Marketing Research

Social Media Marketing Research

Bolotaeva, V., & Cata, T. (2010). Marketing opportunities with social networks. Journal of Internet Social Networking and Virtual Communities, 1-8.

The article reflects on the important role that social media has played as far as sharing the knowledge and communication are concerned. It seeks to clarify available marketing opportunities offered by social platforms. The article was interesting and insightful because it gave descriptions of some opportunities in mobile social networking. To bring about the conclusion, the article has adopted qualitative methods while looking at various areas related to social media such as brand awareness and business ethics. However, the most important lesson learnt from the article is that with the advent of technology, social media is offering more opportunities for marketers. Therefore, this article can be applied in identifying new marketing opportunities and strategies of social media.

Hajli, M. N. (2014). A study of the impact of social media on consumers. International Journal of Market Research, 56(3), 387-404.

The article looks at how the influence of social media marketing on consumers. It considers both the advantages and disadvantages of using social media in marketing. The research question in this article is how social media facilitates the interaction between the consumer and the business. The case employs a quantitative research method and uses a structural equation model and sampling techniques. Interestingly, it effectively acknowledges the role of the trust in e-commerce and social media marketing. Additionally, according to the authors, an upcoming trend is e-vendors encouraging their customers to use social media in developing trust between them. Therefore, this article will be effective for understanding various ways, through which social media affects consumer’s choice and preferences of certain commodities.

Rosman, K. (2012, May 29). Behind that celebrity tweet: How social-media sites like Twitter, Tumblr and Facebook woo stars to boost traffic and ad sales. The Wall Street Journal.

The article by Katherine Rosman for the Wall Street Journal considers a unique opportunity within social media marketing. Through the case of Twitter, the author critically analyzes how celebrities can contribute to the efficiency of social media marketing. Based on this idea, she states that the celebrity marketing can be very well integrated into social media to the advantage of the company because they command a large audience. Unlike many other researchers, Rosman interestingly relates available opportunities and real life gaps in marketing that are yet to be filled, for example, the use of celebrities to improve advertisement. The author is a credible and a renowned writer for the Wall Street Journal. The lesson learned is that celebrities are now forging their relationships with different social sites such as Tumblr, Twitter, Youtube, and Facebook. This article will be effective because it analyzes an area that has not been effectively explored by many marketers yet.

Schrage, M. (2014, July 9). Ethics for technologists (and Facebook). Harvard Business Review.

The article by Michael Schrage for Havard business review looks at the ethical aspects of social media in marketing. In his research, the author goes through the existing literature so as to respond to ethical issues associated with advertisement effectively. He uses the case of Facebook and discusses ethical dilemma and different trade-offs that the company management is likely to face in details. Interestingly, he elaborates on the cost effectiveness that has been created by the use of social media in marketing as compared to other techniques used in the past. Hence, ethical concerns that the author points out relates to honesty, fairness, and safety of the information provided in the social media advertisement. As an expert in digital business and a writer for Harvard business review, Schrage’s credibility is unquestionable. Therefore, the article will be effective for the research because ethics is of great concern in marketing.

Segal, D. (2013, November 2). Riding the hashtag in social media marketing. The New York Times.

The article looks at how social media has transformed the business marketing. The author states that many managers are now re-considering the use of different marketing media such as television and print media because social platforms have proven to be more cost-effective. He adopts qualitative techniques for addressing the major questions considering the role and opportunities of the Twitter hashtag in marketing. He analyzes the case of the Twitter hashtag and how potential consumers respond to it. Interestingly, the author acknowledges that although social media has often been used to create and foster social relations, it is equally important for marketing and advertisement. In conducting his research, Segal has employed credible sources. The article will be important in analyzing some social media habits.

Wright, E., Khanfar, N. M., Harrington, C., & Kizer, L. E. (2010). The lasting effects of social media trends on marketing. Journal of Business and Economics Research, 8(11), 73-80.

According to the article, Americans are exposed to numerous advertisement every day. Consequently, many people have developed resistance to them. As companies spend millions of dollars on marketing that consumers ignore, it is important that the evolution is carried out in order to ensure that a more cost-effective and consumer-centered approach is developed and used. The authors interestingly assert that people often ignore marketing messages. They also analyze social media as an upcoming trend in marketing. The authors use both qualitative and quantitative research methods in order to back up their conclusion. The lesson learnt is that it is important for the marketers’ identity, as well as their customers, not to annoy society by their advertisements. Thus, this research will be effective in analyzing opportunities and trends in social media adverts.

