younger generation is still the primary users of social media tools, encouraging the older generations to follow suit (see this report, by way of emergencemarkeing.com). Many companies with an older customer may find there is less urgency to move marketing dollars to social media campaigns.