Inbound Social Media

     When one thinks about social media the first thing that comes on mind is Facebook. The communication power of Facebook, twitter and others social media networks are extraordinary. A single gossip/lie (a Photoshop picture of Megan Fox and I kissing) post on my Facebook wall can be seen by three hundred of my friends. If I tag ten of my friends on a gossip, the exposure can be 10X300(assuming they have around 300 friends). Now imagine if I tag all three hundred, and my friends tag their friends, the gossip spread grows exponentially and maybe for some "facebookers" the gossip will become true. For this exposure power and the speed you can spread information social media have become powerful marketing tool for small and large businesses.

From mom and pop restaurants to large corporations such as Microsoft and Coca-Cola, all have a Facebook page or a twitter mini blog. Social Media is a cheap yet efficient way of communicating with customers.  You can run on-line marketing campaigns, promotions and coupons all in a turn of a dime.

Nonetheless, few companies began using social media with a different strategy, they are not focusing so much on how they communicate with customers, instead, they are focusing a how customers can communicate with them using social media. Procter and Gamble for example, uses Facebook, Twitter and Blogs to gather customer opinions and feedback about its products. It’s pure proactively on-line marketing research. Social Media have been helped Procter and Gamble to better understand customer needs, and backed up with other research methods, design new products that better serve customer needs, therefore new products that will sell.

In summary, as a new trend of social media is creating a two-way road media. Companies have to capture the opportunity not only to communicate with customers but also let customers communicate with them, doing so companies can gain invaluable insights of customer’s perception of their products and brand.

Source:

Marketing an Introduction - Armstrong, Kotler
Wall Street Journal
sosmarketing.com http://www.sosemarketing.com/2010/04/09/social-network-marketing-is-informal-conversation-on-a-public-platform