CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION

1.1 Preface to the Study Social networking has become an integral part of the fabric of our culture. The sheer numbers of social sites users is the main reason why business owners should consider developing a solid social networking strategy to market their brand on the social network. However, social networking sites holds potential for brand promotion and need to be integrated into a business social networking marketing strategy. Social networks allow businesses to interact with customers and potential customers in real time. Obtaining valuable brand feedback via a cost effective medium is a resource that businesses dare not ignore or shy away from. In addition, savvy businesses are expected to have a presence on social networks. Users view a social networking presence as necessary and relevant. Developing a social networking marketing strategy is not difficult. Businesses need to take one step at a time to develop a presence on the leading social networks. Social networking marketing refers to the process of gaining website traffic or attention through social media sites. Social media marketing programs usually centre on efforts to create content that attracts attention and encourages readers to share it with their social networks. A corporate message spreads from user to user and presumably resonates because it appears to come from a trusted, third-party source, as opposed to the brand or company itself. Hence, this form of marketing is driven by word-of-mouth, meaning it results in earned media rather than paid media. Increased communication for organizations fosters brand awareness and often, improved customer service.

1.2 Problem Statement

The main objective is to fulfill the educational requirements. There are also some general objectives. They are stated as below: To identify how Social networking sites helps to increase a companys trustworthiness and goodwill that will definitely give the said company and increased and better branding. Page | 1

 To identify how companies are able to have conversations with their customers To find out the contribution of social media marketing in lead generation for companies To determine the social media channels that make it easier and more flexible for companies to engage with its customers. To develop a plan for retaining a companys existing customers and increasing brand credibility. To determine how to promote a companys products through social media channels, so that it will increase return over investment or ROI. To find out ways to develop an organized customer feedback that actually helps in improving companies products based on what is the requirement of the . To identify the ways by which social networking sites will make it easier for companies to spread the news regarding a new product or service. To discover customer preferences through social media marketing. To determine the target audience through a comprehensive social media marketing strategy.

1.3 Back ground of the Study

Social media is currently an evolving phenomena in business marketing. Enlightened Marketers are beginning to drive the use of social media as a component in their marketing strategy and campaigns to reach out to customers and fans. Among the sub disciplines of marketing that may utilise social media include promotions, marketing intelligence, sentiments research, public relations, marketing communications and product and customer management. Social media is described as the shift in how people discover, read and share news, information and content. This has been made possible through converging technological evolutions on the internet, dubbed Web 2.0, the internet as a 2-way communication platform. Particularly the internet facilitates the spread of information across geographies and boundaries. However, social media has also proven to be a handful for companies. This has been a critical factor in the success of viral marketing campaigns launched by businesses.

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1.4 Methodology

Secondary sources of data collection procedure have been used in this term paper for the purpose of this study. Secondary data were collected from available websites, books, publications, research studies, and Articles. 1.5 Limitations

The main hindrance behind preparing this paper was time. Since it is a vast area, it is not possible to cover or go through within this short span of time. Other limitations are: One of the major limitation of this paper is the lack of adequate data, In this paper there are only secondary sources of data and no primary to incorporate a better view. Relevant documents were not available as it is a technical issue. Omission and error may be there due to lack of experience in preparing a paper based on this topic. Not many researchers have been conducted in Bangladesh in the field of social networking marketing strategy formulation. Lack of experience and limited knowledge about the concerned topic. Inaccurate or Contradictory information created huge confusion.

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CHAPTER 2: BODY OF THE REPORT

2.1 Basic Concepts of the Study 2.1.1 Social Media Marketing Strategies for e-Commerce Websites Social media has revolutionized the way we use the internet, and how we consume information. Consumers are no longer the silent majority, and media companies are no longer the gatekeepers of information. Small businesses can now engage in back-and-forth communication with consumers without traditional media as an intermediary, and this gives the modern e-Commerce site an opportunity its never had before. Heres how you can take your e-Commerce site to the next level.

Understand Why People Use Social Media

A recent study suggests that people use social networking to:

Communicate Express themselves Pass the time Entertain themselves

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These are roughly the same reasons that people use the internet in general, except that people do not use social networks for a fifth and very important purpose: information seeking. This is important, because it also means that people are not using social networks to find information about companies, products, or services. The main reasons people use social networks are to pass the time and to entertain themselves. For this reason, companies should focus most of their social media efforts on using entertainment to build customer retention and acquisition. Companies can also leverage those who use social media to communicate or express themselves by building an online community to keep conversations going.

Build Relationships with Influencers

Since most people use social networks to entertain themselves and a smaller number of people use them to express themselves, it is often these expressive people who are the most influential people online. Many of them also have blogs or personal websites that they further use as an outlet for their expression. It is these people who one should focus most of their efforts building relationships with. Since it is rather strange for an e-Commerce site to try to build a relationship with an influence, its often a better idea to use personal profiles to do the connecting. On Twitter, its better to create several individual profiles that link back to the brand account, and use those individual profiles to build relationships. There is also no reason to confine the discussion to social media. Many influencers have email addresses listed on their blogs so that you can contact them directly. As long as they start the discussion off by offering value (not asking them for something), this is often much easier than they may think.

Be Shareable
It is unlikely that very many people will voluntarily share product pages on peoples e Commerce site. They are much more likely to share fun and interesting blog posts, videos, and images. This should reinforce the idea that social media should not be thought of as a sales channel. It is far more useful as a first touch channel and as a customer retention channel. Since it is rare that a social encounter with your brand will coincide with a need for your product, their primary focus should be on brand image: building trust and familiarity so that they are first on the consumers mind when the need does arise.

