The digital media industry is still developing, and UK companies are lagging behind their US counterparts, according to a new survey commissioned by the SaaS company Meltwater Group.

The Future of Content survey, carried out by the market research company Loudhouse, has revealed a significant gap between the UK and the US in terms of social media management.

The survey has found that social media budgets have increased over the last twelve months, and that they are expected to continue increasing in 2011.

However, a significant challenge is the production of new and interesting content. Only 34% of UK companies have a formal strategy in place for content marketing, as opposed to 73% of US companies.

Moreover, measuring the ROI of social media activities is proving a complex issue: although most of the companies surveyed agreed with the importance of measuring online media, only 16% have invested in doing so, in contrast with 46% in the US.

Jorn Lyseggen, CEO of Meltwater Group, pointed out that the issues uncovered by the report don’t revolve around cost. “The industry is in a transitional period and still very much in its infancy. With transition comes risk, and more emphasis will therefore be placed on measuring effectiveness,” he said. “Knowing who is saying what and where about your brand is a key part of measuring changes in sentiment and therefore the impact of online activities.”

As online channels continue to revolutionise marketing and branding departments, they bring with them a need for a new mentality to ensure the sustainability of social media strategies – a new mentality companies are still trying to put in place.