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Social Marketing: a commitment, not a campaign |
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Written by Teenum Chudha
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Tuesday, 03 March 2009 |
The Internet has always been used for communication, and with the development of social networking sites, the way in which media is shared and people stay in touch has been transformed. Web users can easily send messages to each other, share photographs or post events with sites such as Facebook and Twitter, which has sparked their boom in popularity.
This overwhelming rise in social networking has also opened up a new medium of communication with consumers and brands are able to directly interact with a global audience. Using social media as a marketing channel can be highly effective, but very few brands seem to be able to successfully employ its full potential.
Large brands often do not understand the concept of social marketing.
As you rise through the ranks of any large corporation most
comprehension of Facebook is lost by middle management level. Large
brands, it seems, are unable to react to this channel and the divergent
marketing structure it complies to. Social marketing has heuristics that are very
different from those of traditional media advertising. The confines of
marketing and PR structures are unable to acknowledge the international
reach of online networks and the long term timescale of social marketing strategies.
Many brands attempt to market via the Internet but misunderstand what
constitutes a successful campaign - they are still trying to 'push' a
product or service in a way that does not work with Internet users. An
important requisite of any social marketing campaign is that it does
not come across as pushing a product or service. It should inspire
curiosity, provide information or entertain in order to attract an
audience.
The behaviour of web users and their reaction to marketing campaigns
are considerably different to those from other marketing channels, and
the results of an online advertising campaign rely on the user
choosing to view or interact accordingly. Simply implementing a
campaign will not suffice results; brands need to generate a web
presence and tailor social marketing campaigns around this.
The success of social marketing is measured in responses, comments and
people choosing to link to a brand's community, and any social
marketing plan should aim to build an ongoing membership and awareness,
unlike the short term campaigns of preceding media channels.
By embracing social networking sites, brands are able to actually draw
consumers to marketing campaigns and build an ongoing long term
assurance in terms of brand visibility. Brands that have successfully
used social media include Smirnoff and Glaxo Smith Kline. Both managed
to harness the power of YouTube and successfully seeded video virals.
Their videos were posted using profiles that had built up a
community of friends and subscribers. Branding was kept very subtle and
it was the actual videos themselves that drew attention for being
witty, funny and with value that appealed to users.
Marketing through social networking and traditional methods are by no
means mutually exclusive and each can run to complement the other. In
order for this to work brands need to be flexible and responsive to
social networking opportunities as they transpire. Gaining online
visibility is essential to rise above the clutter and attain brand
exposure; this can be achieved through long term social networking
measures together with online advertising and optimisation. Once
exposure has been achieved, it is paramount to use this correctly to
maintain any communities and promote positive awareness around your
brand.
3B Digital strive to support a client's brand and ensure they maintain
an advantageous position in respect to social media. 3B is able to
combine this with our extensive experience in SEO
(search-engine-optimisation) and PPC (pay-per-click) management to
successfully manage online brand identity.
For more information and to discuss your brand's online social impact, please contact us...
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