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 Go Where the Community is

All too often, businesses get caught up in social media as a place, instead of social media as an idea. The savvy marketer realizes that Facebook is not necessarily the place to focus all of their efforts, even though it is the largest social network. In the post-television world, marketers need to move past thinking about volume, and consider targeting instead. The first question online marketers should be asking is where their community is. No matter what industry they are in, there is a place online where a conversation is happening about that subject. Their first job is to find that community. It could be a Facebook discussion group, but it could just as easily be a forum or message board. That may sound old fashioned, but if it is where their target audience is, its where they should be. Understand Conversions Directly From Social Media Rarely Happen Consumers dont use social media to interact with you. They use it to entertain themselves and interact with their friends. People dont want to use social media as your primary means of communication with consumers. Social media is for casual contact. Social networks are noisy and consumers never see every message sent their way. Networks like Facebook actually filter results based on who and what users interact with the most, and so brands rarely show up prominently in their streams. The advantage of social media is its ability for certain messages to spread virally. People pay more attention to something that has been shared by their friends than they do to an advertisement. Leverage this fact to build new followers, but transition that following over to email. People dont necessarily read all their email, but most of them at least see every message in their inbox. This isnt true for social media. But ultimately, they want those followers to subscribe to their newsletter, go directly to their site, and see them in channels other than social networks.

Customer-Generated Social Media Marketing Customer-generated social media marketing focuses on their fans and customers. They are their best online word of mouth advertising. The biggest mistake companies make when launching social media campaigns is forgetting about the important role their customers/fans play. They think content alone is all they need. People should not monopolize content and talk AT their customers 24, 7. They should allow their customers and fans to have the floor,

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allow them to share their experiences. Customer interaction is the key to effective social media marketing. 2.1.2 Need for a Content Marketing Strategy Trust in Advertising is Terrible A recent report from market research giant Nielsen shows consumer trust in traditional media advertising has plummeted. Users dont like, nor trust the sales messages. The survey found whopping 90% of OECD consumers said they trusted brand recommendations from friends or users they trusted online, while only 10% said they trusted messages from display advertising. Content Marketing represents a form of word-of-mouth marketing, whereby users consumer, engage and share your useful brand content. A strong content marketing strategy hits closer to the 90% trust level than any paid banner ad at the other end of the consumer trust scale. Content Marketing Delivers Quality Lead Generation Great content marketing will attract potentially high value customers, and these customers will come back for more. This compares to more traditional advertising methods, where media planners will buy an audience assuming that an ad message will be received by a target audience, and this also assumes the paid message will compel users to act. Content Marketing delivers on the strategy of narrowcasting where brands focus on a smaller, core group of potential, high quality consumers. Content Marketing Fulfils a Desire for More Information Back in 2010, when about 1/3 of consumers had Smart phones, users searched on average of 5.3 sources of information before making a purchase decision. By the start of 2012, when over half of consumers owned a Smartphone, that figure had doubled to 10.4 sources of information. User behavior and technology is changing, consumers will now search out for information about your industry, before asking a real person or consulting other media. Marketers must rise to this challenge and build great content systems that engage, inspire, educate and inform users who seek.

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 Content Marketing Improves SEO Content Marketing will help one to kill it on the SEO front, as search engines get smarter at delivering the right information to users, content marketing needs to be at the centre of any SEO strategy. Google for instance now heavily weights social sharing and link buzz, the more engaging and shareable your content is, the better your SEO rankings. Google will also heavily favor content it feels is relevant to its users, so your content has to be excellent. Content Marketing Will Position Ones Brand As a Leader Producing great, useful, authentic content will position your brand as a leader in your category, pushing brand uplift and vital word-of-mouth recommendations. The theory of content marketing is only just being realized by many brands, as they move toward new ways of thinking, less advertising and sales based campaign spends, to more long term, cost effective and engaging content marketing focused strategy. Act now and start building your content platforms, inventory and engagement streams. Content Marketing Will Influence Consumer Decision Making Content marketing can influence purchase intent and decision-making. Consumers are on average 70% of the way through the sales funnel before engaging directly with a brand. Content marketing allows you to influence decision makers well before they have made up their minds. For example, a Roper Public Affairs study found 80% of business decision Page | 8

makers prefer to access company information via a series of articles over advertisements. 70% of decision makers said content marketing made them feel closer to the brand, and 60% said content marketing helped them make better purchasing decisions. Content Marketing Will Feed Native Advertising Great content has to find a way to its target audience. One way content can be distributed is to seed content using paid advertising products called native advertising. This form of advertising is fast becoming the default replacement for untrustworthy banner advertising. Native advertising is placed in a newsfeed on social media or relevant partner websites as a suggested post. Good native advertising takes advantage of strong content marketing materials that are engaging, authentic, inspiring and educational and align with your audiences values and interests. These native ads drive your audience to your content marketing inventory and beyond. Content Marketing Delivers Strong ROI Because good content will last a long time, ones investment in content marketing will remain relevant for potentially many years. This is compared to a very expensive paid advertising campaign that may only last a few weeks, days or even minutes. Moreover, great content marketing will also earn their significant earned media whereby users and other media outlets may talk about and share their content to millions more users, potentially producing millions of dollars in free brand exposure. Social Media Feeds On Your Content Marketing Content forms the basis of ones social media strategy, without great content, their social media platforms are worthless and people will not follow or engage with their brand on Twitter, Facebook or any other social network. Content marketing materials should always be produced with social sharing and engagement in mind and social media user behavior should influence their content streams and strategy. Content Marketing using social media will also deliver on user generated content, linked to positive word-of-mouth sentiment, earned media and fan/advocate community building. The rise of the hash tag as a tool to index and contextualize conversations around brands presents limitless opportunities for brands to hold engaging conversations and emotional moments with customers.

