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03/03/2008 by
8481 views

Marketers: My Agencies Suck At Social Media!

Marketers are placing more emphasis on mastering social media but find their agencies ill equipped to help them succeed in that space, according to a new survey.

Pengu

A study in which WOMMA member TNS Media Intelligence/Cymfony polled more than 60 marketers in North America, France and the U.K. to gauge how they are faring navigating the world of social media.

It asked them for feedback on their agencies’ abilities to help. TNS found, in its words, “Agencies don’t get it.”

Clients complained that their agencies — creative, media, public relations, design and others — typically treat social channels like blogs as traditional media.

In other cases, their ideas are not backed up by practical skills in the area. What’s more, one client pointed out that his agencies have little of their own experience using social networks or video-sharing sites for themselves.

The increase in social media has led other analysts to highlight the dearth of skills at agencies to help clients navigate the social landscape. Forrester Research, for instance, published a report last month that found agencies are poorly structured to help clients leverage opportunities with communities of shared interests.

Nearly 50 percent of marketers said social-media efforts needed to be handled at an executive level with “significant” resources. Another 30 percent agreed social media is a “revolutionary opportunity.”

In his comments, Intuit’s Scott Wilder called it a “Pandora’s box” of consumers relying on word of mouth to evaluate companies and products.

“One of the big barriers right now is people are struggling with where this lives and how it is incorporated into their organizations,” Jim Nail (chief marketing and strategy officer at TNS Media) said, pointing out that social media cuts across marketing, public relations and customer service.

The perceived lack of social media competence at agencies will present opportunities for new providers, Nail predicted, as too many agencies hew narrowly to their niche, whether it’s media, creative or PR — something backed up by client feedback.

I feel it’s true: traditional agencies indeed don’t get the social media puzzle at all. Mostly they base their opinions on their own personal social network experiences and lots of assumptions. And we all know to assume can also stand for: ass-u-me! Whom do you think should claim and coin social media?

Source: AdWeek

Read the full TNS Cymfony Survey here.
Also read the article in AdWeek: Forrester says Agencies need to reboot.
And see the Forrester report: The Connected Agency.