Fortune 500 Enterprises Find Success via Blogging and Social Media in 2016

New research shows that more Fortune 500 companies are leaning toward social marketing tactics than in previous years, and they are seeing success as a result.

A survey conducted by UMass Dartmouth recently examined the marketing tools Fortune Magazine’s Top 500 enterprises have been using over the past year. The research revealed that blogging and social media are both being utilized by leading companies to achieve marketing goals. In fact, the 2016 data shows that 50 percent of the top 200 companies use blogs, while just 29 percent of the bottom 200 companies do the same.

A total of 36 percent of Fortune 500 companies are using blogs for thought leadership, product promotion, and customer engagement. Companies also turn to their blogs to announce new products, services, and philanthropic efforts.

Social media websites such as Twitter, LinkedIn, and Facebook, are also becoming popular among Fortune 500 businesses. About 86 percent have active Twitter accounts as of this year, and 84 percent have active Facebook pages. LinkedIn leads all social networks with 97 percent of enterprises claiming they have an account on the website.

More companies are turning to new platforms to reach out to potential customers as well. This year, Instagram use among Fortune 500 businesses increased 15 percent – about 45 percent now have Instagram pages.

B2B Marketing Success on Instagram

Audience size does not always determine the amount of success B2B companies see on social media platforms. A study by TrackMaven discovered that B2B brands receive 20 times more engagement on Instagram than LinkedIn, despite having smaller audiences.

In terms of audience size, LinkedIn still dominates for B2B marketers. Out of the 17 B2B verticals analyzed by TrackMaven, all but three of them have their largest audiences on LinkedIn, beating out Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest.