We recently discussed social media marketing and just how valuable it is to reach customers. A new Marketing Mix Survey done by SageFrog offers more insight that we thought we should share as well. SageFrog performs this study annually, with this year’s edition being its 15^th anniversary.

Here are a handful of their key findings:

1. The results this year are very similar to last year’s
   Online and digital marketing are more popular than traditional in-person events and tradeshows. This is understandable as a clear effect of the pandemic, remote work, and community quarantines.
2. Marketing budgets are continuing to rise
   A majority of businesses are reporting allocating more resources to spend on marketing.
3. Social media marketing spending is #3
   Social media as we have said, continues to be an extremely important part of the mix. 75% of B2B marketers use paid social media marketing. Which is why it’s no surprise that social media ranks so high for marketing spend. Those above it include website development and digital marketing as #1 and #2, respectively.
4. Investing in social media is paying off
   While referrals are still the most reliable method for new leads, less and less professionals are having to rely on referrals as social media platforms such as LinkedIn and Facebook offer new, more sophisticated ways to attract and engage with potential leads.

So, where are B2B marketers turning?

• LinkedIn 85%
• Facebook 71%
• Twitter 61%
• Instagram 49%
• YouTube 45%
• Pinterest 8%
• TikTok 7%
• Vimeo 7%
• Snapchat 2%
• Only 2% of those surveyed don’t use social media at all.

The main takeaway point from this study is that social media marketing is continuing to increase in popularity and spending — even for B2B marketers. And while more marketers are using LinkedIn due to its trustworthiness and B2B focus, Twitter is where we see the most engagement.

Social is the place to be for B2B.