Social media influence on IT pros

The social network IT Toolbox just released the second "wave" of its ongoing survey project that examines how much social media influences IT decision-makers.  The first set of results focused on the trust IT pros place in social media, showing that they rely on peer-generated content more because it "probe[s] more deeply into a solution than dealing with a vendor and their customer references."

The second survey examines the influence of social media at "distinct stages of the purchase process and...assess[es] the credibility of online communities as an extension of personal networks."  The participation level increased considerable in this second wave (4,400+ respondents vs. 2,000 in the first wave), and the results show a substantial rise in the consumption of peer-generated content by IT purchasing decision makers, particularly at the executive level.

To me, the most notable findings revolved around the fact that "topic-based" networks and communities are the most important sources of information during the "consideration and final evaluation stages of purchase."  Given that -- once again -- these IT pros responded that they spend more time consuming peer-generated content than traditional editorial content, the "topic-based" sources refer to blogs, social networks and discussion communities forming around various sub-segments of IT.

Of course, anyone consuming this information should take into account the fact that IT Toolbox itself is an aggregator of such "topic-based" networks and communities.  However, it is quite successful with 1.2 million members and $8 million in ad revenue.  Regardless, these are data points that paint a clear picture for where influence is moving, and to be sure, our friends in the trade media have been evolving rapidly in the past year as a result, creating new communities leveraging their brands for similar participation and interaction among IT peers to take place.  All of this further suggests that companies must evolve their programs to identify and engage with these communities.