Social Media and Its Influence on Modern Marketing and Consumer Behavior - Essay Example

Social Media and Its Influence on Modern Marketing and Consumer Behavior Number and of Submission Social Media and Its Influence on Modern Marketing and Consumer Behavior Introduction Curtis Kimball is neither a CEO of a prominent company nor a graduate of an MBA course, but he was able to establish his Creme Brulee Cart business and made it known to a lot of people in San Francisco (Rao, 2010). Using Twitter, he advertised his micro-scale business and attained 12,000 followers in his account. This gave him the chance to see firsthand what his customers have to say about his product and establish a personal connection with them. Kimballs success is not a solitary documentation of how social media helped businessmen strengthen their ventures, but it is one of the proofs that social media can have a positive impact for a business. Social networking through the Internet is rapidly gaining attention from the public. This has potentially changed people’s lifestyle including purchasing habits. The ability of social media to form virtual networks is an opportunity to enhance the effectiveness of advertising and to gain more consumers. The chance for interaction in most virtual communities is helpful to marketing improvement if businesses avail this kind of advertisement. Wood and Solomon (2009) contend that virtual communities are influential in examining the "differences in consumer perception of virtual and real-life recommendation sources" (p. 66) and would offer companies a practical look on what the consumers need. Social media offers an extensive marketing for the products and services of various companies considering the internet’s speed in disseminating information, while companies are able to keep track on the level of customer satisfaction through online interaction of virtual communities. Conclusion Social media, amidst its disadvantages, is undeniably a useful tool in adapting to new age consumers’ preferences and needs. The onset of modern technology changes the trends of various aspects in the society, including marketing. The cost-efficiency of using social media to introduce the product to virtual communities is helpful in the development of the business’s market and profit. With a suitable brand online strategy, the business is introduced to the social media users. An advantage that social media has that other forms of marketing does not have is the chance to listen to a direct feedback and the chance to know what the consumers like or dislike about the product. If taken as a constructive criticism in the part of the management, such comments can be an opportunity to develop their products and services. Based on the information discussed at the previous parts of this paper, three conclusions can be inferred. First, social media is effective in introducing the product, but it can be detrimental to mediocre services due to the interactive virtual communities; second, the management should be active in the business’s social network account to build relationships and trust with consumers; and lastly, with the efficiency of the Internet to disseminate information, companies should make customer satisfaction as their main goal followed by an efficient advertisement because quality products have lesser need of exposure due to customers’ recommendation to their peers. With all the opportunities that social networking poses for a business, what comes out from the content of the information gathered is the fact that social media can be a double-edge sword for the companies if the purpose of social media in marketing is not met. If social networks are efficient ways of introducing the product and influence customers, then social media also has the ability to give the company a bad reputation. Such impression can potentially damage the image of the business; thus, undermining social networking as a marketing strategy. With Curtis Kimball’s experience, he uses Twitter to interact personally with his customers and regard their comments as areas to improve. In this way, Curtis is able to build trust in the business-consumer relationship and to have 12, 000 followers of his account on the said social network is a proof. Looking at other possibilities, if Kimball did not resort to social networking, his business is less likely to grow similarly. Taking into consideration Kimball’s experience as food entrepreneur, not all customers may be willing to try his product. Because of extensive comments and promotion of his followers and regular customers through Twitter, his micro business became famous throughout San Francisco, which might not be possible if he relied on traditional promotion alone. The active participation of management in replying to comments, providing solutions to complaints, and regular posting of new innovation of his product would give a positive result in customer satisfaction. It must be remembered, that in the business, customer satisfaction should always be the main priority because they are the main reason why the business is still going. The social media is a chance for companies--big or small-- to reach their target consumers, know what they need, and realize possible adjustments in the product to make everything as convenient as possible. If social network accounts would remain stagnant while consumers are actively connecting with it, the company will be perceived as profit-oriented. An inactive account of the business in a social networking site would give an impression to consumers that they are not entertained well. Such reputation is harmful for the general operation of the business. Customers need genuine assistance, if they need one from the company, and giving it to them develops trust to the quality product or services offered. Therefore, the benefits of social networking depend on how the management would maximize its purpose. On the same end, products and services endorsed should not rely solely on advertisement, be it social media or other traditional advertising trends; quality should be maintained at its best. It is natural for consumers to get the best out of what they spend and giving them mediocre services would not be healthy to the business’s publicity. The interactive nature of social media has the power to persuade other customers, and if a certain business generally yields negative feedback, then there is a great possibility of a decreasing profit return which can potentially harm the business. The efficiency of social networks and its downside are twin concepts in the marketing perspective; therefore, it should be used wisely. References Rao, L. (2010). How social media drives new business: Six case studies. Retrieved from http://techcrunch.com/2010/07/17/how-social-media-drives-new-business-six-case-studies/ Wood, N., & Solomon M. R. (2009). Virtual society identity and consumer behavior. NY: M.E. Sharpe. Read More