Social Media Examiner’s 2014 annual Marketing Industry Report found that while 97% of marketers use social media in their marketing efforts, only 37% are able to measure the ROI of those activities.

One of the greatest challenges in measuring Social Media ROI is the metrics. Engagement or “vanity” metrics such as Likes, Shares, Comments, and Mentions rarely correlate directly with business value like revenue.

But there’s another way social investments can pay off — one that’s frequently overlooked. Social profiles and social activity (what we refer to as Social Identity) can provide valuable insight to companies as they search for prospects and engage customers throughout the customer lifecycle.

The better companies know their customers, the more effectively then can engage them with targeted and relevant experiences across channels. Specifically, Social Identity can be used to increase metrics more commonly valued by marketers like:

• Email open rates and click-throughs
• Advertising and retargeting clicks
• Website time on site and downloads
• The number and relevance of leads
• Customer satisfaction, loyalty, and advocacy

Here are some of the major use cases for Social Identity:

For more detailed information on benefits, how-to, and case studies, you can read the full report on Leveraging Social Identity