Internet as a Powerful Tool in Businesses - Research Paper Example

? Internet Technology, Marketing and Security Internet Technology, Marketing and Security The internet has become a powerful tool in businesses that no single business can afford to ignore. In the recent time, however, many businesses have come to the realization that the internet, as a whole, is too large to be used for marketing and have decided to specialize in advertising in specific niches in the internet, such as on the social media (Drury, 2008). Social media is a target for advertising because of the sheer number of people that visits them on a daily basis. Advertisement is all about attracting as much publicity as possible, and thus the number of people frequenting the social media is reason enough to use social media as a marketing destination. Basically, social media marketing involves the use of social media such as Facebook, YouTube and Twitter to market products and services. Given the personalized nature of the social networks, social media marketing provides marketers with the ability to personalize their advertising in a way that meets the needs of the targeted audience and hence is a bet means of advertising (Smith, 2010). The use of social media marketing has gained a lot of recognition in the recent past due to the various flexibilities and the increased number of audience that comes with it. Social media marketing is considerable cost effective in comparison to other traditional modes of marketing. The moment an advertisement has been operationalized over the social media, it becomes easy to woo customers to do many things, including making orders, placing recommendations or visiting the website of the marketer. Because the social media is already an attraction, marketers do not need to market their products and services directly, but take advantage of the influence of the social media to attract customers to their products and services (Mangold & Faulds, 2009). Perhaps the most crucial thing about social media marketing is the wide reach. The massive scope of jurisdiction is far beyond the comprehension of limit. Although other internet sites have the same potential, the potential of the social media to broaden the reach of potential customers is immense. Most other websites are designed specifically for marketing or other e-commerce purposes. People only visit such websites when they are interested in them. However, the case with social media is different. People frequent them to cat up with friends, watch new videos or post status update. In the process, however, they can click on advertisements that concern them. Social media marketing, is thus initiated by the users themselves and the marketer only has to post the advert while leaving the rest to the potential customers (Kaplan & Haenlein, 2010). Advantages and Disadvantages of Social Media Marketing Most businesses have adopted the use of social media marketing because of the benefits that come with it, particularly the increased ability of organizations to build brand recognition. Organizations have adopted social media marketing because it allows them build their brands and their businesses. It gives them ability to eavesdrop while pressing the big digital ear up against the computer screen (Kaplan & Haenlein, 2010). Social media marketing provides a rare opportunity of getting immediate feedback about products and services and their performance in the market. Besides, they provide organization with more information about their competitors and other information relevant the performance of the organizations. Organizations that take their time to response and correct all the concerns about their products are in a good position to harvest huge benefits from social media advertising (Drury, 2008). However, like all other good things, social marketing has a downside. Among all the advertising channels, social marketing offers the longest odds. Social marketing becomes a tall order because of the channel itself. It is big and very authoritative, but not under the marketers direct and absolute control. In some instances, social media advertising can result into negative publicity causing the product or service being marketed to experience reduced sales instead of increased sales. This holds water mainly when social media is not used in a more transparent manner. The flexibility that is associated with social media marketing makes it increasingly sensitive than other modes of advertisement. Any slight confusion in the advertisement can be misinterpreted and used against the product or services being advertised. Such advertisements end up facing the repercussions. Online offences are heavily punished and negative publicity can result into permanent withdrawal of a product or service from the market (Kim & Ko, 2011). Social media marketing provides marketers with the ability to personalize their advertising in a way that meets the needs of the targeted audience and hence is a bet means of advertising. However, as has been indicated, inadequate information about the use of social media marketing can easily lead to disasters. Social media marketing can easily backfire and result into massive reputational dam.ge to products, services, or companies. Social media marketing, therefore, requires proper planning and execution in order to provide the required impact in the target market (Mangold & Faulds, 2009). Pepsi has used the social media to its advantage in marketing its products because of the insight they grant to the company. Pepsi Co. has gone to the extensive lengths that have fostered collaboration with its fans. With the use of social media networking sites such as Facebook, Twitter and others, Mountain Dew division at Pepsi has gone through several stages in a bid to launch a new flavor through the division. The process has involved the public at all levels. Pepsi Company also initiated Pepsi Refresh Project in January 2012. Instead of spending money on television ads such as Super Bowl, it has spent $20 million on just social media campaign. The Pepsi Refresh Project and Mountain Dew projects are examples of crowd sourcing attempts that have integrated customers closely. An illustration of this gesture is through the Mountain Dew Spokesman Bart Casabona who says, “Every part of the campaign involves our Facebook fans and Twitter followers.   