You can’t move these days for talk of social media marketing, social network marketing, web 2.0 marketing, viral marketing and how it will all change the face of marketing forever. “But what does it all mean?” we have heard people ask. Well we’ve produced our quick guide, designed to cut through all the jargon and give you an insight into whether Social Media marketing can work for your small to medium business.
So, what does it all mean?
First off, let’s have a look at those four terms we’ve used at the start of this guide. They are often bandied about as if they’re the same thing but there are differences. We’ve looked around and have come up with the following definitions.
Social Media Marketing
Social media differ from traditional media such as newspapers, television and film in that they are relatively cheap tools that enable anyone to publish or access information. They are mostly available online and include blogs, forums, wikis and chatrooms. Social Media Marketing is concerned with the creation of content for social media, such as starting a blog and actively participating in social media by commenting on forums and blogs.
Social Network Marketing
Social networks (in an online sense) are tools that allow different groups of people to connect via the internet. People use them to network and stay connected with friends and colleagues and to meet like-minded others. Examples of social networking websites include Facebook, MySpace, LinkedIn and Bebo. To market your business on social networks you could create a profile page for your business, create or join a group related to your industry or area of expertise, or build an application for people in the social network to use.
Web 2.0 Marketing
Perhaps one of the most misused buzzwords around at the moment; Web 2.0 has been used to describe everything from social media and social networking websites to internet graphic styles. The term is attributed to Tim O’Reilly who described it as “the business revolution in the computer industry caused by the move to the Internet as a platform, and an attempt to understand the rules for success on that new platform.” The biggest characteristic of a web 2.0 website as described by O’Reilly is that it allows a user to do more than just retrieve information. Web 2.0 sites offer a greater amount of participation and encourage users to add value to the site as they use it. eBay, Wikipedia, Flickr, iTunes and Google Maps are all cited as examples of web 2.0 by O’Reilly. It is probably best to ignore Web 2.0 Marketing as a concept. Web 2.0 encompasses so much of the web these days that any definition is likely to be imprecise and misleading.
Viral Marketing
Viral marketing is what it sounds like, marketing messages that spread like viruses. Agencies will normally exploit existing social networks to spread promotional messages. The idea is that upon receiving such a message the recipient will forward it on to a number of other people in their network. The message reaches more people as the process keeps repeating itself. Video clips, Flash games, ebooks, pictures and even text messages have all been used for viral promotions.
So, is any of this for me?
As a small business one of your biggest concerns when it comes to marketing is likely to be cost. This is where New Media Marketing can be a huge benefit. Compare the cost of a quarter page advertisement in a local free newspaper with commenting on an internet forum geared towards your industry. The local free paper may have a readership of a few thousand, the audience is not necessarily your target market and the advert is likely to cost you around £200 per issue. The paper has a limited geographical reach, the advert cannot be personalised and there are also costs involved in creating the advert in the first place.
Now consider commenting on an internet forum, the audience are people that are interested in your product or service as you will have selected a forum that is relevant to your industry. If you are offering help and insight to the other forum members you will be seen as an authority in your field rather than a salesperson, you have the potential to reach a global audience and you also have the opportunity to talk to each person on the forum as an individual rather than trying to make your marketing messages appeal to all. And the cost? Nothing apart from your time, which you probably would have spent thinking of an appealing advert to put in the local paper anyway.
As time goes on the world population will become increasingly tech-savvy and the number of consumers that are receptive to new media marketing will also rise. It is those businesses that embrace new media and its marketing potential that will prosper in the future.
Don’t Rush In...
As the title states this is only a quick guide and we wouldn’t encourage you all to rush out put your business on Facebook or start a blog straight away. Like any form of marketing, new media marketing requires planning and strategy in order for it to be effective. Do some research, there is plenty of information on the web, speak to an expert such as your current marketing consultant or web design company and make sure that whatever marketing activities you pursue suit your business.
See you on Twitter!
Matt.
