Social Media Marketing, Truth and Lies

Social Media Marketing appears to be the most recent buzz word for anyone seeking to increase their online presence and sales, however is Social Media Marketing (SMM) all it is cracked up to be?

S.M.M business are now springing up all over the place these days and they are telling anyone that will listen about how exceptionally essential social media like Facebook twitter and YouTube are to your business however, for the typical small to medium sized service, does marketing to social networks really live up to all the buzz? Social media marketing companies are all too delighted to point out the positives of social media like how numerous people utilize Facebook or how many tweets were sent out last year and how numerous people enjoy YouTube videos etc. however are you getting the full image? Being the research study nut that I am, I decided to take a good appearance 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) challenged with numerous social networking challenges when prospective clients would say that having a site sounds great however they had a Facebook company page and had actually been told by numerous sources (the ever present yet anonymous "they") that socials media were the thing to do, but after discussing their needs it ended up being rather clear that those potential customers didn't actually understand why they needed social media networks or SMM to generate online sales, They simply wanted it. For small and medium sized service I always suggested constructing a quality website over any kind of social network, why? Well it's basic truly because social media is Social Media, and social Networks are Social Networks they are not company media and company networks (that would be more like LinkedIn). I know that sounds basic however it's true and the data back it up. The reality is that social media marketing cannot tell you that Facebook is a social media network not a search engine and regardless of the number of Facebook users and Google users being around the very same, individuals don't utilize Facebook in the same way that they utilize a search engine like Google (which has around half the online search engine market), Yahoo and Bing to search for organisation or products. They utilize it to keep in touch with family and friends or for news and home entertainment. In a recent research study done by the IBM Institute for Business Worth around 55% of all social media users stated that they do not engage with brand names over social media at all and only around 23% really purposefully utilize social media to interact with brands. Now from all the people who do use social media and who do connect with brands whether actively or not, the majority (66%) state they need to feel a business is interacting honestly before they will connect.

So how do you utilize social media marketing? And is it even worth doing?

Well first of all I would say that having a well enhanced website is still going to bring you much more organisation that social media in most cases particularly if you are a little to medium sized regional business since even more people are going to key in "hair stylist Port Macquarie" into an online 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 losing out on all that possible company. Despite all the (not so great) data I still believe it is still a good concept for business to utilize social media simply not in the same way that a lot of SMM specialists are today, Why? Because it's clearly not working in the method they claim it does. Generally SMM Companies and Organisation as Elite Digital Marketing agency a whole looked at social networks like Facebook as a fresh market ripe for the selecting and when Facebook began getting users measured by the millions PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel invested US$ 500,000 for 7% of the business (in June 2004) and since them a few venture capital companies have made financial investments into Facebook and in October 2007, Microsoft announced that it had purchased a 1.6% share of Facebook for $240 million. However considering that Facebook's humble beginnings up until now (2012) both SMM Companies and Service have actually failed to truly capitalise on the substantial number of Facebook users online. The fact is numbers does not equivalent purchasers. Is it in a Social Media Marketing company's best interest to talk socials media up? Absolutely. Is it in a Social Network like Facebook's best interests for individuals to believe that companies can offer en masse by advertising and marketing with them? Naturally it is. In early 2012, Facebook disclosed that its revenues had leapt 65% to $1 billion in the previous year as its earnings which is mainly from advertising had leapt nearly 90% to $3.71 billion so clearly the principle of SMM is exercising for them but it is working out for you? Well ... statistically no, but that does not always mean that it never will.

One of the greatest issues service face with social networks and SMM is understanding. The main factor many people provide for communicating with brands or company on social media is to receive discounts, yet the brands and business themselves think the primary factor individuals engage with them on social media is to find out about new products. Many businesses believe social media will increase advocacy, but just 38 % of customers concur.

There were some excellent initiatives revealed in the IBM study of business that had gotten some sort of a deal with on how to use social media to their advantage, keeping in mind that when asked what they do when they interact with businesses or brand names via social media, customers list "getting discounts or vouchers" and "acquiring products and services" as the top two activities, respectively a UNITED STATE ice cream business called Cold Stone Creamery provided discount rates on their items on their Facebook page. With both Cold Stone Creamery and Twelpforce the benefit is plainly in the favour of the potential consumer & the fantastic technique to social media marketing is to offer without trying to sell (or looking like your selling) regrettably most social media marketing is focused the wrong method.

Constructing a tangible buyer to customer relationship through social media is difficult and probably the most benefit to organisation' utilizing social media to increase their sites Google rankings. However business' have to comprehend that you can't simply setup a Facebook service page and expect the best. SMM requires effort and prospective customers need to see value in what you have to provide via your social media efforts provide something worth their social interaction and time then you may get better outcomes.

Now just as a footnote Facebook shares have actually dropped to under $20 per share, that's half their original price ... and the claims are flying


As a web designer I was constantly (and now increasingly) challenged with numerous social networking difficulties when potential customers would say that having a website sounds excellent but they had a Facebook business page and had actually been informed by various sources (the ever present yet confidential "they") that social networks were the thing to do, however after discussing their needs it ended up being quite clear that those potential customers didn't actually understand why they needed social networks or SMM to generate 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 company 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 stated that they do not engage with brands over social media at all and just around 23% really purposefully 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 business that social media in the majority of cases especially if you are a little to medium sized local service because far 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 do not have a site you're missing out on all of that prospective organisation. The primary factor most people offer for interacting with brands or service on social media is to get discounts, yet the brands and service themselves believe the primary reason people communicate with them on social media is to discover about brand-new items.

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