Priming The Economic Engine: How social drives business growth and business decisions

DEFININGmedium/large businesses

(annual revenue)

Medium£4M to £24.9M GBP

LargeOver £25M GBP

decision makers in medium and large businesses surveyed across the U.K.

2

This report explores the way in which medium and large businesses in the U.K. make use of social media.

300

Medium and large businesses are a highly attractive audience, and social media offers a unique opportunity to engage with them

The majority of medium and large businesses in the U.K. are experiencing widespread growth…

Have experienced an increase in total revenue over the past year

Have experienced an increase in customer/client numbers over the past year

Have experienced an increase in overall

profitability over the past year

69%

64%62%

4Base: 300 medium/large businesses

GROWTHIncrease in overall revenue compared to last year54%32%

14%

NON-GROWTHDecrease/No change in

overall revenue YoY

HYPER GROWTHSignificant increase in overall

revenue YoY

5

68% of medium and large businesses in the UK have experienced growth in the past 12 months

Base: 300 medium/large businesses

6

Social media adoption is well penetrated and usage is maturing

Base: 300 medium/large businesses

81%of medium and

large businesses

currently use social media

5%plan to use social media in the future

7

60%Say they will increase their spend on social

media in the future

50%Say they will increase their spend on social

media in the future

…which is linked to an increase in social media spend

Base: 206 medium/large businesses experiencing revenue growth

61%of those experiencing hyper-growth have

increased their spend on social media advertising in

the past year

48%of those experiencing

growth have increased their spend on social

media advertising in the past year

% reporting that social media spend contributed to revenue growth

8

Hyper Growth

37%

Over a third of businesses reporting revenue growth attribute this to increased spend on social media...

Base: 206 medium/large businesses experiencing revenue growth

Growth

37%

Reported motivations for using social media

9

88%

81%

79%

88%

81%

84%

…while those companies experiencing hyper-growth are more likely to use social media specifically to drive growth.

Build Awareness Increase Sales Drive Growth

Base: 206 medium/large businesses experiencing revenue growth

Businesses experiencing revenue growth

Businesses experiencing revenue hyper-growth

KEY

10

Social media networks used

67% 32%

of hyper-growth companies currently use LinkedIn

67%

Two-thirds of these businesses are currentlyusing LinkedIn.

73% 69%

Medium Businesses are significantly more likely vs. Large Businesses

Large Businesses are significantly more likely vs. Medium Businesses

Base: 278 social media users

76%

Use social media to build awareness

Use social media to increase sales

Use social media to drive business growth

89%

Social media is mainly used to build awareness, increase sales and drive business growth

Base: 300 medium/large businesses 11

81%

79%

12

Medium and Large business use social media to deliver content and maintain their company’s presence

Base: 300 medium/large businesses

Top 5 uses of social media:Medium Businesses

12345

Deliver content and new information

Maintain a company presence

Generate word-of-mouth about my company

Promotional purposes and to provide deals

41%

42%

48%

48%

49%

Advertise to help increase awareness

13

Social media is seen as an important resource for marketing and vital for the future of businesses

Base: 300 medium/large businesses

70% say social media is important for marketingtheir company

65% see social media as essential for the futureof their company

56% say social media is important for gaining and retaining customers

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The #1challenge facing businesses in today’s marketis attracting new customers

58%say social media is a vital resource for

getting new customers

Retaining current customers 23%

23%

24%

28%

29%

31%

21%

16%

Finding and hiring good employees

Reduce costs

Managing cash flow

Increasing profit margin

Attracting new customers

Keeping up with technology

Finding content on how I canimprove my business

15

Social media is seen as an effective channel for marketing and driving business...along with impacting operational efficiencies and sourcing

Base: 264 social media users who access for specific business purposes

% reporting that social media is effective for…

Customer service support/ handle

complaints/retain customers

68%CUSTOMER SERVICE

53%FIND

VENDORS

Find vendors or companies that can help my company

75%RECRUIT

Find and source new employees

Deliver content and new information about my

company

78%CONTENTDELIVERY

78%DRIVING

AWARENESS

Maintain a company presence and identity

Social media (and LinkedIn in particular) is highly influential for medium/large businesses when choosing a financial services provider

16

have used social media for finance-related

reasons

73%

Top 5 uses of social media for financial purposes

17

Around three quarters of medium/large businesses use social media for financial purposes….

