The below preview was originally posted at SocialTrenz.com by Sergio Balegno, senior analyst with the MarketingSherpa Research Group, and lead author of the 2009 study, “Social Media Marketing and PR: Benchmarks and best practices for harnessing the power of the social marketplace”.  Visit http://www.socialtrenz.com for the original posts or click here to buy the book.

Whether an organization has used social media marketing and PR or not, the most significant barrier to social media adoption named by 46% of respondents is the “Lack of knowledgeable staff”.

One of the dangers to the effective adoption of social media as a marketing strategy is the large percentage of those who consider themselves knowledgeable – but have no social media experience. When marketers at organizations that have not used social media marketing or PR were asked how knowledgeable they were about the subject, two-thirds replied that they were “very” or “somewhat” knowledgeable. Without social media experience, this level of knowledge is unlikely, which may be the reason “Lack of knowledgeable staff” was named as the most significant barrier to social media adoption.