![\"\"](\"\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/07\/2017-1-23-Going-Up-the-Social-Media-Ladder.png\" "\\"\\"")
<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
In the past you would have said that you don\u2019t own an email account. Today that analogy would be tantamount to saying your business has no connection whatsoever to any social media network, whether it\u2019s via the giants Facebook, Twitter and YouTube, or even the fast rising Pinterest. Any SEO<\/a> firm who aren\u2019t even in their right mind would tell that you have to get one, pronto. But, actually, the more pressing problem for business as of late isn\u2019t whether they\u2019ve employed social media tools, but how they can move from one level to the next. It was discovered in a study done by Booz and Company in cooperation with Buddy Media that most businesses have no idea how to use social media to its greatest advantage. Sure, they have opened one. But the next question is: what happens next? Most businesses are stuck at level one and have no idea the vast frontier of the social media realm right before them. Most aren\u2019t aware that social media isn\u2019t just limited to brand awareness or advertising but a place to actually make a sale. According to Booz and Company head of Global Media and Entertainment Practice, Chris Vollmer, talking to Christine Erickson of Mashable, there are four steps to using the social media for their business. Called the four levels of analytics, this is a social media ladder on how to capitalize on the social media tools to achieve what you came for in the first place.<\/p>\n Level 1: Reach<\/strong> Level 2: Engagement<\/strong> Level 3: Advocacy<\/strong> Level 4: Return on Investment<\/strong> As of now, only 40% of businesses have achieved all these four levels. All companies, big or small, may have social media networks but fully maneuvering its full potential is a faraway dream.<\/p>\n
\nThis is where businesses have a command of their niche in the social media. They have an awareness of their fans, followers, subscribers, and visitors, the number of views and even the forums and threads being done in honor of it.<\/p>\n
\nThis isn\u2019t about the statistics anymore of your niche but understanding what they mean. It\u2019s scrutinizing the meaning of their comments, likes and shares.<\/p>\n
\nThis is where from the background, the businesses come to the forefront and influence the behaviors of the visitors to the social site. According to Erickson, \u201cThese include such metrics as: intent to recommend, referral and reshare activity, comments and followers per user, and brand favorability, consideration and preference.\u201d<\/p>\n
\nThis is where businesses use ROI-focused key performance indicators or KPI like purchase intent, leads generated, conversion rates or actual sales.<\/p>\n