How Social Media Can Negatively Impact Online Consumer Relationships - Research Paper Example

The paper "How Social Media Can Negatively Impact Online Consumer Relationships" is a good example of a business research paper. The internet world has witnessed a number of revolutions with regards to the support for user contributions to web content. Core to these revolutions is the use of social media which seems to be on the rise in the recent past. In the marketing arena, the platform goes past attempts to post pictures or catch up with new acquaintances and friends. Customers actively engage with fresh brands as an integral component of their purchasing decision. Using social networks like Twitter and Facebook, brands could communicate to customers in a more personal and frequent manner than was the case earlier. Rather than make them feel as though their opinions do not count, social media fosters connections that encourage their loyalty towards their brands of choice. However, social media does not necessarily translate into positive consumer relationship. This study points out that failing to listen to customers can lead to electronic marketing mishaps instead of the good intentions associated with social networks. The study employs already existing data related to 7 enterprises that have witnessed the marketing mishaps that social media could breed. The secondary analysis was preferred for reasons like cost-effectiveness, pre-established validity plus the accuracy of the involved primary sources alongside the time-saving aspect. The study concludes that companies that want to succeed in the use of social media would need to focus on building positive and long-term connections with consumers instead of focusing only on driving sales of their products

CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION

1.1 Background of the Study

Social media has brought about numerous revolutions with regards to customer relationships. According to Anderson (2010), the tool provides a new way of customer interaction by supporting peer to peer communication, and ultimately influencing consumers’ way of decision making. This sends the meaning that enterprises whose target clients are huge embracers of the social media utilities need to have adaptive marketing strategies to cope with the changes.