Social Media Strategy

The Rise of Social Media

Social Media
Any form of electronic communication such as websites to which users create online relationships and
communications, and share all sorts of information from personal messages, ideas, images, videos, etc.
Social media also tends to fall in broad categories

Common Social Media Platform Categories in the Business World

 Blogs – an author posts an entry that could be anything from news article to an opinion piece
which usually includes images and videos. Blogs are an environment where readers can view
these entries and post comments to give opinions from other has posted. Examples –
WordPress and Vlogger

 Micro Blogs – these are similar to blogs but small. Authors do not usually post long contents but
are commonly short status updates often with a link to longer contents. They are designed to
up-to-the-minute thoughts or trends. Examples – Twitter and Tumblr

 Image Sharing – Users upload, share and comment on images. Example – Instagram and Flickr

 Social Networks – members can connect to other people and share personal information,
interests, photos, and status updates. Examples – Facebook and Google Plus

 Social Bookmarking – allow users to create, annotate, edit and share actual URL bookmarks to
other contents on the internet such as new articles. Once shared, they are tagged and
organized. Examples – Digg, Delicious, StumbleUpon

 Geo-location – users note their location to allow them find nearby services such as restaurants
or stores.

 Video Sharing – users upload, share and comment on videos. Examples – Youtube and Vine

 Podcasts – users download and listen to audio recordings. Content is often syndicated and
streamed on a regular basis like daily or weekly. Examples – iTunes or Spotify

 Social News – members submit stories or links to news articles and other people vote on the
value of the content. Examples – Reddit and News Vine
  Knowledge – users post questions and answers, and people vote on the best answers. Examples
– Ask and Yahoo

Evolution of Marketing
 Past Generations – social interactions were face-to-face. The audience was local and difficult to
scale.
 Current and Future Generations – social interactions are virtual. The audience is global and easy
to reach.

Benefits of Social Media to Organizations

 Expand Online Presence
o Create multiple ways that your audience can access your information, products, and
services
o Increase the number of links back to your organization’s website
o Reach more customers
 Build Reputations as a Thought Leader
o Demonstrate expertise within your industry
o Ask valuable questions and, more importantly, answer questions
o Provide new insights and quality content to gain a following that will translate to new
leads