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2.1.3 Creating an International Social Media Marketing Strategy Certain ways of conducting ones social media work more effectively than others, and this includes scheduling, posting, messaging, engaging, participating in new networks, using etiquette, leveraging analytics, they name it. When planning ones social media activities, its important to consider all of these aspects not just for their local audiences but also on a global scale. This past year in particular, more and more companies and individuals around the world are getting involved in social media. This makes it more important than ever for companies to focus on a global strategy for their social media efforts. Need for an International Social Media Strategy A global strategy simply means being mindful of their foreign connections. Many companies today can work with others across the world, but even if they dont operate a business that works with international customers and clients just yet, they can benefit for a few different reasons:

Visibility. It is never a bad thing to gain additional visibility for they business, so making sure that they social posts can be understood by all cultures is beneficial. If someone knows someone, theyll want them to know who they are. If a company outside the U.S. is looking for a U.S. partner, they want to be considered. If someone in another country is looking to purchase what they have to offer right now, they want to be available to them right now.

Stay ahead of the competition. If they fall behind, theyre left behind. They want to stay current and make sure that theyre not the only company ignoring potential sales from foreign countries.

Easy access. This goes well with the last point. They want they social media accounts to be easy to find and easy to understand, and if they can make this happen theyll be one of the few! If English is they second language and theyre the only company with a plan of action for that consumer, who do they think he/she is going to pick?

Unfortunately, creating a global strategy isnt always easy. It involves analyzing they website in order to determine just how global they need to get, and where theyll benefit the most.

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International Social Media marketing Strategy Prioritizing and segmenting the audiences The first thing they need to do is determine where they foreign connections lie. Tools such as SocialBro, Followerwonk, PageLever, Facebook Insights, etc. can be used to gather this data for each individual social media account. The followers can be different on Twitter than one are on Facebook, so they may need to have a slightly different strategy for each account. Once they determine which countries are most interested in their accounts, they can segment their audiences accordingly. However, just because they have a lot of foreign connections or retweets does not mean that this is their target audience. They must evaluate where they want their audience and put that on the top of their priority list.

Either create specific country pages or use the customization features of the network: Next it comes time to setup their social media accounts so that they can show certain messages to certain groups of people. This is done the easiest through Facebook and LinkedIn. However, some companies find that its best to create an entire new page if there is a large foreign audience, or to create a new page per target country if the country is strategically important enough or if their audience is large enough in the country. This is really the only way they make sure theyre getting exactly what they want because the segmenting features of social networks themselves dont give them the option to do everything.

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 Utilize native speakers and guest articles: If theyre ever planning on writing something in a different language, they should always use a native speaker. While tools such as Google Translate are usually OK for casual personal use, this isnt as acceptable when it comes to their companys social media. Social media is constantupdate alerts going straight to mobile phones, notifications popping up when they have a new tweetso people dont want to be listening to broken English, which would actually do more damage to their brand than any potential benefit they may derive. A great strategy for generating content for international target audiences on a consistent basis is guest posts by native country experts. Start exploring, networking and locating in-country and expat experts, and they will then have a team of outsourced content builders to help they achieve they international social media goals. Once again, creating a global strategy does not mean that they other efforts should suffer. They want to continue to focus on their core target audience and do what they can to make sure that theyre giving current customers the types of information they need. A global strategy is a complement to their current strategy, helping them to incrementally expand the business. 2.1.4 How to Guide Customers toward Generating Content People want their customers and fans to create user generated content (UGC) - any online content created directly by users. UGC includes any comments on blogs, forums, social networking/bookmarking sites, review sites, etc. UGC provides they with a unique opportunity to hear whats on the minds of their customers and prospective customers. Furthermore, UGC allows companies to monitor their online reputations and respond directly to positive and negative comments posted by customers. Dont ignore their customers, because they never know what they are saying about they on other sites! So, if one is ready to guide their customers towards generating UGC about ones company, here are a few steps they can take to start the online dialogue:

Create contests featuring customers who use companies products/services. Ask customers to send in photos or videos and share their experiences. Post on video sharing sites such as YouTube.

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Ask customers to write/share testimonials and endorsements social proof packs a LOT of power on the Internet. If one person likes their product or service, then another person will want to try it, etc.

Actively engage in forums and discussion boards. Interact with customers and fans and create a strong online presence. Dont be passive and just blast out content and expect to have a following! One needs to be active and consistent on these sites.

Ask bold questions at the end of blog posts, if they only had one month to live, how they would spend their time? Watch the comments fly on their blog! Its a great way to engage their followers and allows them to interact with each other.

Encourage customers and fans to share their feedback of their products on consumer/product review sites. If they are on top of their product quality and customer service, this is an easy way to monitor their reputation/branding on these sites.

2.1.5 Commitment is Critical to Social Media Success Everywhere we look, we see the familiar icons of Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and other social media applications on a variety of different informational outlets, from Web sites and blogs to more traditional marketing pieces such as print advertisements and television commercials. What started as a venue for people to communicate amongst themselves and

share information with family and friends has turned into an increasingly important marketing component of businesses of all sizes. A growing number of consumers will visit a business social media site as readily as they would its main Web site. This creates a perfect marketing opportunity for a small business owner or operator to target even more prospective customers, as well as maintain ongoing communication with his or her existing customer base. However, its typically not as easy as creating a simple Facebook page or Twitter account, adding a few messages, and just leaving it idle. For it truly to be successful, a concerted effort and commitment to its success is a necessity. 2.1.6 Goals to accomplish with social networking sites Although from a distance all social media sites may appear similar in appearance and scope, the truth is many are geared for a specific goal or goals in mind. Identifying these goals is the first step in creating a social media site that fits into the overall operating process. So, the Page | 13

question becomes: What do I want to accomplish with this social media site? Here are a few examples of possible paths to take:

Marketing: Just like their main business Web site, their social media page can allow they to market their products and services. It can also be the perfect place to announce promotions, discounts and coupons, which in turn can help grow a following of customers to continually return to the sites or receive e-messages to check out the specials.

