Eighty five per cent of local businesses use social networks as part of their marketing initiatives, according to a report called Social Media Marketing in Malta, recently released by ICON, a local web design and development company.

The report says social networks generate business exposure and Facebook is the preferred tool of most companies. However, while firms seem to be eager to invest more in social media, measuring return on investment remains a major concern.

“I did not expect such a high number of marketers already using social media to grow their business.

“Naturally one needs to then examine whether such usage is indeed correct and of benefit to the company,” Daniela Grech, the author of the report, said.

Almost half the marketers interviewed claim that they do not know how to measure the effect of social media on their business. Marketers have other concerns when it comes to messages and content posted on their social channels, and integrating all their various tools into a single strategy.

The report points out that social media increases online traffic (58 per cent) and search rankings (31 per cent).

The report also reveals that marketers are eager to learn more about social media. Almost half the participants want to learn more about Facebook, followed by LinkedIn, then Twitter and Foursquare. Business-to-business (B2B) companies are interested in learning about location-based social networks such as Foursquare.

Most social media marketing is carried out in-house and only 14.5 per cent outsource part of their social media efforts. Indeed, getting fresh ideas seems to be one of the hurdles, with a lack of creative campaigns being a major weakness.

“Marketers must realise that they are not going to engage customers on their social media through ‘adverts’ that are normally found on more traditional channels.

“Social media by its very nature entails communication – marketers must think of creative campaigns to entertain and connect with followers, other than hard-selling,” said Ms Grech.