Importance of Social Media for Marketing

Social Media for Marketing

Introduction:

Social Media plays an important role in Business promotion. In this Article let’s see What is Social Media in Marketing, Importance of Social Media for Marketing, Example of Social Media Marketing, benefits of social media for marketing, Social Media Marketing Uses and also Social Media in Marketing Strategy.

Example of Social Media Marketing

Social media is engaging with consumers online. According to Wikipedia, social media is internet-based tools for sharing and discussing information among human beings. Social media is all about networking and networking in a way that espouses trust among parties and communities involved. Any website which allows user to share their content, opinions, views and encourages interaction and community building can be classified as a social media. Some popular example of Social Media Marketing are: Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, Flickr etc.

The Meaning of Social Media

The meaning of Social media is a collective term for websites and applications that focus on communication, community-based input, interaction, content-sharing and collaboration. People use social media to stay in touch and interact with friends, family and various communities.

The meaning of the term ‘social media’ can be derived from two words which constitute it. Media generally refers to advertising and the communication of ideas or information through publications/channels. Social implies the interaction of individuals within a group or community. Taken together, social media simply refers to communication/publication platforms which are generated and also sustained by the interpersonal interaction of individuals through the specific medium or tool.

Social Media Marketing Uses

There are two benefits of social media that are important to businesses, they include:

1. Cost reduction by decreasing staff time.

2. Increase of probability of revenue generation.

Social media enables companies to:
Share their expertise and knowledge.
Tap into the wisdom of their consumers.
Enables customers helping customers.
Engages prospects through customer evangelism.

Social Media Marketing Uses include: brand reach and awareness, consumer interactions through transactions, referrals and also reputation management.

What is Social Media in Marketing

Social Media Marketing:

Social media marketing consists of the attempt to use social media to persuade consumers that one’s company, products and/or services are worthwhile. It is marketing using online communities, social networks, blog marketing and more.

How Social Media is used in Marketing

A recent study, “The State of Small Business Report,” sponsored by Network Solutions, LLC and the University of Maryland’s Robert H. Smith School of Business, points to economic struggles as the catalyst for social media’s rapid popularity. The study results show that social media usage by small business owners increased from 12% to 24% in just the last year, and almost 1 out of 5, actively uses social media as part of his or her marketing strategy. In 2009, only 23% of marketers were using social media for years. Now that number has grown to 31%.

Is social media marketing important ?

Here’s a breakdown of what the small businesses reported as the main uses of social media marketing:

75% have a company page on a social networking site.
69% post status updates or articles of interest on social media sites.
57% build a network through a site such as LinkedIn.
54% monitor feedback about the business.
39% maintain a blog.
26% tweet about areas of expertise.
16% use Twitter as a service channel

Benefits of Social Media for Marketing

Significantly different from conventional marketing strategies, Social Media Marketing (SMM) offers three distinct advantages. One, it provides a window to marketers to not only present products / services to customers but also to listen to customers’ grievances and suggestions. Two, it makes it easy for marketers to identify various peer groups or influencers among various groups, who in turn can become brand evangelist and help in organic growth of a brand. And, three, all this is done at nearly zero cost (as compared to conventional customer outreach programmes) as most of the social networking sites are free.

Social media marketing helps in:

Generating exposure to businesses.
Increasing traffic/subscribers.
Building new business partnerships.
Rise in search engine rankings.
Generating qualified leads due to better lead generation efforts.
Selling more products and services.
Reduction in overall marketing expenses.