The largest and most famous social
media community of all, Facebook, has exceeded 750 million subscribers and is
still growing steadily; by population, it would be the third largest country in the
world. Social communities facilitated by social media platforms have sprung up
around hobbies, locations, causes, beliefs, creative works and even brands. They
have incredible power to steer opinions and spread messages, making them both
extremely valuable and very risky to use. This chapter will provide you with a simple
and honest overview of the true benefits of social media, as well as the challenges
and problems you may face in marketing your brand across these platforms.
Types of social media
Not all social media are created equally. Some are general sites for chatting with
friends and some are serious and intricate business networks. Others are highly focused niche community pages. Most are impossible to fully define because
they have their own unique combinations of features, tools and uses. In addition,
not all are well suited to marketing strategies, or may require radically different
approaches.
Social networks
Social networks are the biggest, most popular and most widely used social
media platforms. The leader in this field is Facebook, with over 500 million users
(and growing), but others like MySpace, Orkut and LinkedIn boast substantial
memberships too. Social networks allow users to create virtual approximations of
their real-world social relationships, and facilitate the sharing of news and content.
Their focus is usually on immediate, sharing-based casual interactions between
acquaintances, though this can vary depending on the platform.
There are online tools available for creating custom social networks. Ning, a paid
service, allows anyone to create a customised social network around a cause,
business, location or shared interest; the creator can add a variety of features,
including advertising and donation applications. Recently, social networks have
branched off into niche fields: for example, Meetup (www.meetup.com) is a social
network that aims to facilitate meetings in the real world between people who
share an interest.
Facebook
Facebook is a great tool for creating an online profile. You can create an official
Facebook Page, which is a public profile page that can be created for any brand,
cause, hobby or company. Facebook users can “Like” the page if they appreciate
the content or the creator. Facebook Pages also allow you to interact with
customers by posting photos, chatting in the discussion forum, posting updates
on the wall and adding information pertinent to the business.
LinkedIn
LinkedIn is primarily a business-to-business social network, although it is
commonly used as a place for professionals across various industries to network
online. You can create a profile for your company, join groups and network with
related businesses. The company’s page can list your current and past employees,
information about your business and contact details. Others can “follow” your
profile to get updates about you.
