<p>Organizations that became early adopters of social technologies, using them to engage with employees, clients and partners, are now moving beyond the implementation phase and enjoying the benefits of social business: improved customer service, increased efficiency and faster product innovation among them.</p><p>Social businesses are now looking to what's next: how can organizations continue to grow in their social efforts? There are two major trends social businesses are embracing: the expansion of social into ALL aspects of an organization, including (but not limited to) marketing, finance, HR and facilities, and the increased attention on measuring the ROI of this transformation.Marketing and the CMO</p><p>Social is often first embraced by marketing, as chief marketing officers (CMO) quickly saw the value in being able to monitor and quickly respond to customer conversations. A recent IBM study of more than 1,700 CMOs reveals that 82 percent plan to increase their use of social media over the next three to five years. Another survey by Duke University's Fuqua Business School revealed that social media spending as a percentage of marketing budgets will more than double in the next five years. Couple this with the fact that CMOs are slated to spend more on IT than CIOs, and it's safe to say that there's a lot of focus on the right social tools to help and retain customers.</p><p>CMOs can gain insights on external data from sources like Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and public forums to react more swiftly to customer trends, build their brands and create exceptional customer experiences that inspire brand loyalty. According to a 2012 Nielsen study, one in three social media users prefer contacting customer service through social media than by phone.Finance and the CFO</p><p><a href="http://www.cmswire.com/cms/social-business/the-future-of-social-organization-wide-focused-on-business-goals-021201.php">Keep reading...</a></p>