The traditional marketing model was to obtain as many eyeballs on your product or service's message as you possibly can and hope that a percentage of customers purchase. Yellow pages, radio advertising, direct mail, television commercials, magazine ads, etc.. are types of these traditional advertising methods. These conventional types of marketing are no more effective as many consumers have become blind to the 'one way' messaging. The message has been overdone and people no longer trust advertisers. A recently available survey found that only 14% of people trust ads while 76% of individuals trust consumer recommendations. Accordingly, more marketers began seeking alternative ways to connect with potential consumers.
Marketing on the Internet was originally made popular through the use of Websites and optimizing those sites through SEO (SEO) techniques. While still a worthwhile strategy, SEO has been updated by Web 2 2.0 strategies, such as for example social media marketing. Personal Growth is when companies utilize Web 2 2.0 platforms, such as for example blogs, social networking sites (like Facebook, Google+, Foursquare, Twitter, & YouTube) and other emerging online marketing tools. The advantage of blogging platforms 2.0 platforms versus traditional method of advertising, and even traditional online marketing, is that it involves 'two-way communication', where users are empowered to generate content and businesses are incentivized to communicate with their customers.
The times of broadcasting your product or services message out to the masses and longing for a response have died. People don't want to purchase from nameless, faceless companies. Not merely are consumers paying attention to the 'man behind the curtain', however they also wish to know what others are saying about your product or service. A recent study figured 80% folks Internet using moms were influenced by word-of-mouth from family and friends when making a purchase decision. No other media platform allows for small businesses to reap the benefits of consumer word of mouth advertising like social media.
Benefits Of Social Media Marketing
Increased New Customer Acquisitions - The main advantage of social media marketing is that you'll have the opportunity for connecting with networks of potential prospects that you would otherwise be unable to come across utilizing other conventional marketing techniques and even SEO.
Word of Mouth Marketing- Referral marketing has always been probably the most influential way to generate sales. With social media, it is possible to create raving fans who'll voluntarily promote your product and services to their networks of friends. Of course, if your product or service is poor, you might suffer the reverse great things about this.
Brand Awareness - Branding your business using social media marketing is a lot simpler, faster, and less expensive to achieve than the traditional advertising medium and even website marketing.
Customer Retention - Web 2 2.0 platforms are the perfect places to talk to your customers about new products, special promotions, or just to educate them on your business. Through consistent, FREE communication, it is possible to keep your company in front of your customer's eyeballs that will in turn lead to repeat business and referrals. Remember, the key to this type of communication is usually to be content rich; avoid these avenues to pitch your service or product.
Rapid Results - The effective and successful implementation of a social media marketing plan will create almost instant results for your business. This increase can be quantified through increased site traffic, increased lead acquisition, and ultimately more sales. Unlike radio or TV ads, where your customers disappear once the ads go off air, these web 2 2.0 platform benefits will continue long-term as long as the communication and updating of one's social media marketing presence is maintained.