Social media is relatively new, but the song that best fits it is 60 years old. "Getting to Know You" was featured in The King and I, which opened on Broadway in 1951. The song opens:
Getting to know you,
Getting to know all about you.
Getting to like you,
Getting to hope you like me.
Getting to know all about you.
Getting to like you,
Getting to hope you like me.
Many businesses tune in to social media to gain followers on Twitter Inc. or Facebook .
They focus on getting people to like them -- click the Facebook "like" button on the business's pages. But the song, and social media, don't end there.
They focus on getting people to like them -- click the Facebook "like" button on the business's pages. But the song, and social media, don't end there.
Let’s say you’ve succeeded in getting a good number of people to "like" you or follow you. What do you do with them? Social media are perfect for learning about your customers by getting them to reveal more about themselves and how they view your business. By listening to what they have to say, you can improve your dialogue. Instead of simply issuing statements, you can tailor those statements according to what your customers want to hear from you. Or, in the words of the song:
When I am with you,
Getting to know what to say.
Getting to know what to say.
Social media marketing is a recent addition to organizations’ integrated marketing communications plans. Integrated marketing communications is a principle organizations follow to connect with their targeted markets. Integrated marketing communications coordinates the elements of the promotional mix; advertising, personal selling, public relations, publicity, direct marketing, and sales promotion. In the traditional marketing communications model, the content, frequency, timing, and medium of communications by the organization is in collaboration with an external agent, i.e. advertising agencies, marketing research firms, and public relations firms. However, the growth of social media has impacted the way organizations communicate. With the emergence of Web 2.0, the internet provides a set of tools that allow people to build social and business connections, share information and collaborate on projects online.
Social media marketing programs usually center on efforts to create content that attracts attention and encourages readers to share it with their social networks. A corporate message spreads from user to user and presumably resonates because it is coming from a trusted source, as opposed to the brand or company itself.
Social media has become a platform that is easily accessible to anyone with internet access, opening doors for organizations to increase their brand awareness and facilitate conversations with the customer. Additionally, social media serves as a relatively inexpensive platform for organizations to implement marketing campaigns. With emergence of services like Twitter, the barrier to entry in social media is greatly reduced. Report from company Sysomos shows that half of the users using Twitter are located outside US[4] demonstrating the global significance of social media marketing. Organizations can receive direct feedback from their customers and targeted markets.
Social media marketing which is known as SMO Social Media Optimization benefits organizations and individuals by providing an additional channel for customer support, a means to gain customer and competitive insight, and a method of managing their reputation online. Key factors that ensure its success are its relevance to the customer, the value it provides them with and the strength of the foundation on which it is built. A strong foundation serves as a stand or platform in which the organization can centralize its information and direct customers on its recent developments via other social media channels, such as article and press release publications.