Alterian, which is a company that helps organizations to create relevant, effective and engaging experiences with their audience performed a survey that found that the spend in social media is going to go up significantly in 2011.

Marketers will spend more money on social media this year. However, they’re still mastering their use of social websites to reach consumers, according to a survey from integrated marketing services provider Alterian.

Marketers said 2011 will be a turnaround year when the spending cutbacks of the recession are reversed to increase engagement levels across digital media. More than half (57%) of respondents expect their budgets to increase this year, while only 10% expect budget cuts. Three quarters (75%) of those polled said spending on social and digital media will rise.

However, marketers said they are still struggling to get a handle on social media. One-third (33%) said they have little or no understanding of the conversations happening about their brand, while 40% said they’re using some ad hoc tools to parse them. Another 27% said they report those exchanges regularly to management.

“The primary issue here it that it is a new medium…people are figuring out how to tap into it,” said Donnell Wright, Alterian’s senior director of global research and insights and sales support. “The tools for tracking and analytics exist, but marketers are faced with a challenge in choosing among them what lines up with their business needs.”

She added that marketers need to set up analytics and key performance indicators to better understand social media.

“It’s new. It’s tough to wrap their heads around it, but they need to get very proactive,” said Wright. “Social media is there and it’s going to continue to evolve and mature, but your customers are waiting to engage with you now. If you’re not there, it’s really a disservice to you and your brand.”

The survey polled 1,462 marketers, agencies and service providers in December.

U.S. Social Network Ad Spending to Increase 55 percent in 2011 … eMarketer predicts that US marketers will spend $3.08 billion to advertise on social networking sites this year. Spending will be up 55% from 2010 and will rise by a further 27.7% in 2012 to reach nearly $4 billion. …

Donna DeClemente from PromoTalk recently published an article that I thought had some really great ideas on capitalizing on the hype of the Super Bowl. Here’s a bit about the idea of generating some publicity and sales from the Super Bowl event.

As we’re all well aware, the Super Bowl is a huge marketing opportunity. The list of Super Bowl XLV advertisers isn’t final yet, but the big ones are back: Budweiser, Coca-Cola, PepsiCo with Doritos and Pepsi Max, Go Daddy, Pizza Hut, Career Builder, General Motors, eTrade and more.

However, a few brands that aren’t advertisers will be capitalizing on the big game for the seventh year in a row. This is one program I’m surprised that I haven’t written about in my past four years of covering the Super Bowl.

Animal Planet returns to the field with PUPPY BOWL VII, kicking off on Super Bowl Sunday, February 6 at 3 pm, before the big game begins!

All of the animals featured in PUPPY BOWL VII come from rescues and shelters. With the help of Petfinder, they have search throughout the country to find the toughest pups to play in Animal Planet Stadium.

The lineup is now assembled, the water bowls filled and the chew toys all distributed to the furry team. In a game day first, chicken cheerleaders will be clucking on the sidelines and fans will experience the field from the player’s perspective with new puppy cam technology.

This year’s starting lineup includes puppies from the Crossing Paths Animal Rescue (Alabama), Unleashed (New York), Luvfurmutts Animal Rescue (Ohio), and from as far away as All-Star Pet Rescue (U.S. Virgin Islands) and Island Dog Inc. (Puerto Rico).

They puppies range from spaniels, to pit bulls to bassets and all will vie for the title of MVP (Most Valuable Puppy).

PUPPY BOWL cameras will catch all the plays as puppies compete for first downs and end zone action. Views of the stadium will be provided by the Ice Breakers blimp and its hamster pilots.

The PUPPY BOWL referee is Andrew Schechter who will be closely supervising the players and doling out any necessary “puppy penalties”. “Puppies are my life,” says Andrew, “but when I’m on the field, I’m there to referee and call plays fairly regardless of my personal puppy preference. It takes a strong man to maintain composure when you’re surrounded by some of the cutest pups in the business.”

