“What ads?” This was the response I got from my dad when I asked him if he notices the advertisements on Facebook. My dad is clearly not an enthusiast when it comes to social media, but I was still shell shocked. Companies spend millions of dollars, the best minds in the business analyze ways to exploit social media, blogs are awash with ideas of how to market your product on social media, likes endorsements and every other gimmick are being tested. Is my dad the lone exception or there are more people who do not bite the bait when it comes to adverts on social media?

I read an interesting blog by Khanh Nguyen which touches on the same subject. As she rightly pointed out  ‘many companies have invested a fortune into social media marketing, in hope that they will have access to the vast population of Facebook users. However, how much of those investments actually translate to revenue or profit for the firms?’ That is the key question. Can we ever hope to understand how much revenue will be generated for a dollar spent on social media?

I was chatting with my cousin who is the brand manager for Moet Chandon in South Asia.  They had been carrying our huge campaigns on social media to promote the brand in India and Sri-Lanka . I asked her if that has made an appreciable difference. Her response “ No clue. I have a budget and end up distributing the dollars over all channels of advertisement.”  Interesting outlook.  I do believe that advertising on social media is here to stay. But trying to put a monetary value to the benefits for a company is an exercise in futility.