Interesting survey of local business leaders conducted by Veritas Communications at the end of 2008 outlines projections for 2009. I'd say the numbers were pretty accurate, although the line between Social Media and Public Relations has become very blurred.

It will be even more interesting to see how the real results shape up against these numbers. My experience throughout 2009 has seen the majority of clients taking marketing funds out of print, outdoor and radio budgets and reassigning those funds to online and social media in particular.

How have you or your clients allocated marketing budgets in 2009? Leave a comment below.   

Credit: Veritas com.motion

just the facts

• Despite the economic slowdown forcing marketers to modify their spending, 82 per cent of Canadian business leaders and senior marketers say they will spend as much or more on social media in 2009 than they did this year. That’s more than for any other marketing communications discipline, as seen in the table below.

• Canadian business leaders say it would be a mistake to cut back on social and digital spending in tough economic times, with 7 in 10 recommending increased investment.

• Nearly four in five Canadian marketers (78 per cent) say senior management supports greater investment in social media. That’s up dramatically from 54 per cent a year ago.

• Facebook has established itself as Canada’s dominant social network. Among Canadians who use social media, 87 per cent say they have tried Facebook, compared with 33 per cent for MySpace and 13 per cent for Twitter.

• Two-thirds of Canadians (65 per cent) who use social media say social media is an important tool for developing, maintaining and nurturing friendships, up from 52 per cent a year ago.

• Two-thirds of Canadians (65 per cent) who use social media say social media tools are important for learning about products, services, organizations and brands, up from 59 per cent a year ago.

• The number of business leaders who say they are less familiar about social media than their customers has fallen to 17 per cent, down from 26 per cent a year ago.

• Just 7 per cent of Canadian business leaders see social media tools as a fad, down from 15 per cent a year ago. And one in two (46 per cent) say social media tools have forever changed the communications landscape and are becoming more important than communications tool such as television, radio, newspapers and magazines.

• Nearly four in five Canadians (79 per cent) say they have used social media tools. That’s up from 71 per cent a year ago.