The Power of Real-Time Social Media Marketing

The Power of Real-Time Social Media Marketing

By : Beverly Macy and Teri Thompson

Social media marketing is a fast growing concept and it has become a necessity nowadays; because it offers significant opportunities for companies, in terms of building relationships with customers and managing their reputation. Which absolutely has an impact on both sales and revenue.

Social media is platforms that are easily accessible to everyone with Internet access. And social media marketing (SMM) is a type of Internet marketing, which tries to obtain communication goals through the participation in different social media networks.

Recently, and due to the changes in the global marketing, corporate executives, small business owners, entrepreneurs, marketers, advertisers, and most importantly, consumers are actively seeking education and information on what is social media marketing and how to get involved.

People around the globe are connecting to each other via social networks. The speed of sharing similar interests, opinions, reviews combined with the free social media platforms, have created a new trend for delivering information faster than TV, radio, newspapers or any other tool.

What is surprising is that newscasters are encouraging audiences to follow them on Twitter, and check their page on Facebook. In fact, Facebook has currently twice as many profiles as the population of the entire United States. Moreover, human resources departments are nowadays using LinkedIn as a recruiting tool in hiring decisions.

The most important element of marketing is the consumer, marketers must view their world through the NOW lens. Consumers want directions NOW, search NOW, product reviews NOW. And they want it on their screen of choice; weather TV, computer, smartphone or iPad to share it with their friends, followers, and fans NOW.

Companies role is to master the art of attracting customers in real-time, in order to generate sustainable and profitable growth in the globally connected world. Companies should join and adapt to customers conversations and be relevant. For example, if the business is in health segment, marketers should look after mothers' blogs and meet the mommy bloggers; because studies show that women make most health-care decisions for the family. The exact same apply to any business, by engaging the customers in real-time with value that they can share, then what is left for marketers is watching the magic happens when the conversation is shared, passed along and shared again with more people.

Social media does not substitute traditional marketing. TV, radio and advertising are still having a place in the promotional mix. But companies and employees now need new online skills to stay ahead of competitors, engage customers, and respond frequently.

For companies to get started