lonelybrand: Research shows paid advertising on social media is not popular

While many advertising agencies and public relations firms are helping clients get involved in social marketing, display advertising on social media is not often their strategic choice.

Lonelybrand surveyed senior marketing executives at advertising agencies, and 17% said their companies helped clients buy social media display ads to help guide customers. However, among these companies that advertise on social media, most of them only spend a few thousand dollars a month on display ads. Among agencies that buy display ads on social media, 23% said they spend more than $10,000 a month on display ads, and 32% spend less than $1,000.

The reason for this problem is that there are abundant free resources available on social media, and paid advertising can serve as a supplement, with advertisers spending as much or as little as they wish.

Lonelybrand data shows that Facebook is the most popular social network for advertisers to place ads, with 13% of advertising agencies buying ads on it, compared to LinkedIn and Twitter, which only have 4% and 2% respectively.

In general, many companies prefer to focus on social network marketing rather than spending money on advertising. However, advertisers with more ample budgets can use display advertising to enhance social media campaigns and direct customers to the company's social sites.