Communication: Another purpose social media sites serve is communication to both current and prospective customers. These sites are perfect for businesses to push out communication messages to their customers and interested parties, as well as provide a forum where customers can ask questions, strike up a conversation with other customers, and make comments.

A Combination of the Two: For some businesses, a combination of the two examples is the right fit, as theyre able to both market their products and services and allow for open communication in the same medium.

Regardless of the initial and ongoing goals of the social media sites created, a business owner and his or her staff should make it a priority in order to benefit from it. 2.1.7 Communicating through Social Media The advent of social media has changed the way companies organise their outwardly Communication activities. Companies are also beginning to realise that customers will talk about them, with or without them. As most of the internet is open and unsecured, these comments or sentiments can be easily seen or read by potential customers or clients. Where companies can now observe their customers or competition by listening in to conversations, they are also susceptible to the same reciprocal tactics. This is the challenge that companies and brands are facing in the Web 2.0 and social media era.

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 Loss of Control Todays popular consensus is that companies can no longer control the perceptions to their brands. These include control of the companys corporate message as well as parties responsible for disseminating information from the organisation. Conversely, any person with an internet connection and a computer is able to review or comment on a brand, either on their Facebook page, Twitter or anywhere else on the internet. This effect of the democratisation of media is a vital inducement to re-evaluate how brands and companies communicate. Public Relations Traditional public relations (PR) practices do not work anymore. Scott cites that, instead of pushing press releases or information to traditional media outlets (for eg. journalists, newspapers and TV stations), companies can now take ownership and independently publish information. These include official company blogs, YouTube, online news sites and even through direct relations with market analysts and influential bloggers. Changing Perceptions In real-life practice, social media has also provided public relations with a formidable tool in altering public perceptions. In a current takeover battle between Kraft and Cadbury, Kraft engaged a renowned PR firm, Brunswick Group, to connect with Cadburys stakeholders via social media. The campaign uses video messages from Krafts executives and informative micro sites to win over support from Cadburys stakeholders to the proposal of being acquired. By developing niche messages and directly targeting and communicating to the audience, is likely to appeal the stakeholders.

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 Public vs. Media From the earlier arguments, this study deduces that the public relations role in a companys brand and perception management has indeed transformed with social medias arrival. What used to be a function that tries to influence and alter public perceptions predominantly through close media relations, is in fact much more associated now with direct public management and engagement in the Web 2.0 environment. However, such close association with the public is a positive development in the age of increased corporate social responsibility (CSR). Online Thought Leadership By communicating online thought leadership through content development and knowledge sharing (for example, white papers, e-books and articles), the company will receive recognition for its expertise and an enhanced brand perception from potential clients or customers. The online thought leadership is in fact a long term investment that will ensure a company maintain an extended influence over a community audience. With a loyal community audience, the company may find that it is easier it to push through innovative and revolutionary ideas to its clients and customers. Blogging with Authority Blogging is an effective method of communicating an organisations message. Other than being direct and immediate, a blog allows for a two-way dialogue to be established for a customer to provide his views and comments. This activity is a cost effective method to receive feedback and inputs from customers regarding a companys products or services. However a blog, as a marketing tool, should be a launch pad for spreading of ideas. Termed viral blogs, a blogging corporate leader or employee must have an authoritative opinion but with a flexible allowance for discussion. CSR through Social Media In this time of increased corporate social responsibility awareness and green marketing, an organisations degree of openness and transparency are a sure measure of its serious intention. CSR and green marketing objectives are best achieved through the adoption of Web 2.0 technology. Apart from efficiency in use of resources (which directly contributes to green credentials), Carter maintains that using social media to promote a companys CSR and green initiatives can trigger solid word-of-mouth references and drive influencers Page | 16

willingness to tell a companys story. Such viral outcomes are welcomed as most typically, the primary objective of CSR and green campaigns are in the creation of strong advocates that will passionately support a motion or alternative solution to an environment issue.

2.1.8 All-In-One Marketing Solutions for Integration, Intelligence, Improvement All-In-One Marketing Solutions take their marketing efforts to the next level by incorporating many important marketing tools into a single integrated program. They help one to manage their entire marketing funnel by offering key functions such as:

lead management search engine optimization (SEO) social media management

These solutions include advanced reporting functions so that they can continuously test and optimize their marketing, creating the opportunity for ongoing improvements to their marketing results. Sounds like a dream come true for practically any small business owner, right? Well, before they rush out to purchase one of these solutions, they should first weigh the pros and cons and confirm if this type of solution is a good fit for one. These solutions are typically for the more advanced user with previous marketing experience. One reason for selecting this type of solution would be that they want an all-in-one tool instead of investing in many platforms that dont integrate. Another reason for opting for an All-In-One Marketing Solution is the broad functionality across many marketing areas instead of deep functionality in one area. (Keep in mind that if they currently love working with a certain stand-alone tool, a comprehensive solution may not be for they.) After deciding whether they need an All-In-One Marketing Solution, choosing one can be just as difficult. There are numerous vendors to choose from, each with varying degrees of functionality at different price points. To decide which solution is best, following questions should be asked: How Advanced Are Their Online Marketing Capabilities?

Businesses that are newer to marketing may want more basic functions and fewer complexities to deal with. Similarly, companies that excel at traditional marketing but have Page | 17

less experience online may not be considered advanced users. These solutions may be a bit over their head if they have little-to-no online marketing experience. Is It Important to Have an Integrated Tool?

If they were previously focused on just one marketing channel, an All-In-One Marketing Solution may have extra functionality that they either dont need or they arent prepared for. On the other hand, if they have already been managing many functions at once, these tools will help they coordinate their efforts and save they time. What Functions Are a Must?

