This was one of the findings of a survey recently conducted by BDO USA, an accounting and consulting firm based in Chicago.
More survey findings...
- Overall about 63% of retailers say their 2010 holiday advertising and marketing budgets will stay flat compared to last year, stores are shifting their holiday budgets to a different mix of media than they were using during the recession.
- About 27 percent of retail marketing executives said that online advertising - including social media - accounts for most of their holiday marketing budgets this year, up from 18 percent last year.
- 75% of CMOs say they included social networking sites in their marketing strategy this year,
"... the low-cost nature of social networking gives retailers more room to boost their broadcast media investment for the holiday season," said Steve Ferrara , a partner in retail and consumer product practice at BDO USA.
The results of this survery do not surprise me in the least. Clearly Facebook, with its 500 million+ users is the social media behemoth that every retailer recognizes as a direct line to all potential buyers.
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