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Social Media Marketing in Plain English
Social Media has transformed the way people interact on the web. Where once we wererelegated to static content on static pages, we now have access to real-time, dynamic and“social” information through videos, blog posts, photographs and other forms of richmedia. Information shared through a YouTube video, for instance, has an immediateaudience with opportunities for that audience to add comments, send messages, and posttheir own responses. Twitter  http://www.twitter.com, a social messaging platform, allows anyone to communicate in real time with people who share similar interests, and form anetwork of those people for everything from forming business relationships to finding the best place the eat. Social news, ranging from politics to technology and entertainment hasradically changed the way people consume information, with visitors flocking to Internetnews sites such as Redditwww.reddit.comand Diggwww.digg.com  to submit, vote for and tag content they find interesting.
What Is Social Media?
Social Media is the catch-all term for a set of Internet tools that enable you toshare and discuss information with other people in an interactive way, integratingtechnology, social interaction, and rich media content. Driven by the consumer, SocialMedia has transformed the methods of communication, creating informal communitieswith a wide variety of perspectives and shared meaning.Social networking enables you to connect with friends, business colleagues, and potential collaborators. The lines between friendship and business blur in socialnetworking sites such as Facebook  www.facebook.com . It is not uncommon for you to become “friends” with someone you have never met before, and share profiles publiclycontaining information you might otherwise have restricted to close friends.You mayalso use social networking to connect with old friends or new people who you willcollaborate with on future projects or give you ideas to improve your business.Ultimately, the reason this sharing becomes so important is that it allows you to humanizeyour brand. Business is about people and understanding Social Media is understandingthe deep connections between your brand and your customer. Instead of marketing products directly to people without feedback, effective use of Social Media tools involveyou understanding customer needs, acquiring feedback from them and using thatfeedback to improve your relationships.Social Media differs substantially from traditional broadcast media such astelevision, newspapers, magazines, and films in accessibility, cost, functionality, trainingrequired and accountability. While both social and broadcast media have the potential toreach a global audience, the means of production are significantly different for each.Unlike broadcast media, which is typically owned by a few corporations and individuals,access to Social Media tools is available to anyone without incurring enormous expenses.Running a national radio station or television network requires substantial training, staff,
 
equipment, and other resources. Social Media, on the other hand, has virtually no barriersto entry. Anyone can use the tools and become an independent publisher with little morethan a computer, Internet access and hopefully a pinch of talent. Social Media is far moredemocratic platform.The biggest fear that many feel about building out their brands using SocialMedia is that there is no strict accountability. There aren't the tight regulations or standards that are considered applicable to broadcast media. While this “wild west” styleof production does lead to errors, Social Media has the advantage of being real-time.While misinformation can spread quickly, so can corrections. That is why it is so criticalto monitor your brands presence in Social Media even if you don't actively participate.One of the benefits of using Publicitr is that it provides live statistics that will allow youto track your content and dig into what sites are responding to it.Another aspect of social media that is very appealing to businesses is theimmediate response rate available. With traditional media such as ads on television, theresponse rate can be impossible to determine. On the other hand, since your content can be embedded with analytics and your comments from social bookmarking sites can betracked, immediate feedback on products, services, and news is not only possible buteasy.There are a host of Social Media tools, covering a range of content from links to blogs posts to photographs all the way to video. Some technologies that drive this sharingare social news sites, wikis, blogs, and social networks. Blogging sites include Blogger www.blogger.com, LiveJournalwww.livejournal.com, WordPress www.wordpress.com  and others. For information on any subject and references, Wikipediawww.wikipedia.com and Google Groupswww.googlegroups.comoffer plentiful resources online. Flickr www.flickr.com is a popular photo-sharing site. LinkedIn www.linkedin.com is a social networking site geared to business contacts while Meetupwww.meetup.com announces upcoming social and business events in your area.Facebook www.facebook.com, MySpacewww.myspace.com, and Twitter  www.twitter.comare some of the most popular social networking websites. In terms of social bookmarking, Deliciouswww.delicious.com and StumbleUpon www.stumbleupon.comenable you to organize and share your favorite bookmarks of websites you frequently visit or want to remember through tags, allowing you to searchfor information quickly. Social news websites such as Diggwww.digg.com, Redditwww.reddit.com, Propeller www.propeller.com, Slashdotwww.slashdot.com, and Fark  www.fark.com are popular news sites that provide information on a wide variety of topics by users and are updated frequently.The importance of Social Media in business cannot be underestimated. For example, an automotive company that is launching a new vehicle cannot just run ads ontelevision since people are just as (if not more) likely to find out the information fromsurfing on the web. Social Media also allows for immediate feedback and gives thatcompany the ability generate buzz and create an enthusiastic following. One example isthe campaign launched to promote the Smart Car’s arrival to the United Stateswww.smartusa.coma year ahead of time. Understanding Social Media and using iteffectively can be a major advantage to a businesses marketing and customer servicecampaigns. Realizing the importance of connecting with consumers directly through
 
Social Media channels, businesses such as Dell and Best Buy are changing their mediastrategies to include teams that directly interface with customers about their concernsthrough blogs and messaging sites like Twitter. Social Media allows a direct interaction between the customer and the company, where the voice of the consumer can be heardand responded to.Social media can also prevent public outrage. For example, when Ford Motorssued a Ford enthusiast who was selling unauthorized merchandise on a website, websitefans angrily complained on Twitter. Scott Monty, who directs Social Media for FordMotors, quickly tweeted back to users, explaining why the company had taken such a position, and thus appeased the storm of protests. Recognizing how much time usersspend on Facebook, numerous companies have launched their own Facebook pages,interfacing with customers and potential customers directly.
What does it mean for my company?
Social media enables you to directly connect with consumers and relevant prospects for your business or organization. Through blogs, articles, videos, and podcasts,you can learn what people think about a product or service that you offer as well ascompare your reviews with those of competitive products and the industry as a whole.You can receive customer feedback immediately and without costly advertising. Thus,Social Media offers new methods of organizing and tailoring content and promoting business. The only way to be successful in using Social Media is to understand that people will only visit your soapbox if you give them something they are interested inhearing. Social Media as a business tool means understanding that you must provideengaging, topical content that your customers can rally behind. This means that you mustkeep abreast of your audiences needs so that you can create content that is fresh, relevant,up to date, and distinguishes your company.Using the tools creatively, you are also able to create an enthusiastic following for your products or services prior to launch, thus guaranteeing that you have a demand for what you create. Social Media keeps you on the pulse of what is going on in your industry from market demands to consumer feedback and interests. By building a coregroup of supporters, you can generate a loyal following that will recommend your  products and services. Social Media can also increase traffic to your website, help your site’s ranking in search engines, and increase your earning potential. By targetingconsumers in specific communities, Social Media also enables you to learn more aboutyour customers and tailor your products and services and build your brand.Back in the 1970s and 1980s, when the Internet was just beginning, businessescould launch products and services without an online presence. In today’s market,however, with a savvy consumer base that turns to the web immediately for information,entertainment, and shopping, failing to have a viable online presence cuts off communication and connection with your customer base. Social Media has transformedthe way we communicate and opened up a world of opportunities for companies with thesavvy to exploit them. Hence, any and every viable business cannot survive or succeed inthe online business world without embracing Social Media. Whether you are just startingout with a business idea, a small business, or an established industry giant, social media
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