Social media marketing not always effective

A new study says that using social media in marketing efforts may not necessarily be effective. Large hotel companies, airlines and other travel companies are speedily intensifying their social media focus to reach out to consumers. But some of these efforts may be misguided, according to the study.The marketing company MediaPost.com conducted its research in the US, UK, France and Germany. A mere 18% of 5000 respondents said that social media interaction with a large company or one of its brands would encourage them to buy from that company again. For smaller business, including for example independent hotels, the figure fell to 15%.USA Today[pictured: Friends using FourSquare; courtesy FourSquare]