To be present or not to be present on social networks? This is the question. Many companies consider that, at present, due to reasons of brand image and visibility, it’s absolutely necessary to own at least one corporate social channel. On the contrary, other brands don’t consider socials necessary for their business. This often happens because the brand doesn’t have the resources and skills required to understand the great opportunities that social networks can offer.
In this regard, a survey conducted by Lab42 on 1,000 Facebook users analysed the connection between companies that are present on the Web and users. The study showed that 87% of the sample follow at least one brand on Facebook, while 75% use corporate website fan pages to obtain information and keep in touch with the brand.
One of the aims of the survey was to find out why users become fans of a brand on Facebook or leave a page.
The study emphasised that 69% of the users became fan of a brand on Facebook because one of his friends “liked” the page. This information is very useful for companies, which can significantly increase the number of fans by using “sponsored ads”.
As regards the reasons for leaving a page, users usually click “I don’t like it anymore” because the brand has posted too much, and case users consider excessive posts as spam. Another frequent reason is the negative experience that the user/consumer has had with the brand in real life.
In Italy, the amount of companies that use social networks has grown hugely over the last few years, and this is a sign of that brands are increasingly aware of the benefits that socials can bring to their business.
Like Enel, the first Italian electricity operator, which has adopted since long a multi-platform approach on social networks, with a solid presence on the main channels like Facebook, YouTube, Twitter and the online sharing portal EnelSharing.
