Only 12 percent of IT decision makers across Europe use social media to inform their decisions and the majority of them opt for Facebook. This is according to a recent survey by IT publisher, NetMediaEurope.
The research, which questioned IT buyers across six European countries, looked into how they use social media when selecting office and technical equipment. It suggests that while 12 per cent of respondents claimed to be ‘high profile users’ – being very active, and adding their own content to relevant sites –, one third consider themselves as ‘moderate users’ – going onto social networks to keep informed.
Concerning IT buyers’ views on exchange of IT-related information circulating on social media platforms, one third said they could live without these sites, one third were neutral, and the remaining third admitted to relying heavily on them.
On their favourite social media channel, a high proportion of the respondents said they use Facebook for business purposes (51 per cent, rising to 73 per cent when it comes to corporations), whereas Twitter and LinkedIn are rated less highly – in corporations, 45 per cent used LinkedIn, and less than 40 per cent Twitter.
Commenting on the findings, Dominique Busso, CEO at NetMediaEurope, said, “It is possible that the very transparency and ease of use of social media has masked the extent to which people use these sites. Respondents tended to talk about using advice from experts and other individuals, without focusing on the fact that that advice is increasingly brought to them through social media. IT professionals seem almost suspicious of social media, but are all too keen to use the platform when they perceive they are getting value from it.”
Looking at the different use in different countries, the survey suggests that the UK is the heaviest user of social media platforms in Europe, with its IT pros investing time and presence on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn.
Research on UK IT decision makers was commissioned by Wildfire PR. Click to view results.
