â–¶ All the More Reason for PR to Handle Digital/Social: A new IBM study of more than 1,700 CMOs worldwide reveals that many question whether their organizations are prepared to manage digital change. The study found that while 82% of CMOs say they plan to increase their use of social media over the next three to five years, only 26% are currently tracking blogs, 42% are tracking third-party reviews and 48% are tracking consumer reviews to help shape their marketing strategies. Related findings include:
• More than 50% of CMOs think they are under-prepared to manage key market forces—from social media to greater customer collaboration and influence.
• 80% are still focusing primarily on traditional sources of information such as market research and competitive benchmarking.
• 63% of CMOs believe return on investment (ROI) will be the most important measure of their success by 2015. However, only 44% feel fully prepared to be held accountable for ROI.
• When asked which attributes they will need to be personally successful over the next three to five years, only 28% said technological competence, 25% said social media expertise and 16% said financial acumen.
Source: IBM