Role of Social Media in Marketing
Marketing is an age-old activity. It began with the second human being on earth. Social media appeared on the cyber scene in the mid-1990s.
The interface between the two is a modern marvel with endless possibilities. There is a natural affinity between these two. Without social media, marketing is ineffective. Social media readily adapt themselves to marketing.
What marketing involves:
and how social websites are the best tools to promote business, each with its own specific strengths. At a minimum, marketing involves the creation of customer interest in a product or service in a sustained and systematic way. It helps to develop efficient ways to reach customers and encourage their future loyalty to a business, product, or service.
Social media, on the other hand, are based on group interactions with trusted friends. Unlike traditional media where the customers read a newspaper or watch a TV commercial but have no way of participating in the dialogue, social media provide them with the opportunity to review or comment on the item at hand—all instantly. Thus they become a valuable tool in bringing the company and its target customers together.
Marketing is a social activity:
Educating the target market, reaching out to customers, and furthering conversation among all interested groups are tremendously important for a marketing strategy. Interacting with your customers regularly is an indication of good faith to existing as well as prospective customers.
At each stage of the marketing campaign, social sites offer numerous advantages, from the identification of the audience/customer base to the best way to deliver the product or service. The company just has to know which medium is best suited for a given marketing function:
It can use Facebook and Google+ to post articles, images, and videos, Pinterest to showcase its products and develop the brand’s personality, Twitter to post updates, or YouTube to promote the brand through informative and entertaining videos.
Recommended on LinkedIn:
Answering questions and getting recommended on LinkedIn make the business appear more credible and trustworthy for new customers. Also, we can associate ourselves with our peers that may be serving the same target market.
These media help increase brand visibility, brand recognition, and brand loyalty. They help create relationships with people who might not otherwise know about its products and services. Every activity on a social media platform offers leads and opportunities for customers to convert. Being active on social media sends a signal to search engines that the brand is authentic and trustworthy. The marketing expenses are significantly reduced.
Connected with all of your target groups:
all the existing and potential customers are already available on social media. It helps that the number of social media platforms is increasing, including but not limited to Twitter, Facebook, Google+, LinkedIn, Yelp, Foursquare, Instagram, YouTube, personal and company blogs, and Tumblr.
Hype around social media marketing:
there is a misconception among companies and entrepreneurs that it can bring profits overnight. This is just not the case; establishing a social media presence is for the long haul. Nevertheless, the usefulness of social media in the promotion of small business cannot be overemphasized, esp. in the context of small budgets. Word-of-mouth, which is what Role of Social Media in Marketing basically do, is the strongest and most-trusted form of marketing.
Role of Social Media in Marketing is not a fad:
They are here to stay and will become more relevant to our daily lives. They are a low-budget way to create brand recognition and loyalty, exponentially increasing the customer base and rewarding the customer experience. Since the competition is already on the media bandwagon, the longer we wait, the more we have to lose.
Even with all these incredible developments, we have just begun to barely scratch the surface of social media’s promise and potential. As they say in the business, “you ain’t seen nothin’ yet!” The sky seems to be the limit.