Social media marketing

Definition

• Social media marketing is the process of marketing through social media sites like Twitter, Facebook and YouTube.

• Social media marketing is able to connect and interact on a much more personalized and dynamic level than through traditional marketing

Social media marketing strategy

• A social media marketing strategy can be as simple as having a company blog, a Facebook and Twitter accounts, or attaching "Digg This" and "Tweet This" tags to the end of articles.

• It can also be as complicated as having a full campaign that encompasses blogs, Twitter, social networking and viral videos through YouTube.

Social Media Marketing and Blogs

• In many respects, blogs can serve as an extension of traditional media.

Blogs increasingly are used by businesses to communicate directly with customers and other members of the public.

They're cheap and easy to maintain, WordPress and Blogger are the two most

popular blogging software platforms.

Social Media Marketing and Social Networking

It has become increasingly important to have a presence on social networking sites like Facebook and MySpace. In addition to these popular social networks, there are also many specialized social networks that might be the perfect place to set up camp for specific products.

• For example, a musician might set up a profile on Last.FM as well as MySpace, while a movie might be best promoted through Flixster in addition to Facebook.

• Social networks provide a place to interact with customers and allow customers to interact with each other. This can be a great starting point for the marketing to go viral.

Social Media Marketing and Twitter

• Twitter has picked up a lot of steam in the last year for being a great place for social media marketing. While Twitter has grown far beyond its microblogging roots, it is important to think of Twitter similar to a company blog.

• In addition growing the amount of followers, Twitter can be particularly effective when interacting with customers and fans.

Social Media Marketing and YouTube

• Some of the most effective social media marketing strategies center around YouTube and the viral video.

• Because of its social nature, YouTube can be a great way to interact with customers.

The more you interact with the customer, the more brand loyalty you build.

Facebook

You can use Facebook to gain new clients, stay in touch with current clients and promote new products and sales offers.

How do you do this? Facebook offers you many tools, to be successful in marketing your business you must have an understanding of these tools. In this article we will look at two in particular:

1. Facebook Pages

2. Facebook Groups.

Facebook Pages

• You can use Facebook Pages to create and give your business their own profile on Facebook; the best thing is right now they are free.

These pages give your business an identity on Facebook which strengthens your brand.

Current customers or even potential customers can become fans of your page and by doing so this allows them to follow you and receive any updates that you post to your page.

Facebook Pages

The great thing about Facebook Pages is that every time someone becomes a fan of your page all of their friends see that they have become a "fan."

This often attracts other followers as well as creates a buzz regarding your business and of course your Facebook Page.

Facebook Pages

You can use your Facebook Page to not only share your company information, but you can also use it to post photos, videos, applications and messages.

Your Facebook Page, when done correctly can be used to bring in new customers as well as to help you maintain current customer relationships.

Facebook Groups

• Facebook Groups, carry a similarity to Facebook Pages, the difference is they are built around a group of people rather than your business or your brand.

• You must be a member of Facebook to create a Facebook Group.

• You can use Facebook Groups to create awareness, but they do not have the feature that allows users to become fans, they only become members.