More advanced users will need higher levels of customization and will get the most out of the broadest toolset. Not all vendors offer the same functions, though, so they can quickly eliminate the ones that do not include the functions that are most important to they. Also consider if they need their solution to integrate with any of their existing applications some vendors have pre-integrated applications or offer APIs that allow their programs to talk to each other. What is Their Budget?

These comprehensive solutions can be a bit pricey (compared to standalone tools), so they need to be willing to spend at least a few thousand dollars a year. Think about if they prefer month-to-month pricing with no contract or a signed annual contract. Cheaper solutions tend to sacrifice some functionality, so be prepared for a trade-off. How Much Customer Support Do They Need?

Each vendor offers different levels of support from 24-hour live phone help to email query responses to basic online self-support. If they are a beginner or they need complex customization, they may need more personalized help. Be aware that some vendors may charge extra for additional support. Also, consider how broad the user base is for each product.

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2.1.9 Importance of social networking sites in marketing strategy formulation The whole marketing landscape has changed with the introduction of Social Media. New avenues were opened for marketers that before did not exist or were too complicated. Now we have an easy to use and powerful tool at our finger tips that can share a piece of content all over the world in seconds. Many people use Social Media for personal reasons but now if they are not using it for business reasons theyre already behind. One will be surprised how using Social Media can reach into other parts of one marketing strategy. Driving Traffic: Every website owner wants to increase their traffic; Social networks top the list of site referrals. Not to mention that they triumph in time spent on site, as well. Search Engines used to be the sole focus for driving traffic and marketers allocated all their resources there. SEO still exists but it has now become more social. SEO: With every coming update to a search engine, more social results are being integrated. Whether it is being using Facebook or Google using Google +, algorithms are not taking social results into account. Even Social networks themselves are becoming search engines. For example Facebooks graph search or Twitter being a real-time search engine. Ones efforts though social will become more significant in one SEO strategies. One can no longer do one and not the other without compromising ones results. Engagement: Communication is important for any business but positive engagement with the customer base can really lead to improved reputation. Social allows brands and user to interact freely and quickly. The brand takes on a personal role and becomes a member of a conversation. Resulting exposure can develop a quality brand image. Branding: With every profile being unique, businesses can give brands a personality on social networks. How they interact, the look and feel of the profile, all encompass the general characteristics of the brand. For many businesses one social profile may be more important than one website. Mobile: At the forefront of social is mobile, because most of the social activity that is being done is being done through a mobile device. Remember that most internet activity is being done through mobile devices; plan accordingly when developing one social strategy. Everything on a mobile device can be shared with any social network, Page | 19

take that into perspective. One website most likely will be viewed through a mobile device, be sure it is compatible and offers the viewer a positive experience. Benefits for Learners Young people as social participants and active citizens Social networking services can provide an accessible and powerful toolkit for highlighting and acting on issues and causes that affect and interest young people. Social networking services can be used for organising activities, events, or groups to showcase issues and opinions and make a wider audience aware of them. Young people developing a voice and building trust Social networking services could be used to hone debating and discussion skills in a local, national or international context. This helps users develop public ways of presenting themselves. Personal skills are very important in this context: to make, develop and keep friendships, and to be regarded as a trusted connection within a network. Social networking services can provide young people with opportunities to learn how to function successfully in a community, navigating a public social space and developing social norms and skills as participants in peer groups. Young people as content creators, managers and distributors Social networking services rely on active participation: users take part in activities and discussions on a site, and upload, modify or create content. This supports creativity and can support discussion about ownership of content and data management. Young people who use social networking services to showcase content music, film, photography or writing need to know what permissions they are giving the host service, so that they can make informed decisions about how and what they place on the site. Users might also want to explore additional licensing options that may be available to them within services for example Creative Commons licensing to allow them to share their work with other people in a range of ways.

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 Young people as collaborators and team players Young people as collaborators and team players Social networking services are designed to support users working, thinking and acting together. They also require listening and compromising skills. Young people may need to ask others for help and advice in using services, or understand how platforms work by observing others, particularly in complex gaming or virtual environments. Once users have developed confidence in a new environment, they will also have gained the experience to help others. Young people becoming independent and building resilience Online spaces are social spaces, and social networking services offer similar opportunities to those of offline social spaces: places for young people to be with friends or to explore alone, building independence and developing the skills they need to recognise and manage risk, to learn to judge and evaluate situations, and to deal effectively with a world that can sometimes be dangerous or hostile. However, such skills can't be built in isolation, and are more likely to develop if supported. Going to a social networking service for the first time as a young person alone can be compared to a young person's first solo trip to a city centre, and thus is important for a young person to know how to stay safe in this new environment. Young people developing key and real-world skills Managing an online presence and being able to interact effectively online is becoming an increasingly important skill in the workplace. Being able to quickly adapt to new technologies, services and environments is already regarded as a highly valuable skill by employers, and can facilitate both formal and informal learning. Most services are text based, which encourages literacy skills, including interpretation, evaluation and contextualisation. 2.1.10 Challenges for Social Networking Marketing Small businesses are faced with tackling a number of obstacles each day to generate more revenue and earn customer loyalty, and social media marketing is just one part of the equation. Here are the most common marketing concerns:

