Social Media and Marketing Mix - Assignment Example

SOCIAL MEDIA AND MARKETING MIX By Location Introduction The increased influence of social media on the modern way of life is much attributed to technological advancement that has brought the computer-mediated forums for sharing ideas and connecting people (Gordon, 2014). Social media has transformed how people connect, discover new things, and exchange information. It is through social media networks like Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter that people interact. Social media also provides companies with the opportunity to market their goods online owing to the large number of the online crowd available to view product information. Some argue that social media marketing is a replica of the word of mouth marketing since people like the contents and share the information with friends thus increasing visits to the social network site. The change brought about by social media in marketing has seen the success of companies like Netflix whose presence is not only felt in the UK but also worldwide. PART 1: Theoretical of Social Media Marketing The rise of social media For business entities to consider social media as an effective marketing tool, they must understand what the concept entails. Gordon (2014) suggests that the definition of social media is never complete without reference to Web 2.0 that has been defined as the new way through which people use the World Wide Web as place that continually alters contents to allow sharing in a collaborative way. The Web 2.0 came about or evolved from simple tasks of retrieving information to more complex functions like interoperability, interactivity, and collaboration. By definition, social media a collective term for internet based applications whose basis come from technological and ideological foundations of the Web 2.0 to allow creation as well as exchange user content (Brennan, & Croft, 2012). The concept of social media According to Brennan, & Croft (2012) social media are basically software tools that make it possible to create user specific content which they can share. For a website to meet specifications of a social network, it must have content, user profiles, method for connecting users and posting comments and also provisions for joining virtual groups of common interests like politics, fashion, or religion (Gordon, 2014). Also, there is always confusion between the terms social media and social media networks though the latter allows users to unite through generation of personal or private information profiles where the users can invite their friends to access the profiles (Sashi, 2012). Therefore, a more discreet definition of social media is that; social media is an environment where social networking occurs and has changed the way through which consumers gather information and also making their buying decisions (Brennan, & Croft, 2012). Social media and marketing When the Web 2.0 was introduced in the late 1990s, it was mainly regarded as a tool for communication and exchanging information, but this is not the case in the modern world (Brennan, & Croft, 2012). Sashi (2012) points out that social media have actually become the right place where consumers learn about the companies and available products from the particular firms. Marketers are, thus, targeting the sites in a bid to reach out to the customers and also provide them with alternatively easy ways of shopping. The increased dependent on social media for company and product information is due to the technological developments like search engines, advanced mobile phone applications and devices that provide consumers with new ways of shopping (Wood, 2012). In this case, social media has not only changed how the modern society communicates but has also been crucial in how companies do their marketing communication. Consumer attitudes towards social media Consumer’s Sentiment toward Marketing is another important factor to consider since researchers presume that it is a measure of how consumers perceive the social media marketing strategies of a company (Chen, Fay, & Wang, 2011). The implication is that consumers also have their general feeling to towards the marketing approach at the marketplace. Chen, Fay, & Wang (2011) confirm that consumers perception of all the activities taking place in the workplace is a crucial determinant on whether the marketing activities convince them into considering purchasing products. In this case, the question of consumers readiness towards technology used for marketing products in a particular market is a significant factor to consider for the modern marketers. The implication is that businesses should use social media that consumers are familiar with since a negative perception of the site makes the marketing unpleasant to the product enthusiasts (Gordon, 2014). Consumer attitude is not only restricted to other business operations but also on marketing strategies for availing products into the market (Sashi, 2012). When using social media sites, companies should understand that times have changed where consumers have the ability to create contents about the available brands and this comes from the motives as well as the attitudes they have for the particular products and the associated marketing activities (Laroche, Habibi, & Richard, 2013). Therefore, researchers have been conducting studies on find out the aspects of social media that influence motives and attitudes of the consumers. For instance, users have different attitudes to social media sites like Facebook, Twitter among others. On the other hand, there is substantive evidence that consumers prefer Facebook as the most effective social media site for receiving information about certain products (Gordon, 2014). Therefore, there are psychological, demographic, and geographical factors that influence the attitude that consumers have towards certain social media sites (Sashi, 2012). Gordon, (2014) posits that consumer attitudes towards social media also bring challenges when engaging in direct dialogue with the consumers. Some may not understand the new product specifications that the company launches through social media. Besides, emotional barrier may bring about challenges when engaging in direct dialogue with the customers because, in some instances, customers may not feel the urge to adopt the new product (Sashi, 2012). Security and privacy issue is a significant challenge on the internet and since dialogues entail seeking crucial personal information from the customers, they might under threats of identity theft and data security breaches from cyber criminals or dissatisfied employees of the company (Chen, Fay, & Wang, 2011). Segmentation, targeting and positioning in social media Market targeting, segmentation, and position are some of the important business operations that are crucial to the success of marketing and selling of goods. However, the activities require different approaches when engaging with the social media because all the activities are possible through the use of dashboards and marketing software that makes it easier to carry out customer profiling, segmenting and monitoring (Chen, Fay, & Wang, 2011). It is easier to segment the market through social media using demographic traits like age, their social class, gender, spending power, buying habits, and spending power (Brennan, & Croft, 