Decoding Tomorrow:
Futurism and Foresights Today

We at Thinque are excited to announce the launch of the State of Play: Social Media in Corporate Australia 2011/2012 Report. This report contains the latest insights into the state of play of social media in the near future in the Australian Market Place. This Social Media SWOT analysis was launched as part of the Social Media & Communications Summit which was held in Sydney on November 15, 2011 at the Deckhouse in Woolwich.

Thoughtleaders like Peter Ryan - Business Editor / ABC, James Lorenz - Head of Communications / Greenpeace, Nada Siratkov - General Manager Marketing / Aon, John Kerrison - Senior Reporter / Sky News, Malcolm Alder - Partner Digital Economy / KPMG, Kerry McGoldrick - Risk Enterprise Manager / Woolworths, Peter Fraser, Founder of SR7, and Anders Sorman-Nilsson, founder of Thinque, all shared their future insights into the state of social media in an event attendes by the who's who of corporate communications and marketing.

To gain a flavour of the future of social media in corporate Australia, you can access this freshly minted report now.

Keep reading below for some of the key insights, and check out the infographic state of play based on our research.

One of the key insights from the report was the fact that 66% of respondents reported that Social Media Strategy is the area in which they need the most help. To learn more about the State of Play Social Media 2011/12 Report, commissioned by Thinque and SR7, download it here.

Interestingly, lack of awarness and the difficulty of determining a meaningful ROI on social media were held out as two of the key stumbling blocks in terms of realising the opportunities of social media for corporate Australia.

Key Findings

The State of Play: Social Media in Corporate Australia Report provide detailed insights and intelligence into usage, attitude and application of social media and networking platforms by Australian businesses, government departments and NGOs.

The results contained in the report provide a contemporary analysis of what social media means for business. It provides action points and a greater understanding of the perceptions of corporations and communication practitioners in considering social media initiatives.

The key findings are as follows:

• Respondents represent a large spectrum of privately held and publicly listed international and Australian organisations with 46.5% of survey participants employed by organisations with more than 50 employees.
• Determining a meaningful and measurable return on investment (ROI) was nominated as the key barrier to the successful development, implementation and execution of social media initiatives.
• Lack of support and understanding by senior executives and management was also ranked as a leading influencer within organisations in preventing the further take-up and expansion of social media initiatives.

   

• Increased brand recognition and improved community engagement were nominated as the most commonly used metrics for measuring ROI on organisation's social media initiatives.
• The most commonly cited positive result from social media engagement was improved relationships with customers and the online community.
• The key stumbling block to successful social media initiatives is a lack of awareness of how to develop, implement and execute social media programs.
• The areas where organisations require the most assistance in social media are strategy, processes and policy.
• Negative feedback and social media crises were rated as the greatest threats to organisations on social media.

Download the State of Play Social Media 2011/12 Report, commissioned by Thinque and SR7, here to get the full picture.