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 Designing a website that drives conversions: Its not surprising that 85 percent of consumers nowadays judge the quality of a brand by its online presence, including its website and activity on social media. If youre not a webmaster yourself, it can be highly advantageous for your business to engage a trained professional who is to handle this critical marketing aspect for you. Generally, social media agencies have the ability to both design a website for your business as well as manage your social media pages to help drive more conversions. Creating content that appeals to both your target audience and search engines . In the recent State of B2B Content Marketing Survey, 76 percent of those surveyed felt that content creation takes up too much time. For this reason, a popular trend has been to outsource content marketing to a team of professionals that are dedicated to this task. This team can optimize your content to ensure that it will be well received by your customer base and search engine algorithms. Clearly defining your target audience. Small businesses typically do not have the budgets to conduct extensive market research when completing their buyer personas. Becoming more mobile friendly. Users that access the Internet from a mobile device is expected to reach 1.7 billion by the end of 2013, which makes it absolutely necessary for businesses to become more mobile friendly with their marketing strategies. This means that your business should have a website that is conducive to mobile viewing as well as mobile optimized landing pages and email campaigns. Increasing customer engagement. Brands that experience the most customer engagement have a higher conversion rate and increased online presence. Running Facebook contests and allowing users to share content are some great solutions for increasing engagement with your fans. Page | 22

2.2 Data / Information Analysis 2.2.1 Top 15 Most Popular Social Networking

Facebook

LiveJournal

Twitter

Tagged

Linkedin

Orkut

Pinterest

CafeMom

myspace

Ning

Google plus+

Meetup

DeviantArt

myLife

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Here are some major issues obtained from above social networking sites analysis: Popularity of Social Media Networks for Marketing: The findings are interesting and promising for social media networks as a tool that will continue to grow in use. A full 88% of respondents use social media networks, and 81% of them reported gaining business exposure as a result. As far as experience level, 72% reported being beginners or being at it for a few months. These results alone suggest that while the tool is getting a lot of attention now, it will get more in the future as those benefits (such as the added exposure) are experienced by more of the 72% of respondents who are only beginning to experience social media network marketing. Experience: Out of the 88% of respondents who reported using social media networks, 30.2% were sole proprietors who were just getting started. The most experienced users were owners of 2 to 100 employee companies at 29.3%. Time Commitment: 64% of respondents invest 5 hours a week or more, while 39% report investing 10 hours per week or more. A small percentage 9.6% - spends 20 hours or more per week in social media network marketing. This small group has evidently found a reward for their time investment, as they are the same group who reported having been using this tool for years. Age Groups: The most likely age group to be using social media network marketing is the 30 to 39 year-olds. The next most likely age group is 20 to 29 year-olds, and finally the 50 to 59 age group. The percentages of people dedicating 20 hours or more per week within these age groups are 44.8%, 40.3% and 38.7%, respectively. The findings are consistent in that the most likely age group also has the highest percentage of 10+hour users.

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 Perceived Benefits: The largest perceived benefit, as expressed by 81% of respondents, is business exposure. After this come increased traffic or conversion rates for 61% of respondents; new business partnerships for 56% of respondents; rise in search engine rankings for 52%; qualified sales leads for 48%; reduced marketing costs for 45% of respondents; and for 35% of respondents social media networks helped them close business. At least from what can be seen in the report, no respondents offered quantitative evidence of the benefits experienced such as search engine rankings before and after or revenue achieved directly through social media network marketing. Most Used Social Media Networks: Twitter is the top social media tool in use by marketers as reported by 86% of respondents. The ones that follow in rank are:

Blogs 79% LinkedIn 78% Facebook 77% TheyTube/Video Sites 41% Social bookmarking sites 38%

Sites of Interest: As everything evolves continually in cyberspace, savvy marketers want to be if at all possible ahead of the game. Social media networking sites pop up all the time and the public moves from one to the other in some measure. Social bookmarking sites, such as Del.icio.us, are the ones marketers are most curious about and interested in with 58% of respondents naming them. Right behind, by one percentage point comes Twitter, which is consistent with the finding that 94% of the most experienced users go for Twitter as their number one choice, since these are the same 9.6% of users who spend 20 hours or more a week and are the most experienced.

Nearly 90% of Affluent Consumers Use Social Media: About 90 percent of mass affluent consumers use social media, according to a recent LinkedIn study. The study, influencing the Mass Affluent, classifies the mass affluent as consumers who have investable assets between $100,000 and $1 million. LinkedIn says that this group is active on social media and could prove a key market for financial institutions. Of that Page | 25

90 percent of the mass affluent that use social media, 44 percent engage with financial institutions on social media. LinkedIn found that the mass affluent use social media primarily for professional reasons. The firm's study reported that one out of every two surveyed use social media to connect with other professionals. While one in three use social media to engage with professional content. 2.2.2 Analytical description of some major social networking sites marketing strategy: Which Social Network is Best for B2B Marketing

Google+

Google+ is becoming the next big social network for business. As of March 2013, Google+ had 350 million active users. That is more than on LinkedIn, Twitter, Pinterest, and YouTube. When ones content is placed on Google+ it has the chance to rank higher because the content is fed into the personal search results of your Google+ circles. And content that is feature-rich, like online video (YouTube a Google product) and images supported with text Page | 26

gains ultimately more exposure. Feeding content to Google+ from a YouTube channel or Pinterest board is a good idea. Google+, as a Google product, means it will undoubtedly be integrated into other developing applications supporting content marketing and organic search. Social signals are the gold piece for any B2B marketer. With Google+, you can have a business page as well. This means that a person can follow and engage with your business on a personal level, creating opportunities for relationship building. Relationship development is what B2B sales is all about. The Google+ Hangout real-time video application is another major bonus to Google+ as a B2B social network. All you need is a webcam and an audience and you can run video conferencing within the tool. This keeps business professionals talking on Google+. Further that those Hangouts can be published directly to YouTube. On the negative side, Google+ is a platform for content delivery more than a way to business network. Conversations on Google+ can get out of hand and can be a turn off in the same way that too many emails can do to a B2B prospect. Finally, Google+ for business users and business pages are still an area lacking in terms of overall B2B adoption. For Google+ to win here, Google will need to invest in marketing that feature.