2012). Besides, social media offers the opportunity to segment the market based on lifestyle of the target market including personality, attitudes, and opinions (Brennan, & Croft, 2012). According to Wood (2012), marketers can segment the market through behavioural characteristics of the market like prior purchases, brand preferences, online shoppers, and shopping centre customers. Social media also makes it possible to segment the market based on geographical locations like country, continent, province, state, city or rural based consumer groups (Sashi, 2012). After the market segmentation, it is imperative to choose the targets appropriately where the focus is to develop strategies that suit the particular market (Sashi, 2012). Wood (2012) suggests that the best way to carry out an effective market targeting is by testing the advertisements against other consumer groups. In this case, the marketers engage in close monitoring of the performance because social media marketing require testing to ensure that it suits the particular market. Market positioning entails developing an image or perception of a brand in the consumer’s mind relative to other competitors (Chen, Fay, & Wang, 2011). In social media marketing, success depends on the ability of the marketers to create and develop the right message to the intended audience where the aim is to get more likes for the product (Wood, 2012). For instance, when positioning a product or a brand in Facebook, it is necessary to use appropriate body text, ad, and image. Part 2: Social Media marketing at Netflix Content Marketing For digital marketing to succeed, it is imperative to create and develop compelling and original contents so as to establish the authority of the brand (Kolb, 2013). Netflix has been putting much emphasis in promoting its exclusive series, a move that has seen the brand command the loyalty of many social media users. For instance, the company focused on live streaming shows like Orange is the New Black and House of Cards as some of the television series which could not be found on the internet or television (NetFlix, 2015). In this case, NetFlix improves the authority of its brand by offering unmatchable viewing experience. Word of Mouth Advertising The reliance on word of mouth marketing also separates Netflix from its competitors (NetFlix, 2015). Rather than relying on brand advertisement, the company uses the existing users to act as the advocates of the brand. Whenever an individual watches a movie or any show on the website, the company automatically shares the activity with the Facebook friends and in doing so ensures that there is a word of mouth marketing for the brand. In terms of segmentation, Netflix considers the dynamism of the market and the ever changing trends in consumer preferences and consumption behaviours. By June 2013, Netflix had close to 36.7 million followers and segmented them in terms of age where the age is between 18 and 59 (NetFlix, 2015). The particular industry does not depend much on segmentation because the services have been designed to focus on individual needs and all marketing efforts aim at getting many subscribers to like the products. Netflix also targets the mass consumption of paid streaming of movies and TV shows where the goal is to get the biggest of the market regardless of the characteristics of the population like beliefs, background, age, tastes and preferences and cultural orientation (NetFlix, 2015). The company always aims to position itself as the most convenient and the best content that is affordable to various users and people who fancy movies and TV shows. In this case, the users perceive the brand as a unique content that meets the needs and preferences of TV shows and Movies. Table 1: NetFlixs Marketing Mix, 4Ps Product movies TV series retail on other entertainment products like DVDs documentaries Price Charges Premium prices relative to competitors No wars over price strategies Charges subscribers fairly for Movies and TV series, as low as $7 Place a UK online retail company focuses on the virtual market: the online business environment Promotion Promotional messages communicated in various platforms like social media, the company’s website and TV or mainstream media The marketing mix 4Ps above shows Netflix offers unique services to its social media customer base with proper marketing as well as a broad range of coverage and also appropriate promotional activities to complement the marketing activities (NetFlix, 2015). Innovation and socio-cultural sensitivity are the basis for the brands success and this explains why expansion of the company led to the decline of Blockbuster. However, the services are intangible as users pay for live streaming of data in the form of movies and shows; thus the concept of place may not be applicable to this content. The company also focuses on fair pricing where products go as low as $7 per month where users are subjected to unlimited viewing of TV series, blockbuster movies and documentaries (NetFlix, 2015). However, promotion is the main advantage of the company and Netflix promotes itself through available media especially the social media. Recommendations Though Netflix is seemingly successful in internet marketing, the company needs to leverage its social media content to gain a broad consumer base. Firstly, it is highly recommendation for the executive management to introduce internet contests (Kolb, 2013). The implication is that contests are a perfect way of engaging directly with the customers, building the brand image and has a positive impact on the overall customer loyalty or brand loyalty. Secondly, the social media strategies can improve if the company leverages customer reviews through constant filling of the web page contents where the focus is to get moderate comments that are linked to the marketing content (Chen, Fay, & Wang, 2011). Though the use of other social networking sites like Facebook undoubtedly attracts more customer views, it is highly recommendable to display contents on the company’s Webpage as it will provide direct links to products and services that users can easily access. Bibliography Brennan, R., & Croft, R 2012, ‘The use of social media in B2B marketing and branding: An exploratory study’, Journal of Customer Behaviour, vol. 11, no. 2, pp. 101-115. Chen, Y, Fay, S, & Wang, Q 2011, ‘The role of marketing in social media: How online consumer reviews evolve’, Journal of Interactive Marketing, vol. 25, no. 2, pp. 85-94. Gordon, B 2014. Computer-Mediated Marketing Strategies: Social Media and Online Brand Communities: Social Media and Online Brand Communities. IGI Global Laroche, M, Habibi, MR, & Richard, MO 2013, ‘To be or not to be in social media: How brand loyalty is affected by social media?’, International Journal of Information Management, . vol. 33, no. 1, pp. 76-82. NETFLIX 2015. Social Media Disclosure, Viewed from http://ir.netflix.com/social-media-disclosure.cfm Kolb, BM 2013, Marketing for Cultural Organizations: New Strategies for Attracting Audiences - third edition, Routledge, London Sashi, CM 2012, ‘Customer engagement, buyer-seller relationships, and social media’, Management decision, vol. 50, no. 2, pp. 253-272. Wood, M 2012, ‘Marketing social marketing’, Journal of Social Marketing, vol. 2, no. 2, pp. 94-102. Appendix Appendix 1: Facebook Marketing Appendix 2: Twitter Marketing Read More