The top 10 social media questions marketers want answered can be summarized in the following keywords: measure, target, engage, sell, time, strategy, tactics, tools, use and selection—in that order.

Here’s the expanded version of the social media questions marketers most want answered:

#1: MEASURE: How do I measure the effect of social media marketing on my
business?

The number-one question marketers want answered is how to track the ROI of social
media. For the past three years running, this question has been number one.
• What is the best way to measure the ROI of social media marketing?
• How do I track social media performance and make good business decisions?
• What are the best measurement tools?
• Are there any industry benchmarks against which to measure our practices?

#2: TARGET: How do I find my target audience with social media?

Marketers want to know how to locate prospective customers via social media.
• Which social networks does my target audience use?
• How can I understand the social media habits of my target audience?
• How do I target potential clients in a specific region or industry?
• How do I get noticed by my target audience?

#3: ENGAGE: What are the best ways to engage my audience?

Many marketers want to understand how to cultivate loyal fans.
• How do I create engaging content that will keep people following our social
media channels?
• How do I get my Facebook fans to participate more on our page?

• How do we engage our followers with limited company resources?

#4: SELL: How do I sell with social media?

Many marketers want to know how to monetize their social media activities.
• Can I generate profit from social media efforts?
• How do I speed up the sales process with social media?
• How do I get sales when “social” is not supposed to be sales-oriented?
• How do I best monetize my social efforts?

#5: TIME: How should I best use my time to maximize my social media results?

Marketers are still interested in how to manage the time required to conduct social
media marketing.
• What are the regular activities I should structure into my day and week?
• How do I plan my team’s social media time more effectively?
• What tools can help me maximize my time spent on social media?

#6: STRATEGY: How do I create a social media strategy?

A significant number of marketers are seeking ways to use social media to strategically
support business objectives.
• How do I create a social media plan?
• What departments should be involved when creating a social media strategy?
• How do I use social media to grow my business?

#7: TACTICS: What social media tactics are the most effective?

Marketers are looking for proven tactics to speed them along their social media paths.
• What works best?
• Who is doing social media the best?
• How often should I post?

#8: TOOLS: What are the best social media management tools?

With so many social media platforms and potential campaigns and objectives, many
marketers are looking for tools to manage their efforts.
• What are the best tools for managing all of our social media efforts?
• How do I automate social activities?

#9: USE: How do I use the different social media platforms?

Marketers want to understand how to use and optimize their experiences with major
social media platforms.
• How do I use YouTube in marketing?
• How do I use Google+ to reach my customers?
• What do I need to be doing with Pinterest?

#10: SELECTION: How do I select the right social platform for my business?

Marketers are trying to understand the advantages of each social platform and how to
select the right one(s) for their business.
• Which social platforms are the most important for my business?
• Which social networks are here to stay and which should I put the majority of my
effort into?
• What are the best uses of each platform?

SUMMARY: 40% of marketers indicated determining how to measure social media results and how to find customers or prospects were the top social media marketing questions they want answered.

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