Summary of the Articles

The articles share a lot of similarities as far as social media marketing is concerned. According to the sources, the popularity and spread of social networking websites, as well as social media, in general, has continued to grow for the past few years. As a result, many businesses are striving to employ this tool in order to increase their customer base. Social media platforms most commonly used in marketing include Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, and personal blogs. Another important characteristic that has favored the use of social media marketing is the fact that it allows for an active participation and involvement. Thus, both the customer and marketing companies can have a personal connection and, as a result, create relationships besides formal feedback. Similarly, the articles selected for the research agree that social media marketing are cost-effective if compared to other strategies (Bolotaeva & Cata, 2010). Regarding the differences, there are no major contradictions in terms of the source content. However, Katherine Rosman, in her article for the Wall Street Journal, advocates the incorporation of social media marketing and celebrity marketing; thus, it is likely that this strategy might increase the cost of advertisement if this platform is used (Rosman, 2012).

It is evident that over the past years, there have been significant advances in digital marketing. Currently, it can be asserted that social media is one of the biggest means of communication; it has not only changed the way people interact but also affected companies. One of the futures of social media marketing is related to the innovation and creativity. There will be a need for more innovation in order to ensure the efficiency and attainment of the marketing goals and objectives. For instance, the recent expansion of web 2.0 and other online social networks have had a huge influence on the way different companies conduct their business (Hajli, 2014). The main reason behind it is the fact that social networks are often considered important instruments that allow people to build a virtual community by providing the space for storing personal data. The company can retrieve this information in order to ensure the client satisfaction. Similarly, with cyber-crime and other today’s social issues, in the future, there will be a need to the increased privacy of personal data with the aim to protect them from any unauthorized access.

Another future direction in social media marketing is related to branding and how it can be effectively integrated for the benefit of the company. The reason for why the brand imaging will be very important is because, in the future, the amount of traffic generated by social media will be huge; as a result, many companies will be required to be more specific to their target audience (Schrage, 2014). An example of the target audience is career-based social networks and employee groups, among others. The importance of the brand advertisement is that it ensures the client loyalty and, as a result, allows an organization to predict the trends and cultural attitudes, which are the key factors to be considered in marketing. In the future, ethical concerns are also likely to take a center stage. The reason is that with the globalization and increased usage of social media, the content being advertised will reach a wide audience of very different cultures. As a result, while preparing and releasing any advertisement, companies will need to take into consideration interpretations of different cultures in order to avoid any miss-information and misunderstanding.

The areas of growth in social media marketing are likely to take place in the mobile sector. With the advent of smartphones and increased access to them, it is likely that more and more people will now be connected to the Internet. It means that more audience will now be reached via mobile devices. They will be checking on Facebook, Pinterest, and Twitter on a regular basis.

The custom target is another important area for the growth. After business identifies its target audience, it can easily upload and share with people the required content and wait for their feedback. Currently, the rate of response to the client feedback is very low, and future marketers should consider using a client-centered approach in handling client needs and demands. The articles relate to each other as they all acknowledge that social media marketing is of great importance in the modern world (Wright, Khanfar, Harrington, & Kizer, 2010). Additionally, although social media marketing approaches vary from one company to another, it is also an important tool in terms of establishing the recognition and brand loyalty. It is an important channel for innovation due to high competition levels. If everything is done right, it can create a large fan base and provide a marketer with more feedback on both new and already existing products.

Lastly, with the ever-expanding technology and increased globalization, social media marketing becomes a very interesting concept that many companies should consider. For example, the more corporates create a thrill about their product in the market, the more likely they are to attract the public attention and, thus, increase their sales once the product is released. A common example of this phenomenon can be seen in the mobile and video game sectors. Most of the excitement relating to the products usually starts online long before the actual release. Once the information is spread, the company releases the product. In many cases, if the market already has enough information, the sales will be higher. Consequently, it is evident that the use of Twitter and Facebook, for example, has continued to influence buyers because prior to buying a product, many people usually consult with their peers (Segal, 2013). Additionally, although social media offers many opportunities, a large gap exists, especially in the areas of privacy and ethics. Confidentiality and transaction security still top among the factors that worry buyers (Schrage, 2014). It is important that organizations have in place effective measures that will ensure that the client information is secured from hackers.

Conclusion

In conclusion, it is evident that the above sources provide a lot of valuable information concerning social media marketing. Among the benefits of using this technique is that it is cost effective and can reach a very wide audience. It is important that many organizations also consider adopting effective social media marketing tools in order to increase their profits by expanding their customer base. Similarly, as the above sources state, culture is a crucial aspect that should be considered while establishing a brand. People have different interpretations of what they see, and as social media advertisements are likely to attract global attention, it is important to understand the target audience before deciding on the appeal to be adopted. The wrong advertisement can have a very negative effect on the company and brand image. Considering the wide audience, it is equally dangerous for both huge corporations and small businesses.

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