Another month, another set of interesting social media statistics for business owners to mull over.

The latest research findings to raise a few eyebrows centres around an online poll conducted in America that shows that companies are finding it difficult to get conversions via Facebook.

According to the survey conducted by Reuters/Ipsos, four out of five Facebook users they quizzed have never bought a product or service after seeing advertisements on the popular social networking site, which is expected to have one billion users by the end of this year.

It also showed that:

1. Nearly a quarter (21%) of people surveyed didn’t have a Facebook account.

2. Thirty-four per cent of Facebook users are spending less time on the site compared to six months ago.

3. One in five (20%) Facebook users are spending more time on the site.

4. Two out of five people use Facebook every day.

5. The most frequent Facebook users are aged between 18-34.

While it’s worth noting that the online poll was carried out on 1,032 Americans and so doesn’t give a global flavour of the issues raised, the data still raises a few interesting points, mainly that some companies on Facebook need to rethink their advertising campaigns.

Simply being on Facebook is not good enough if businesses want to build up a following and boost revenue. And advertising on Facebook is not simply a case of coming up with a good offer, sticking it out there and hoping for the best.

More research is needed. A better understanding of social media is needed.

Firms need to find where potential new and existing customers are on social media and engage with them, as well as investigate what tactics are working well for competitors on platforms such as Facebook.

A lot, of course, depends on the product or service that you’re trying to sell on social media.

There’s no doubting, though, that revenue opportunities are available on sites like Facebook if approached in the correct fashion.

(Photo courtesy of marcopako on Flickr)