Survey: Social Media Marketing Spend is on the Rise in 2019

As marketers continue to see the benefits associated with social media marketing, new research indicates that they remain dedicated to this avenue when looking ahead to the coming months.

Social Media Today recently published the results of the “Social Spending Survey” to take a closer look at how marketers are investing in social media channels ranging from Facebook to Instagram. Research showed that overall, 68 percent of marketers intend to spend more on social media ads in 2019, suggesting that the tactic is continuing to pay off.

At the moment, the majority of marketers’ social media budget (almost 60 percent) goes toward content creation. This is followed by advertising (approximately 20 percent), staff (nearly 20 percent) and management and reporting tools (less than 10 percent).

In terms of channels, 74 percent of marketers claim that they will increase their investment in Instagram in the coming months. About 60 percent cited Facebook, while 49 percent said YouTube will see an increased focus.

The Growing Investment in Social Media Marketing

As long as social media continues to yield results for marketers, previous research suggests that they will continue to invest a large portion of their budget on this initiative.

Zenith published the “Advertising Expenditure Forecasts For Marketers” report, and statistics showed that between 2017 and 2020, social media spend is expected to increase from $48 billion to $76 billion.

The researchers of the report also found that they expect social media ad spend to grow by an average of 16 percent leading up to 2020, twice the rate of paid search.