Social media and online consumer engagement 163
painless. You post information to your profile and it’s instantly available to those of your friends who are interested. You can broadcast information to all of your friends simultaneously or choose who you want to share specific content with. Talking to a room full of software developers in San Francisco in 2007, Mark Zuckerberg, Facebook’s youthful founder, summarized the company’s mission thus: ‘At Facebook we’re pushing to make the world a more open place, and we do this by building things that help people use their real connections to share information more effectively.’ This pretty much encapsulates the social networking phenomenon that’s gripping the online world today.
What’s in it for marketers Advertising: Social networks offer flexible advertising options for businesses looking to target their ads based on the profile information of users and/or particular actions. While the targeting angle is a compelling one, and social network audiences are large and growing, the jury is still out on the potential of the social network as an effective advertising medium. The audience is undoubtedly there, but many experts question whether advertising on social networking sites converts effectively. It’s something to consider, certainly, if it’s a good ‘fit’ for your business and you have a clearly defined audience that’s interested in your product or brand, but be cautious and track your results carefully. Improve your online exposure/reputation: Social network sites usually allow organizations to set up their own profile or page. Members of the network can then link to these pages as ‘friends’ or ‘fans’. Your page is essentially your business hub within the network and can be a great way to monitor what consumers think about you, to find out more about them and to offer them valuable content in return. Having a presence on these networks, keeping your content up to date, relevant and valuable to your audience, and responding positively to the feedback you receive are another great way to boost your online reputation. Nurture social evangelists: Your social network can be a great place to attract brand advocates and to recruit and nurture brand evangelists. People on social networks love to share. Find the people who are passionate about your industry, your brand and your products, reward them with valuable information and content, and then watch as they put all of their passion, zeal and social media acumen to work promoting your brand to the rest of their social network.