<p>Last November, I wrote about why most social strategies fail -- it's because they aren't really strategies but rather, a pile of social media tactics that lack connection to business goals.</p><p>In a comprehensive social business research study with my colleague, Brian Solis, we uncovered the sad state of social media strategy within enterprise organizations:Only 34% of businesses feel that their social strategy is connected to business outcomes.Just 28% of companies we studied feel that they have a holistic approach to social media, where lines of business and business functions work together under a common vision.A mere 12% are confident they have a plan that looks beyond the next year.Only half said that top executives were "informed, engaged and aligned with their companies' social strategy."</p><p>Brian and I published the first part of the research as a report looking at The Evolution of Social Business Strategy that lays out the six maturity stages and how organizations can connect their strategy to business goals throughout that journey.</p><p>We also found that there are common characteristics of successful social business strategies, the most important one being a laser focus on achieving business goals. In fact, the most successful businesses are those with an executive who can articulate the vision and strategy almost as well as the social strategist.</p><p><a href="http://www.linkedin.com/influencers/20130717205514-33767-how-robust-is-your-social-business-strategy">Keep reading...</a></p><p>Read also:</p><p><a href="http://venturebeat.com/2013/07/17/its-time-for-social-media-to-grow-up/">It&#039;s time for social media to grow up</a> (VentureBeat)</p><p>Explore: <a href="http://news.google.com/news/more?ncl=dQp2jhVYZBnix-M1pKxDXDAMXYmqM&ned=us">2 additional articles.</a></p>