LinkedIn

LinkedIn makes it easy to build relationships with your target prospects. LinkedIn was born and bred to create and develop business relationships, and has grown to have 225 million active users in more than 200 countries. The obvious opportunities in using LinkedIn as a marketing tool include personal branding for executives, sales development for business development professionals and marketing opportunities via LinkedIn targeted, real-time lead gen advertising. The key to winning on LinkedIn, as it were, is to use LinkedIn on a daily basis to provide valuable support to your connections and Groups. Marketing on LinkedIn is sophisticated. A marketer can run a targeted ad by location, industry, title, company and other specific Page | 27

demographics. Further, those ads can capture leads on the fly (a great feature). On a company level, LinkedIn provides businesses with opportunities to engage with company followers on a one on one level. LinkedIn is the ultimate social networking tool for business professionals. Real networking happens in Groups and in the context of comments and status engagement. On the negative side, LinkedIn as a website, has multiple user experience and functional issues. In the haste to make LinkedIn feature-rich, at any time, issues may arise from unnecessary messages, pop-ups and disabled links. LinkedIn networking and marketing doesnt necessary work on its own. This is why it is crucial to take your LinkedIn developed relationships offline, whether on the phone or in person to close the deal.

Twitter

Twitter is, for busy business professionals, marketers and CEOs, the easiest way to get the message out, so to speak. A micro blogging tool that forces copy-like conversations, Twitter enables quick information to link backs to important web pages of conversion (i.e., your website and your blog. Twitter is a great place for B2B marketers to find and engage with, via Twitter private lists, for example, targeted media. B2B marketing on the Internet is all about three key components: Online reputation, Thought-leadership and a Strong Online Brand. Twitter can be very useful in addressing these areas. The mobile app for Twitter and ability to tweet 24/7, as many social media marketers do, is easy to do. Twitter is where the news breaks. Twitter is where real-time conversations are happening. Twitter is the best social media tool for covering events and running events live. Event marketing of conferences, workshops and seminars are crucial to the success of any B2B organization these days. Twitters search algorithm and use of hashtags makes it easy for reporters to find interview subjects and speakers. On the negative side, because of Googles ownership of Google+ however, any article shared on Twitter will become visible Page | 28

in organic Google results after the same on Google+. Also, Twitter yes makes it easy for you to reach out to reporters and business professionals you do not know, but this does not mean you will get a reply. Twitter followers are nowhere near as substantial as a LinkedIn connect whom you have, if you're doing LinkedIn marketing correctly, developed a relationship.

YouTube

Online video, done correctly, meaning with the brand in mind and well thought out for target engagement needs to be a crucial component of any online marketers social media marketing program. YouTube, as a Google product and video-serving platform, in itself is an opportunity for B2B social networking. Most videos when made compelling and shared appropriately can certainly serve to drive qualified inbound leads. YouTube links of videos can be embedded and shared on websites, such as SlideShare, another necessary B2B online marketing tool. In doing so, these videos can then become visible to target connections on important B2B social networking sites like Google+, LinkedIn, and Twitter. As a standalone B2B social network, YouTube isn't truly where the lead capture happens or where relationships are developed.

Facebook

Facebook, the 800-pound gorilla, is certainly the number one B2C social media network. As a B2B social media tool, Facebook does serve to deliver client services, online promotions and event announcements primarily. Another important B2B feature provided by Facebook is Page | 29

the ability to gain opt-ins for e-mail marketing on a business page. B2B marketers who turn to Facebook as a social media tool need to heavily engage in target and organizational groups and pages. Creating direct B2B sales relationships from Facebook is certainly done, but not at the level of a LinkedIn or even Twitter.

Over the past few months since Facebook released the 'Promote' option for posts we have been studying it. The option is a one-click 'Promote' this link listed on each post for a simple $7 fee to 'expand' the post into a wider audience. In terms of marketing this seems like a nobrainer since anyone can post an ad, article, news or information and reach more people without having to setup a pay per click account. Initially the fee was $5 but once it proved to be a success the fee was raised to $7. When anyone makes an update on a 'Page' or 'Profile' the option will show on the lower right side to 'Promote' this post with an estimated reach listed. We used this option to 'Promote' several posts from August 2012 to February 2013 and tracked the results. The 'Promote' option was used on the example below showed 331 views on the first 'Promoted' post while the second post had 296 views without any paid promotion. There was a significant spike in views every time a post was shared on Facebook but the difference between a paid post and a normal one was usually around 10%. The negative side of the idea of paid promotion or 'Pay Per Click' on Facebook may seem like an easy way to reach a wider audience but the results show it has no real value yet. The PPC marketing on Facebook produced zero results over a 12 month study using multiple accounts. If a company is looking for 'Branding' alone then Facebook PPC ads are a viable option but there are too many problems with the tracking, click fraud and service to be effective for most users today.

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2.2.3 Social Media and CRM Every organisation must know every single one of their best customers by name. To achieve this, social media can be used to provide visibility and almost real-time direct channels to engage and interact. The argument also extends to the idea that your best customers will always know where to find your company if they have a problem. As customers have been empowered by easily-available social media tools, the expectation is growing that their favourite retailers will engage them in the online domain.

New Rules of CRM: This is where the argument for social media and customer relationship management (CRM) converges. CRM drives the radical customer-oriented marketing concept (4Cs of customer, cost, convenience and communication) that is slowly replacing the traditional 4Ps of marketing thinking (product, place, price and promotion). The 4Cs emphasis is to approach marketing from consumers perspective. In this regard, we can find that both CRM and social media offer the same benefits and end-results for companies and their customers, which is visibility and long term patronage. A recent Forrester survey found that social media is extensively helping companies to deepen their relationships with customers through complementary uses of social tools and CRM systems. Using social media, in conjunction with CRM tools, provides a new level of customer intelligence. Listening in to customers sentiments and gathering attitudinal data via social media will provide business strategists with higher level of confidence in decision making.

