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Examining the phenomenon, its relevance, promise and risks A smashLAB White Paper by Eric KarjaluotoMarch 1, 2008
 A Primer inSocial Media
 
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smashLAB White Paper
: A Primer in Social Media
 An introductionto social media
 
Background
In the past, broadcasting was limited tothose with the nancial resources to accessmass media. The emergence o low-costand highly accessible communication tools,however, has changed all o this. Now,anyone with an internet connection hasthe ability to share their message with aworldwide audience.
What is social media?
 The term “social media” represents mediathat users can easily participate in andcontribute to. Forms o social media includeblogs, orums, virtual worlds, wikis andsocial networks.
What characterizes social media?
 Although denitions vary, a ew keycharacteristics are common amongst socialmedia platorms. Most o these propertiesthrive on the notion o participation andmaking connections. Part o this is inormedby the notion o a fat community, inwhich all parties engage in open dialogue.Infuence and credibility are prized in thisarena, as the user’s reputation can oten bea key motivator or one to remain active inthe dialogue.
How it’s dierent
 Perhaps the biggest dierence betweentraditional media (newspapers, television,radio, books, etc.) and social media is thedynamic and fexible nature o the latter.Social media can change with time andbe edited by the author and, in some cases,the community. Likewise, the audience caninteract with and republish social media. Itlends itsel to being archived, indexed bysearch engines, and shared by users inmany ways.
Why it’s important
 Although there are many reasons why socialmedia is notable (which we will address laterin this document), there is one reason thatstands above the rest: the people. Socialmedia brings with it the power o every useron the planet. Its growth and uture potentialis enormous...................................................................
Consider that there are:
(at the date o this paper’s preparation)
• 112.8 million blogs tracked on Technorati
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• 66 million users on Facebook
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• 72.6 million videos posted on YouTube
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..................................................................
What it means or companies
 Traditional marketers are accustomed tocareully honing messages. This allowsor control, but the results are dicult andcostly to measure. Social media turns thiswhole scenario around. With it, control isshared with the crowd, and real eedbackbecomes immediate.Organizations now have the opportunityto collect detailed inormation on usersand their habits, elicit real eedback andsuggestions, and rene their oering and
Executive Summary:
Social media represents a broad changein how people communicate with one another. This is excitingor businesses as it presents new channels and methods o reaching consumers. As such, early adopters have encounteredboth successes and ailures in developing strategies thatincorporate this new paradigm. smashLAB advises groups toremain strategic and pragmatic in employing social media.
 
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smashLAB White Paper
: A Primer in Social Media
messaging to better suit user demands. Although there are trade-os with this newway o communicating, the opportunitiesor companies to understand and work withtheir customers have never been as great.
Social mediain action
REAPING THE REWARDS
 A ew organizations have experiencedsuccess in employing social media. Somecompanies have even been ortunateenough to have their brands championedwithout their involvement.
Fountains o publicity
In September 2005, Steve Spangler made atelevision appearance in which he droppeda Mentos candy into Diet Coke, resultingin a “cola geyser”. A video o this was
later posted on YouTube, inspiring more
than 12,000 similar experiments, mostamously “The Extreme Diet Coke & MentosExperiment”.
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Pete Healy, Mentos U.S. VPo Marketing, estimated the value o thebuzz generated by the eort to be “over$10 million.”
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 A little less evil
 Ater joining Microsot in 2003, RobertScoble started blogging about thecompany. While promoting certain products,he also publicly criticized his employer andeven applauded their competitors. He wasincredibly open with his audience, evenencouraging them to call him in personwith problems they were experiencing.
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Asa result, he shited public opinion aboutthe organization. “[He] has also succeededwhere small armies o more conventionalpublic-relations types have been ailingabjectly or years: he has made Microsot... marginally but noticeably less evil to theoutside world...”
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March o the Penguins
Washington, D.C.-based moms Gretchen Volgenzang and Paige Heninger run
Fritz Grobe and Stephen Voltz’s “Extreme Diet Coke& Mentos Experiments” have been viewed online byapproximately 20 million people.
Source: www.eepybird.com
Figure 1: Social media’s infuence on IT purchasers
ITtoolbox Surveyed 400,000 o its members, to learn what aspects o social media IT decisionmakers and inuencers ound most valuable in relationship to purchasing.
53%
Provides access toobjective eedback onproducts and servicesrom multiple sources
Source: ITtoolbox/PJA IT Social Media Index: Inaugural Survey Results: June 7, 2007
12%
Oers more accurate inormationon news and trends
11%
Provides inormation tostay ahead o competition
24%
Oers the ability to participatein conversations with peers
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