INTRODUCTION TO SOCIAL MEDIA

One cannot remain isolated in this present world. For betterment, improvement, growth, progress, etc., one has to explore and make connection with the contemporary world. In this process there exists a geographical barrier which separates people unfortunately. However these geographical barriers have been compensated by what we call as the social networks. Social networks are that platform which connects each and every one available online on internet. Today people around the globe are connected to each other through this medium which enables them to be connected even after the existence of territorial boundaries. Social network has by and large become the present day cult. Some of the social networking sites are: Facebook, LinkedIn, YouTube, Flickr, etc.

Role of press have always been a matter of great importance. It still has its importance to a very large extent. Freedom of press has always let the society benefited from being informed about the ongoing situations around the world. Media has extended its boundaries from the days of letters, telegrams, radio, television, etc to the present scenario where we are blessed with social media. As the word suggests the meaning, social media is that media which operates through social networking sites and let the people feel much closer and gives a better understanding of different perspective in a much easier way. It has altogether created a community where people stay connected without staying together.

Social media has become a platform of expressing and exploring. It is here where the new revolutions take birth, new thoughts, new ideas emerges through forums, blogs, etc., it has become the channel of propagating innovations and inventions. It covers the maximum crowd in shortest period of time. Technology is all about developing and the balance between both is maintained by social media which provides an opportunity to be updated and secure a stand in the contemporary world which is becoming more and competitive with every single day.

People always love user friendly techniques and technology. Nowadays almost everyone carries a smart phone and has internet access with them on their fingertips. With increasing technologies and more new user friendly devices the most precious time of every single person is saved which could be used for other purposes. These developments have made the work of social media much easier. It doesn’t take much time to get anything viral which is trending. It gives altogether a different meaning at a global level in case of opinions of the present generation.

SOCIAL MEDIA MARKETING

Where can we find the maximum number of crowd in present day? Social media wouldn’t be a wrong answer to this question, and one of the basic requirements along with aim, of marketing is coverage of greater number of population. In the today’s business sector media has a greater role to play. It has become the driving factor of any business.

Marketing is very much required for any company’s growth. Stronger the marketing greater is the revenue. Profit has got direct proportionality with marketing. To serve this key feature social networking sites can one of the best options available. As the name suggests social media marketing also called digital marketing is nothing but marketing through online modes on social networking sites. Publicizing a product is very much needed for achieving its greater sale and this very important task can be done through social media marketing which enables the producer to get in touch with a larger population to make the product known to greatest possible crowd.

People trust to which they are more familiar with, instead of going for an unknown product they go with what is known to them. More the product is well aware more it yields the sales. The rate of sales of a particular product is directly proportional to the rate of its popularity.

Business depends on the user ends. Making the customers satisfied is that one important factor which decides the growth in business. What needs to be done is reaching the customers utility to the maximum. Social media marketing helps in better understanding of the consumer. It can be used effectively in many ways to create a buzz, connect with customers, gather customer insights, and also for customer service and support. Many companies have given the example of success using Social Media Marketing as their core business strategy, for example, Fords, Dell etc.

Social Media Marketing is process of using social media as a tool to promote a product to me it more familiar with the greater population. This procedure, not only publicize the product but also let the company portray its image on social media as a follower of modern techniques. It helps a company to maintain its reputation, name and fame. It gives a positive impact of a company to its users, customers or supporters.

Today be it a MNC or a small firm everyone associated with business strategy tries to implement social media marketing to achieve more clients, customers and supporters. This modern way of marketing has covered almost every sector of the business society. Various Researches have proved that sectors with social media marketing have a high yielding revenue that the non users of social media marketing and therefore at this present time each and every sector is more concerned of growing its strategy towards social media marketing.

ADVANTAGES OF SOCIAL MEDIA MARKETING

Social media is not only about being online. It not only establish a friendly relationship among the people staying far away but also with the help of marketing through social media it has led the foundation of strong relationship between the customer and the companies and also has created within and among the companies. From the customer point of view it has connected the individual to the business holder or the company and from the companies point of view it has made them interlinked within the companies with their employees and also has made them aware of the other existing company of their standard. It has helped them in building a healthy relationship with their competitors which sometimes leads to partnerships. Whereas getting well aware of their competitors has helped them in comparing themselves with the other in a positive way and making advancement and betterment in their strategies and products.

In the present time social media has become a political strategy also now it’s not only a platform of organizations to connect with their customers but it has also brought connectivity among the different organizations.

This type of marketing not only let the customer know about product but also make them aware of the company who is providing it. It gives them a kind of trust and creates a direct contract between the producer and the buyer, eliminating the mediocre in between.

