At Digital Leadership Associates, we’re right. Well, we’re bound to say that aren’t we, but we really are and it looks like we’re not the only ones who feel that way any more.

So, here are some key takeaways from this report.

Nearly all (92 percent) say social media is essential to their marketing plan. This shouldn’t come as a surprise, but one of the things that we see in our travels is that despite the fact organisations generally think that social media is a key (or even a crucial) part of their marketing strategy for 2019 they are not making it central…it’s seen as part of marketing rather than the core of marketing. That though will change, mark my words.

Most (53 percent) say blog content creation is a top inbound marketing priority. We have been saying this since we first started the company. Basically all we do is blog - well we work too of course, but in terms of our lead-gen it’s all focused around content. We write. We write well and we write often. In two years we have published 500 articles on our own blog (plus loads of video content, guest posts on other blogs, memes and of course our own personal LinkedIn articles). This strategy generates ALL of our business. We do no advertising. We do no events. we do no SEO (other than as a byproduct of our content strategy), we do no PPC. We just do content. This gives us by far the largest share of voice in our industry and makes us more visible than all of our competitors.

Comments like “investing as little as 6 hours per week in social media…”

I mean, really? 6 hours? The more pressing question is what the hell are you doing with the rest of your working week if you’re investing 6 hours in social media?

According to Simon Kemp (the author of the Hootsuite/WeAreSocial “state of the nation report each quester) 81.5 of people with an internet connection are “active social media users.” Let’s put that another way. Over 4/5 of EVERYONE we want to talk to (that’s everyone in the developed world) is a regular, active social media user. When you consider that this 4/5 includes infants the very old and those who are making a point by NOT being on social…that really is everyone.

So let’s try that again. EVERYONE we want is on social…so why on earth wouldn’t every business make this the very core of how they engage customers, prospects and interested audiences.

So, the Digital Leadership Associates prediction is that.

Some forward looking organisations have recognised that social media is the battleground for their sales and marketing activities from now on and are focusing their efforts there. Many however, are not, and those will be the organisations that fall in to the 50% that Accenture predict will disappear over the next decade.