PUPPY BOWL even has half-time entertainment featuring this year an all-new edition of the BISSELL KITTY HALF-TIME SHOW. To kick if off, John Fulton, host of Animal Planet’s upcoming series, MUST LOVE CATS, will delight his feline fans with a rocking kitty-inspired acoustic solo performance while they shake their tails and whiskers on a glittery stage. I’m sure this will be better than watching the Black Eyed Peas again!

This is all just way too cute and something I’m going to have to watch come Super Bowl Sunday. To learn more about PUPPY BOWL VII fans can visit AnimalPlanet.com for some behind-the-scenes PUPPY BOWL moments and a chance to vote for this year’s MVP (Most Valuable Puppy). Viewers who are interested in adopting a pet in their area can visit Petfinder.com.

I think that Puppy Bowl will be a cute event for dog lovers to check out and it will bring about a great deal of positive branding for Animal Planet.

He points out that this trend requires further thinking for marketers as they plan their future digital marketing and media investments and priorities. He believes that increased Facebook participation will drive Google search volume, AND Facebook will offer an alternative to Google and the way customers find products and services going forward.

How Facebook will drive Google search volume

With over 1/2 billion users worldwide, Facebook has become a dominant Web property. Increasingly, it is the starting point for Internet users and where many spend most of their time.

Everyday as part of the conversations taking place, Facebook users ask each other about and share detail on events, travel, pets, family issues and, of course, the brands/groups for which they are fans. Simply stated, as part of their social discourse, socializers are naturally talking about the things they buy and want to buy.

This upper funnel dialogue will lead to many Facebook users seeking more information on the products or services they consider and hence searching for more information.

In this case, Facebook is and will be a query generator for Google/search engines as participants move down funnel towards making a purchase. It should be viewed as an integrated part of a brand’s marketing mix and looked at within a holistic model contributing to engagement and acquisition with the rest of a brands investments.

How Facebook will take Google search volume

At the same time, Facebook is an alternative means to the same end provided by search engines: searching and learning about products and services people need and buy. Within our Facebook worlds, we have a closer circle of friends. If you will, these are our main influencers/confidants, and we do pay attention to what they post and support.

These influencers may live in your city or be colleagues from around the country. There are many types of queries where pinging these friends becomes just as relevant as pinging an algorithm. In some instances, these could be highly local like finding out about restaurants, concerts and bike shops.

Or they could be long distance like getting a list of 5 things to do on my next trip to Phoenix. These friend-driven finds could spur more direct transactions or reduce the number of search engine searches needed to make a decision. In this case, Facebook changes the definition of a search.

What to do about this duality

The growing presence of Facebook and the dominance of Google require marketers to understand and invest in both domains. Capturing digital demand requires it and, by doing so, you stand the best chance of finding the customers who want to find your business.

In support of this approach, it is essential to conduct thorough attribution analysis to understand how searching influences social and vice versa for your brand and within your category. To be successful, marketers must gain an understanding of the way these worlds interplay and optimize their campaigns accordingly.

We agree and add that it is vital to understand that failure to optimize your campaigns accordingly could render your brand basically moot…that is to say out of the conversation.

TopSpin Media penned an article about the awards that the Social Network won at the Golden Globes.

We want to offer heartfelt congratulations to Trent Reznor, who, along with co-writer Atticus Ross, was awarded a Golden Globe for Best Original Score. 

Trent’s score for The Social Network was an artistic triumph that continues to inspire critical acclaim. 

We were thrilled to help power the direct-to-fan release of this soundtrack in 2010, and it was one of our favorite albums of the year. 

It’s great to see our clients get recognition from major media associations.  Congrats to Trent & Atticus, and if you still haven’t seen the film or heard the score, quit sleepin’ on it already! 

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Facebook movie “The Social Network” cleans up at Golden Globes Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross paired to win the award for Best Original Score. One other geek-worthy note from the Golden Globes: Jim Parsons, …