Consumers have participated in everything from picking flavor names, to voting on the best user-submitted ad campaign.” Pepsi has literally engaged the social media in increasing its consumer insight as well as new product development (SOS eMarketing, 2010). Most advertisement activities by Nokia focus on the low end consumers. Unlike, other mobile phone manufactures, Nokia has concentrated on simplicity in order to attract low end consumers. Besides, Nokia has always used intermediaries in creating their advertisement. This has allowed Nokia to develop advertisements that target specific segments of the market. Further, the manufacturing of Nokia products in various parts of the world allows Nokia to not only produce products that meet local demands, but develop advertisement strategies that is specific to such regions. Nokia has been keen to exploit the advertisement opportunities provide by social networking sites. In particular, Nokia has used Facebook for its advertisement activities. Through Facebook, Nokia is able to interact with their customers, inform them of new products and publicize important information about Nokia. Further, Nokia has sponsored various sporting activities in a bid to publicize their various brands. Nokia also user merchandises, such as T-shirts and caps, as part of their advertisement strategies, particularly when launching new products (SOS eMarketing, 2010). Elsewhere, Starbucks Coffee Company also uses Facebook for marketing its services as well as engaging its customers through online communications. For instance, Starbucks has 28,775,056 likes on Facebook, which means that the company has great interaction channels with its customers globally. Most clients follow the new products Starbucks provide online, because of the consistent link with the customers, the company is able to market its services and also inform customers on the new possible developments afoot. The social media has made it even easier for Starbucks to access feedbacks through Facebook and can fix whatever dispute in time. Starbucks has increased sales of its coffee world over thanks to the social media marketing. The important aspect about social media is that they tap new entrants each day and for that reason, it increases marketing for most companies each day. Starbucks recently undertook an inspirational social media campaign where it encouraged its fans to present their experiences online. Starbucks uses twitter, Facebook, and YouTube and the followers keep themselves updated with the news concerning Starbucks (Noff, 2010). The rate at which the social media is growing is an indication that more innovations will be in the offing because technology grows every time. As the globalization continues, so is the technological knowhow and companies are also changing their marketing strategies. The social media will increase business profitability because it is cheap and the money meant for marketing will be channeled elsewhere in order increase the business level. With the growing digital revolution, marketing managers need to always get ahead of technology in order to keep customers aware of the ever-changing strategies. With improved marketing strategies, marketers will have the opportunity to foresee the trends right in time so that they can make necessary changes (Kaplan & Haenlein, 2010). Nevertheless, to survive, online business must be able to thrive. This means managers must come up with ways that enables their organizations to quickly adapt to changes in their environment, transform their infrastructure and come up with innovative solutions. Allowing other organizations to test the water for you have the disadvantage of being left behind and providing rival organizations to define their market niches. This means managers must calculate their risks and ensure that their organizations are not behind the pack. While most of the online attractions are focusing their innovation in content, most of them have come to the realizations that their innovations must be consistent with the changes in device trends. Because of the fact that the world internet use is tilting towards the use of mobile devices, most major online sites have engaged in making their content innovation consistent with device innovations. Markets need to see the big picture by ensuring that they keep abreast by changes in technology and to adapt to such technologies appropriately. Individuals and companies are coming up with amazing solutions aimed at ensuring future success. Therefore, to stay competitive in future, managers and marketers must ensure that they come up with solutions aimed at facilitating future success. For example, now that the current trends are indicating that the world id slowly moving way from desktop browsing, marketers and managers must ensure that their activities are innovative enough to offer mobile browsing alternatives. References Drury, G. (2008). Opinion Piece: Social Media: Should Marketers Engage and how can it be Done Effectively? Journal of Direct, Data and Digital Marketing Practice, 9(3), 274- 277. Kaplan, A. M., & Haenlein, M. (2010). Users of the world, unite! The Challenges and Opportunities of Social Media. Business horizons, 53(1), 59-68. Kim, A. J., & Ko, E. (2011). Do Social Media Marketing Activities Enhance Customer Equity? An Empirical Study of Luxury Fashion Brand. Journal of Business Research, 65(10), 1480–1486. Mangold, W.G., & Faulds, D. J. (2009). Social media: The New Hybrid Element of the Promotion Mix. Business horizons, 52(4), 357-365. Noff, A. (2010, January). The Starbucks Formula for Social Media Success. TNW. Retrieved from http://thenextweb.com/2010/01/11/starbucks-formula-social-media-success/ Smith, R. (2010). Mobile Marketing needs a different approach. Manager: British Journal of Administrative Management, 71(1), 20-21. SOSeMarketing. (2010). Social Media Marketing: How Pepsi Got it Right on Facebook and Twitter. Retrieved from http://www.sosemarketing.com/2010/01/31/social-media- marketing-how-pepsi-got-it-right-on-facebook-and-twitter/ Read More