Real-Time Customer Management: Close customer management through social media also translates into an enhanced customer service experience. A good example of this is Comcasts Twitter service. Customers tweets sent to its @comcastcares Twitter accounts are typically responded in full public view. In an online world, a company must be seen as responsive by customers and non-customers. This approach not only provides a level of transparency and genuine authenticity to the companys profile but will ultimately enhance the efforts in customer retention. Social media can fulfil the traditional metrics of marketing, which are to limit churn and increase customer retention. More importantly, the CRM practice, coupled with freely available social tools, can be a cost effective activity to any organisation intent on a long-term and sustainable business model, albeit with budget limitations.

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2.3 Findings

Social networking marketing strategy helps to attract Leads. Use Social networking sites is used to engage with email Subscribers Social media marketing helps to combine different marketing channels This strategy helps to identify expected outcomes. Helps an organization to become the Wikipedia of their Industry Enable meet in Person or Virtually Connect with the customers By using social media as marketing channel they can ask their audience anything and can silicate responses Established the idea of listening first and never stop listening This virtual strategy helps to move a business from social like to social trust Social media helps to secure different companys brand and product names Helps to find business content marketing mission statement Help to listen 100% of the time Social media marketing helps companies to create a systematic approach to building their network and brand. Enable companies to create business voice and help them to share something of value in social media communities. Social media marketing helps to share content shat resonates with your audience Encourage exchange contact information on any social network Helps to distribute company blog content to the most popular groups This virtual marketing strategy helps to integrate social media best practices Enable to focus on getting attention first from the people

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2.4 Summary & Conclusions

Social media do indeed have a significant role to play in contemporary marketing. Although there are dissenting voices in regards to the use of social media as a marketing tool, generally, social media has been proven to have important applications for marketing campaigns, public relations activities and customer relationship management programs. A balanced and complementary approach is required to integrate social media into marketing practices. The expert consensus calls for marketers to engage in a subtle and restrained manner when engaging customers in social media. Making inroads through influence and permission, rather than direct selling, will more likely provide the benefits of long-term engagement. Therefore, the objective for social media marketers is indeed to turn customers into brand advocates. The significance of social media as a possible corporate ideology cannot be ignored. With open and transparent communication through social media, companies can benefit from the increased level of trust by customers and stakeholders. Although social media is a recent arsenal to the field of business marketing, its potential as a marketing tool cannot be overlooked. However, further development in its practice and usage is required in order to increase corporate adoption. A rapidly increasing segment of marketers are gaining the experience required to advance from novice to competent practitioner capable of achieving social marketing objectives and proving ROI. In the year ahead, we see social marketing maturing to the point where a majority of organizations will be in transition from the trial phase to the strategic phase of the learning curve. We see marketers first researching the medium and monitoring audiences to determine realistic objectives, then formulating tactics and implementing tools for accomplishing those objectives. The sudden emergence of social media in the public realm and the realisation of a powerful and coordinated online consumerforce have raised alarms in corporate offices all over. As consumers increasingly influence each other and share opinionated views on brands and products on the internet, businesses are compelled to rethink and reorganise marketing and communication strategies.

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CHAPTER 3: TERMINATION

Recommendation: Here are some recommendations for improving marketing strategy of todays social networking sites One need to add social bookmark links to their most important web pages and/or blog posts to improve sharing. They should build blogs and teach conversational marketing and business relationship building techniques. Need to learn how tagging and other metadata improve their ability to search and measure the spread of information. They should build community platforms around real communities of shared interest. Need to help companies participate in existing social networks, and build relationships on their turf. Must couple their email newsletter content with additional website content on a blog for improved commenting. Recommend that ones staff start personal blogs on their personal interests, and learn firsthand what it feels like, including managing comments, wanting promotion, etc. They should map out an integrated project that incorporates a blog, use of commercial social networks, and a face-to-face event to build leads and drive awareness of a product. One should explore distribution and can reach more potential buyers/users/customers on social networks. They must practice delivering quality content on their blogs, such that customers feel educated / equipped / informed. Need to ensure that one is offering the basics on their site, like an email alternative to an RSS subscription Helping customers and prospects to connect with ones business simply on their various networks. Regular Investigation to see whether product sells better by recommendation versus education, and use either wikis or widgets to help recommend, or videos and podcasts for education. Page | 34

Appendices

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Bibliography Digital Sherpa. (2013). Retrieved from Digital Sherpa web site: http://digitalsherpa.com/5common-social-media-marketing-challenges-faced-by-small-business-owners/ eBiz. (2013). Retrieved from eBiz web site: http://www.ebizmba.com/articles/socialnetworking-websites Inc. (2013). Retrieved from http://www.inc.com/eric-v-holtzclaw/12-essential-tips-to-getsocial-media-traction.html?nav=river Search Engine Land. (2013, June). Retrieved from http://searchengineland.com/guide/whatis-social-media-marketing Search Engine Watch. (2013, May). Retrieved from searchenginewatch.com: http://searchenginewatch.com/social Slideshare. (2013). Retrieved from http://www.slideshare.net/jeffbullas/10-steps-to-asuccessful-social-media-marketing-strategy SME Association of Australia. (2013). Retrieved from SME Association of Australia web site: http://www.smeaustralia.asn.au/resources/the-most-common-social-media-marketingproblems-and-how-to-solve-them Social Media Examiner. (2013). Retrieved from http://www.socialmediaexaminer.com/21social-media-marketing-tips-from-the-pros/ Tanuri, I. (2013). slideshare. Retrieved from http://www.slideshare.net/groovygenie/role-ofsocial-media-in-contemporary-marketing wikipedia organization. (2013, june). Retrieved from wikipedia.org: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Social_media_marketing

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