Social media marketing lets the company to connect with even those who were not aware of their existence previously. It allows a company to expand its connectivity and increase the number of customers by fulfilling their requirements and greater customer support.

This marketing becomes more customers oriented as it allows knowing about the product completely with its features, characteristics, uses, etc. and that to with the real owner that is the company itself.

It helps the company in knowing the present trend, cult or demand of the customers. Following these trends they can provide much better facilities and would be much easier to satisfy the customers with the advancement and betterment required by them.

It gives a platform to the users to analyze and review the product before they get it. As a lot more options available to them they can compare things and choose the best available from a number of options available to them.

It saves the companies’ time as it covers larger population in shorter period of time and let the company use their manpower in the betterment of other things. It also decreases the cost of promotion as social media marketing is online business which hardly bears any cost.

Social media promotion allows in:

  1. Generating exposure to companies.
  2. Increasing traffic/subscribers.
  3. Building new organization partnerships.
  4. Development of internet search engine results positioning positions.
  5. Generating qualified brings due to better prospecting projects.
  6. Selling more solutions and items.
  7. Reduction in overall promotion expenses.

Social media allows companies to:

  1. Share their skills and information.
  2. Tap into the wisdom of their customers.
  3. Enables clients helping clients.
  4. Engages leads through client evangelism.

SOCIAL MEDIA MARKETING IMPACTS ON CUSTOMERS – SOCIAL FEEDBACK CYCLE

With the existence of this competitive world and with availability of lot of options to the public it has become quite difficult to choose any one particular brand. As the customers are rational most of the time they look for a product which gives them greater utility with the minimum investment. For this they go for online reviews of the particular product, compare it with other brands, look for more options, try to get more featured products, ask experiences of the people who have used it earlier, etc.

The internet specially the social media has now become the major platform of finding information of a particular product before they buy it. Apart from their family and friends review they check the online review of the products before buying it. Online information regarding any product has become the first source of information for everyone. As it is easily available and gives more accurate idea of what features a product holds it has become the driving factor of peoples purchase decision. Whether they like it or not, people are holding conversations on the internet about the products and services they have used, sharing both good and bad experiences and feedbacks. . Indeed, word-of-mouth is considered to be the most trusted source of information. Therefore, Social Media largely affects customers’ purchase decisions, because consumers usually seek other opinions and recommendations.

Implementation of social media marketing is very important as it creates the social feedback loop. This loop attracts the attention of a large crown resulting in increase of demand for a socially popular and socially promoted product. The increase in demand thus leads to increase in sale of the product resulting high yielding revenue to the company. The feedback loop helps producer increase their product demand in the market.

CONCLUSION

One can’t escape from social media by anyway be it the individual or a business company. It has now become a new trend in connecting people worldwide. It is nearly impossible to separate the social media from the world of internet. Social media is no more a concept of only a web it has expanded its wings to all sector be it education, health, or business. Due its popularity almost everyone today talks about social media and its positive impact which it had left on the society. It has marked a landmark in the present changing and developing world. A lot more people talk about social media as a new tactic or new route. Blogging is yet another method to effect company’s marketing and development. Social media is growing day by day with lots of people participating and discussing about it.

Whether it is an individual, a startup, small organization or a huge corporation, an online business and an ongoing discussion with their constituents is a baseline requirement-and will devote a while and skills. Companies are trying to make best use out of social media in implementing their new promotion strategy.

The new marketing strategy through social media has earned them high profit margin. This new era of digital marketing has led them to get a good Page Rank. With their Search Engine Optimization skills they have made their companies reputation to reach a higher level. The two optimization methods On Page optimization and Off Page optimization has not only benefited a particular website or company but has also led the promotion of other companies and websites which are linked to it. It has helped it creating more buzz on social media as well as improvement in traffic.

In this competitive world there are N numbers of companies, firms, sectors, websites etc. but when we compare the business holders with digital marketing to those with traditional techniques we find an alarming difference which suggests us that it is not wrong in saying that companies using social media marketing are well developed than those who are not using it.

To get an stand in the present market one has to go with the regulating market strategy and in this present world of internet and social media one has to take up things like social media marketing to maintain its position in the market. With lot of alternative available to the customers it has become very difficult for the companies to survive without digital marketing. People are dependent on internet these days and to grab their attention companies are left with no other option than to choose the existing trend of digital marketing. It’s the world where philosophy of survival of the fittest works and for this core reason for their survival, betterment, growth and development one has to tend its policies positively towards social media marketing. Therefore one should adopt social media marketing for its benefit, growth and development.