Measuring the ROI of social media

With so much said about social media and the value it offers, the issue of ROI in monetary terms is bound to be a major issue. Yes, your company may have hundreds of friends on Facebook and hundreds more followers on Twitter, but how does all that translate to revenue?

Olivier Blanchard at BrandBuilder  took a fascinating look at how ROI on social media can be measured and achieved. He chalked a clear distinction between non-financial and financial benefits that social media can offer, and how they can combine to bring about ROI.

While Olivier’s argument has a marketing slant, I believe it is relevant to recruitment. The fact is, sooner or later, you (or your boss) have to ask yourself what your social media ROI is?  Does it leads to more placements? Does it open new channels to talent? Did you win new clients? 

The next phase in our industry’s flirtation with social media will be about connecting the dots between the intangible benefits and tangible outcomes.