As B2B marketers, we all know that social media is more than just cat pictures. Social media is a powerful tool for reaching your prospects and customers, when used correctly.

People are consuming more content than ever before. In today's fast paced world the easiest way to stay up to date with the constant stream of information is with social media's top channels including Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn and more. And this is true for both B2B and B2C audiences.

It's easy to feel overwhelmed by the sheer magnitude of it all. With so many other brands putting out nonstop content through multiple different platforms, how is your audience supposed to notice you?

Just when marketing professionals thought they had a handle on using social media to build brand recognition and sales, social advertising gets thrown into the mix and adds both optimism and confusion. While social media has been an effective way for individuals to learn about new products, brands and services, more and more marketers are accepting the shift in advertising strategy it presents. With the opportunity for hyper-focused segmentation and visual interaction that social ads offer, the percentage of overall marketing budgets spent on social will jump from 10.7 percent in 2015 to 14 percent in 2016. Consider the following stats when making decisions on the best social ad platforms for your product or service.