S.M.M business are now springing up all over the location these days and they are informing anyone that will listen about how incredibly important social media like Facebook twitter and YouTube are to your company but, for the typical little to medium sized service, does marketing to social networks actually live up to all the hype? Social media marketing companies are all too delighted to point out the positives of social media like how lots of people use Facebook or how many tweets were sent out last year and how many people enjoy YouTube videos and so on but are you getting the complete image? Being the research study nut that I am, I decided to take a good look into SMM in regard to offering to see if it really worked, who did it work for and if it did why did Social Media Marketing work for them?
As a web developer I was continuously (and now progressively) confronted with numerous social networking challenges when prospective clients would say that having a website sounds excellent but they had a Facebook company page and had actually been informed by various sources (the ever present yet anonymous "they") that social networks were the thing to do, but after discussing their needs it ended up being quite clear that those prospective customers didn't really understand why they required social networks or SMM to produce online sales, They simply wanted it. Well it's basic actually due to the fact that social media is Social Media, and social Networks are Social Networks they are not business media and organisation networks (that would be more like LinkedIn). In a recent study done by the IBM Institute for Service Value around 55% of all social media users specified that they do not engage with brand names over social media at all and just around 23% actually actively use social media to connect with brands.
How do you utilize social media marketing? And is it even worth doing?
Well first of all I would state that having a well enhanced website is still going to bring you even more company that social media for the most parts particularly if you are a little to medium sized local company because even more people are going to type in "hair stylist Port Macquarie" into a search engine like Google, Yahoo and Bing than they ever will on any Social Media Site and if you don't have a site you're missing out on all that potential company. Nevertheless regardless of all the (not so great) stats I still believe it is still a good idea for company to utilize social media simply not in the same way that a lot of SMM experts are today, Why? Due to the fact that it's clearly not working in the method they declare it does. Basically SMM Companies and Service as a whole took a look at social networks like Facebook as a fresh market ripe for the picking when Facebook started getting users determined by the millions PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel invested US$ 500,000 for 7% of the company (in June 2004) and given that them a couple of venture capital companies have made investments into Facebook and in October 2007, Microsoft revealed that it had purchased a 1.6% share of Facebook for $240 million. Nevertheless considering that Facebook's modest beginnings up previously (2012) both SMM Business and Business have failed to really capitalise on the big variety of Facebook users online. The reality is numbers does not equivalent purchasers. Is it in a Social Media Marketing company's best interest to talk social media networks up? Definitely. Is it in a Social Media like Facebook's best interests for people to think that business can offer en masse by advertising and marketing with them? Of course it is. In early 2012, Facebook revealed that its earnings had jumped 65% to $1 billion in the previous year as its revenue which is primarily from marketing had leapt nearly 90% to $3.71 billion so clearly the concept of SMM is working out for them but it is working out for you? Well ... statistically no, but that does not always suggest that it never ever will.
I believe the major distinction in between social networks and search engines is intent. People who use Google are deliberately looking for something so if they do a look for hair stylists that's exactly what they are trying to find at that particular time. With something like Facebook the primary intent is usually to connect with friends and family. In October 2008, Mark Zuckerberg himself said "I don't think social media networks can be monetized in the same way that search (Online search engine) did ... In 3 years from now we need to find out exactly what the optimal model is. That is not our primary focus today". One of the biggest issues service face with social media networks and SMM is perception. According to the IBM Institute for Organisation Value research study there were "considerable spaces in between exactly what services think customers appreciate and what consumers state they desire from their social media interactions with business." For instance in today's society people are not simply going to hand you over there suggestions, Facebook likes, remarks or information without getting something back for it, so the old saying "what remains in it for me?" enters into play. So the main factor the majority of people provide for connecting with brand names or service on social media is to receive discounts, yet the brands and business themselves believe the main reason individuals engage with them on social media is to learn more about brand-new products. For brands and business getting discounts only ranks 12th on their list of reasons why people interact with them. A lot of companies believe social media will increase advocacy, however only 38 % of customers concur.
If they want to see some sort of result from it, business require to find more innovative ways to link with social media. There were some great efforts displayed in the IBM study of companies that had gotten some sort of a handle on how to utilize social media to their benefit, remembering that when asked exactly what they do when they communicate with companies or brands via social media, consumers note "getting discount rates or discount coupons" and "purchasing products and services" as the leading 2 activities, respectively an USA ice cream business called Cold Stone Creamery provided discounts on their products on their Facebook page. Alternatively there is an excellent program released by Best Buys in the U.S called Twelpforce where employees can react to client's questions via Twitter. With both Cold Stone Creamery and Twelpforce the advantage is clearly in the favour of the terrific trick & the potential consumer to social media marketing is to offer without attempting to sell (or looking like your selling) unfortunately most social media marketing is focused the wrong way.
Building a concrete purchaser to customer relationship by means of social media is difficult and probably the most benefit to organisation' utilizing social media to increase their websites Google rankings. Business' need to understand that you cannot just setup a Facebook service page and hope for the finest. SMM requires effort and prospective consumers need to see worth in what you have to provide by means of your social media efforts give them something worth their social interaction and time and after that you might improve results.
Now just as a footnote Facebook shares have dropped to under $20 per share, that's half their initial rate ... and the lawsuits are flying
As a web designer I was continuously (and now increasingly) faced with numerous social networking obstacles when prospective clients would state that having a website sounds excellent however they had a Facebook business page and had actually been told by various sources (the ever present yet confidential "they") that social networks were the thing to do, but after discussing their requirements it became rather clear that those prospective clients didn't in fact know why they required social networks or SMM to produce online sales, They simply wanted it. Well it's basic truly because social media is Social Media, and social Networks are Social Networks they are not service media and business networks (that would be more like LinkedIn). In a current study done by the IBM Institute for Organisation Value around 55% of all social media users mentioned that they do not engage with brands over social media at all and just around 23% really actively utilize social media to interact with brand names. Well first of all I would state that having a well enhanced site is still going to bring you far more service that social media in many cases specifically if you are a small to medium sized regional company due to the fact that far more people are Elite Digital Marketing agency going to type in "hair stylist Port Macquarie" into a search engine like Google, Yahoo and Bing than they ever will on any Social Media Site and if you do not have a website you're missing out on all of that prospective business. The main reason a lot of people offer for communicating with brand names or company on social media is to get discounts, yet the brand names and business themselves believe the main factor individuals communicate with them on social media is to find out about new products.