Base: 278 social media users

12345

Keep up-to-date on financial trends

Gather preliminary financial information

Seek advice on a financial decision

Evaluate or re-think a previous financial decision

Recommend a financial product to others

15%

18%

35%

23%

41%

18

Openness to receiving financial content and information on social media sites

48% 33%

of hyper-growth businesses are receptive to receiving financial content on LinkedIn

53%

35%

…and businesses are more open to receiving financial information from LinkedIn than any other network.

Base: 300 medium/large businesses

29%

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CREDIBILITY55% agree that LinkedIn allows them to build credibility.

CONNECTION63% agree that LinkedIn lets them connect with vendors or potential partners.

CONTEXT57% agree that LinkedIn provides a relevant context to promote and advertise their company.

COMMUNITY58% agree that LinkedIn provides access to a broader community of other companies to seek opinions.

This may be due to LinkedIn effectively providing businesses with the 4Cs…

Base: 185 LinkedIn users

Medium Businesses are significantly more likely vs. Large Businesses

Large Businesses are significantly more likely vs. Medium Businesses

72%

20

...which offers a valuable resource across different activities in the value chain.

Marketing & Sales

Sourcing

Open Innovation

Customer Service

21

In total, 61% of LinkedIn users took action after exploring content on the platform…

Top 6 actions as a result of exploring content on LinkedIn

Base: 185 LinkedIn users

22

% who actioned a response after receiving information on each network

61% 38%47%

…with LinkedIn more effective than competitors at driving business behaviour.

Base: 185 LinkedIn users; 203 Facebook users; 192 Twitter users; 90 Google+ users

54%

23

Path to Purchase

DISCOVERYGather info / stay up-

to-date

CONSIDERATIONSeek advice/info to make a

purchase

DRIVEN TO ACTION ON LINKEDIN(Any action)

75%

Among business who use social media for both discovery and consideration, 75% were driven to take action from content they read on LinkedIn

Base: 185 LinkedIn users

24

DISCOVERYGather info / stay up-

to-date

CONSIDERATIONSeek advice/info to make a

purchase

DRIVEN TO PURCHASE ON LINKEDIN

(Insurance policy and/or investment product)

38%

…and 38% made a purchase based on information received through the network.

Base: 185 LinkedIn users

Path to Purchase

22%

19%

18%

18%

18%

49%

46%

44%

42%

38%

Top 5 types of financial content expected on social media

Providing information in-line with consumer needs is likely to drive further exploration of branded content…

New product information

Company background

Market and economic commentary

Industry news / strategy information

Finance events

Base: 300 medium/large businesses

Information actually received through social media

Information expected to be received through social media

KEY

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Most valued content types among businesses experiencing hyper growth

News and financial articles drive the most value for businesses in hyper business growth

News/articles about other companies (77%)

Industry specific articles (72%)

Testimonials/ reviews from customers (70%)

Information on financial products/services (70%)

Base: 300 medium/large businesses 26

Build your followers

Encourage referrals and recommendations

Provide real-time assistance

Build community

Publish thought leadership

LIKE▪

SHARE▪

COMMENTFOLLOW INMAILSPONSOR

UPDATE

27

GROUPS

…which allows us to build relationships with businesses through various touch points on LinkedIn.

Nearly all business with revenues over £4M use social media.

Business use social media for marketing as well as operational efficiencies

Around three quarters already use social media for financial purposes

Business are more open to receiving financial content on LinkedIn than any other social media site

38% opened a financial account after using LinkedIn for both discovery and consideration

Summary of key findings

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2

3

45

29

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Best practices for marketers

Enable learning throughout each phase of the purchase path

Fulfill un-met content needs

Target hyper-growth companies

Provide resources for the entire business value chain

Build your credibility by facilitating open dialogue with these businesses