Marketers say competing with other brands for the attention of social media influencers is their top challenge with the tactic, according to a recent report from Software Advice.

The report was based on data from a survey of 37 B2C marketers who use brand advocates as part of their strategy as well as 74 social media influencers.

Some 62% of marketers surveyed say competing with other brands for the attention of social media influencers is a major challenge; other top obstacles include identifying brand advocates (46%), communicating with advocates (46%), predicting advocates' behavior (46%), and privacy concerns (27%).

Below, additional key findings from the report.

Contacting Influencers

• 43% of influencers say they feel extremely comfortable being contacted by brands via social media.
• 32% feel somewhat comfortable.

Content Sharing

• 27% of influencers say they are most likely to share an entertaining or funny story from a brand.
• 23% are likely to share information about a product after they've researched it.

About the research: The report was based on data from a survey of 37 B2C marketers who use brand advocates as part of their strategy as well as 74 social media influencers.