Simply MeasuredAdequately measuring return on investment was cited as the number-one challenge for social marketers in the U.S, according to a survey conducted by Seattle-based social analytics firm Simply Measured.

According to Simply Measured’s “The 2016 State of Social Marketing” report, more than half — 61 percent — of social marketers surveyed said measuring ROI for their social efforts was currently their number-one challenge in the field, topping every other obstacle, from publishing content to integrating social tools to developing social strategy.

Securing budgets and resources ranked at a distant second (38.2 percent), followed by tying social to business goals (33.6 percent). Tracking results, understanding performance across social channels and developing social strategy were also listed as popular concerns.

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According to the survey, less than a tenth — 9.4 percent — of social marketers said they were able to adequately quantify revenue resulting from social. A majority — 45.5 percent — admitted that they weren’t able to do this at all, and virtually the same number — 45.2 percent — claimed they were able to do so only to a limited degree.

The report also found that the metrics most commonly employed to measure social media’s impact don’t necessarily serve as a solution to these challenges. Engagement metrics (such as likes, comments mentions, shares and retweets) were cited by 56 percent. Conversion and revenue metrics (such as web traffic, goal conversion and revenue) were reported by 20.7 percent, and amplification and brand awareness metrics were cited by 15 percent.

When it comes to the social platforms that produce the best ROI results for practitioners, Facebook won by large margins, being cited by 95.8 percent of respondents as the top channel. Twitter pulled in a distant second — at 63.5 percent — and Instagram and LinkedIn were almost tied, at 40.1 percent and 37.7 percent, respectively.

Simply Measured’s annual “State of Social Marketing” report surveyed more than 350 U.S. marketers in April that specialize primarily in social media.