Social Media
Social media and your web site
Social media such as Facebook, YouTube, Twitter and blogs are a way to achieve online
social networking - and yes, we can set them up for you to add value to your online marketing.
Accordiing to Marketing Sherpa research, the most prolific users of social media have been found to have updwards of 500 "social connections" using such media. This makes them a special target for marketing efforts as they can spread the word really quickly to their friends when they have a great experience or discover a new product. These "Max Connectors" are keen to get advance peeks of new products, and also tend to be early adopters -- and they are generally not price averse -- getting a bargain isn't such a strong motivation for this group.
Social media have also enabled people to rapidly share their less positive perceptions of companies, products, people and experiences. These media have become a useful way to "spread the word" about the findings of monitoring and research.
Business use of social media is mostly to grow a particular target audience
Most businesses already have a mailing list or several mailing lists. Social media are usually targeted beyond those mailing lists to reaching different groups or new groups.
Reaching those new or different groups will require new or different messages from those being sent by email already.
Mailing list/newsletter subscribers are usually highly engaged with the company and its products. Many will be repeat customers who want make more informed use of products, and loyal consumers who are looking for new products or services from the company.
Social media users such as Facebook users are targeted to introduce them to the "new" product or service, or event, encourage them to sample products and offerings, and generate leads. A product or service Facebook page will encourage audience members to "become a fan" so they get the latest hot offers, competitions, meet-up opportunities or free sampling opportunities in their own Facebook "news" feed as soon as they login.
Cross-channel list-building campaigns can be worthwhile, as long as your messages are carefully crafted. You can use email promotion to gain Facebook fans, and use Facebook promotion to gain newsletter subscribers. Similarly, a coordinated multi-channel promotion can be worthwhile, especially for new product launches.
eg - Use Facebook page to promote the upcoming release, including a post one week prior to launch (perhaps with a competition).
Monitor Facebook conversations and respond to questions, such as where to purchase the product. Then when the product is released, run a traditional email campaign to promote the product.
Rating the Effectiveness of Social Media in Terms of Objectives Achieved
