Ninety-five per cent of businesses are building an online focus into their marketing strategies to help beat the recession.

That’s the verdict of organisers of the Online Marketing Show, which is being held at London’s Olympia Grand Hall this week (www.onlinemarketingshow.co.uk). Their survey indicates that while expenditure on traditional forms of media, such as TV and print, has decreased by 5.5 and 12 per cent respectively, the spend associated with online platforms is set to increase by approximately ten per cent, as businesses shift focus.

Most respondents believe that integration of online marketing is key to the wider marcoms mix, with 72 per cent regarding social media as an intrinsic marketing tool to their business. 77 per cent say online platforms are more effective than traditional media when it comes to increasing brand awareness; two in three respondents also claim to generate more business leads online than offline. LinkedIn and Facebook are the social media platforms of choice, with Twitter and YouTube cited third and fourth respectively, as most influential to respondents’ business.