Facebook named as the most effective social media platform for advertising
Facebook has been named as the most effective advertising platform by industry executives, according to a new report from eMarketer.
Executives from 29 companies graded the “Big Three” social platforms- Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter- and the “Emerging Three”- Instagram, Pinterest and Snapchat- across an array of categories such as creative capabilities, ad targeting, measurement and Return on Investment (ROI).
The report, titled “Social Advertising Effectiveness Scorecard: Industry Execs Grade the Leading Platforms”, asked respondents what grade they would give the social media sites for ad targeting on the platform.
Facebook was awarded an A for its ad targeting capabilities with Twitter and LinkedIn each receiving a B. Across the “Emerging Three” platforms Instagram was given a B grade while Pinterest received a B+ and Pinterest a B-.
In measuring the effectiveness of ROI, respondents were also asked what grade they would give advertising across the platforms for driving ROI.
The results saw Facebook come out on top in the Big Three with a B+ grade followed by Twitter which scored a B- and LinkedIn which was awarded a C+. Pinterest was graded the highest in the “Emerging Three” platforms with a B- scoring while Instagram and Snapchat scored a C+ and C- respectively.
Principal analyst at eMarketer, Debra Aho Williamson, said executives cited social media’s targeting capabilities as one of the key strengths of paid social media advertising.
She added that “Marketers consider Facebook an extremely sophisticated targeted advertising platform, while Pinterest benefits from its strong connections with ecommerce and purchase intent.”
Facebook’s entry into video advertising looks likely to increase its targeting and ROI effectiveness but according to the report it hasn’t overtaken YouTube with both platforms scoring a B+ for the video advertising effectiveness.