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NTFM…What I have learnt

New Technologies for Marketers module has come to an end. This class amazed me at the start, it was probably the only one class were a lecturer tells you “you can go on Facebook”.  Also this is how this blog came about. This class has taught me a great deal about social networking. Before this class started, I would never have taught about setting up a twitter account. I have even surprised myself and joined Pinterest. This class has definitely given me a better insight to social marketing and the importance of it nowadays.

What I have learnt from the module, well New technologies has and still is changing the traditional business model dramatically. Social marketing I have learnt is not just about the new opportunities these technologies are providing, but how to use these technologies to the marketers advantage. by having the ability to measure and justify their marketing efforts.

This was a module that I really enjoyed. At first, the writing of the blogs did scare me, but I must say when  I got into them I enjoyed writing them. I feel this module was something different and would be highly recommending it to students that are entering 3rd year. I am glad CIT have incorporated this into the syllabus.

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When has social media gone too far?

This weeks topic is all about if and when social media has gone too far. The readers of this blog will be aware of the many social media sites that I have already blogged about. A person does not have to set up an account or use the social media site for their information to be uploaded, as their friends may post information that they have gotten up to over the weekend. For example photographs of the person out on a drunk night. I feel social media has already gone too far.

As we are all more than likely aware Facebook have a minimum joining age of 13 to use this site, as do most social media  sites. However as most young teens do to use this site they lie. Facebook also have a contract that is rather complex for any age group to understand but yet they still expect a 13-year-old to read and understand this contract. This is not right and shows social media has gone too far!

Social networking sites creates a platform for cyber bullying. Some facts

However, it is hard to ignore these social media sites as they are being promoted more and more. Besides the obvious problems we are aware of, there are problems that may not come about until some time in the future. For example, the check in and tagging option on Facebook that lets users know were you are.

So the minute users sign up is when social media has gone too far!

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Poll

The Results
In total 27 people have voted and the results are:

  • Facebook    11 votes
  • Twitter         8 votes
  • LinkedIn     0 votes
  • Pinterest     2 votes
  • YouTube     6 votes

This poll was carried out to research the opinions of others to see what they feel is the best social media site to advertise on.

Facebook received eleven votes in this poll. Facebook can reach the  potential customers and grow the audience of the business with highly targeted ads and sponsored stories on Facebook. Advertising on Facebook can:

  • Build awareness: it can reach a large targeted audience with a  ad campaign
  • Drive sales: if the business offers special deals and giveaways in the ad campaign it can bring people into the store
  • Growth in fan base: it can encourage people to like the businesses page by offering valuable benefits for engaging
 Twitter received 8 votes. If Twitter is used wisely, internet marketing can be done free of cost.  The target market is out there for the business to seek and understand. Follow  the tweets of the target market for better understanding. Twitter allows you to network efficiently and with large groups of people.
LinkedIn got 0 votes. this proved to be not so popular with the voters.
Pinterest received 2 votes. Pinterest is a great tool for advertisers to get a close look at what customers like and repin.  The business can follow those who pin their images, as well as figure out what products are the most popular. There is also a gift section where businesses can showcase their products with pricing on the actual image.
YouTube received 6 votes. March 2011 YouTube was  averaging at one billion video views per day globally.  YouTube is easy to measure and analyse.Youtube Analytics is called Insights.  It tracks views, popularity, demographics, audience attention etc.
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Twitter

Twitter, well all I can say is that I have noticed myself checking it first thing every morning and last thing at night. It is just so convenient nowadays with having a smart phone being logged in and checking the updates at anytime. I have only been a member since February but I’m more than addicted.

“Many think of Twitter as a shotgun approach promotional tool, and hence tend to underestimate how valuable of a tool it can be in promoting and sustaining their business” posted by Mohammed Osman. At first I would have thought the same.

However, Twitter has grown exponentially over the past couple of years and its importance can no longer be ignored according to Chris Voss. Twitter over the past 6 years is now valued at 3.7billion. It is expected to bring in a revenue of $259 million from advertising in 2012. If it isn’t clear enough, i think this shows how viable Twitter is as a business model.

How does Twitter make their money?

First of all, it is importantto highlight that all tweets aresearchable on the website, and they feature in the search results of Google, Bing, and Yahoo search engines. Has it clicked yet– Yes, Twitter sells it’s tweets related to a particular topic to the search engines, and that’s one way  of making money. Twitter sells the rights to publish live tweets on any hot, trending topic. Search engines get live data, and unique comments through each tweet. As a by-product, Twitter gets more users. It is a win-win situation!

Another money-generating model is “Promoted Tweets”. The Advertisers pay Twitter to show their tweets in top search results, along with their company name. The advertiser’s product related trends are featured on the website. For example, major companies like Coca cola and Disney have  made deals with Twitter to promote their products.

Twitter is moving forward and its revenue is increasing. So I think this answers the question people have been asking whether it is a viable business model.

 

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Youtube for Marketers

This week we look at the importance of Youtube for Marketers.

Youtube was founded in February 2005.  It is a video sharing website in which users can upload, share and watch videos. Youtube is an important mechanism for marketers and serves may different purposes. It creates brand awareness. Also, giving marketers the opportunity to monitor feedback and public opinions.

Youtube has brought Viral Marketing to a whole new level. Viral before was through email, but this was soon about to change. Marketers have now realised Youtube as a media website is the way forward. “Youtube gets 3 billion hits per day” (May, 2011). So for Marketers “going viral” really means going global. For example the Cadburys Gorilla ad.

Youtube is where Marketers need to focus on as “the average YouTube user spends between 15 and 25 minutes a day on the site.” (Mashable) Also “on average there are more than 400 tweets per minute containing a YouTube link.” (Mashable)

This is “one of the top ten viral video ads” published by Advertising  Age (9 Mar 2012)

 

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R.I.P. Facebook

#RIP Facebook was trending on a popular social media web site Twitter last weekend. Is this letting us know Facebook is nearing an end. My opinion is  no, I could not imagine Facebook becoming something of the past. However, I decided to dig a little deeper and do research on the social networking site, to come to a clear more definite answer.

 Facebook is all about the present. They update their image to try to keep the users interested. But does this make us interested or entice us as users to check out our social media sites. Early December we were introduced to the new “Timeline” feature. It is beginning to look a lot like Bebo. Bebo is a most definite prime example of a social media site that grew and has now gone to the gutter. Once the user has switched to Timeline it can not be undone, which may cause frustration.

“But  Bebo could now be too uncool for school”

www.guardian.co.uk/media/pda/2008/mar/13/aolbebothekissofdeath

Facebok is becoming cluttered with them very reliant on advertising for revenue. The right side is given over to adverts. While every company is fighting for space, and taking advantage of  the user. This has seen more of the users accessing Facebook through their smartphones to avoid these adverts. However, this will soon not be the case, as Facebook seeks breakthrough in mobile ad market.

Twitter is a new social website where users can voice their opinions with an immediate response. It is less intrusive and a way of letting off steam without annoying others.

So I can not imagine Facebook being kicked to the gutter anytime soon.  Twitter will be the way forward for me. Will it be Facebook or Twitter for you?

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Hello world!

Welcome to WordPress.com. After you read this, you should delete and write your own post, with a new title above. Or hit Add New on the left (of the admin dashboard) to start a fresh post.

Here are some suggestions for your first post.

  1. You can find new ideas for what to blog about by reading the Daily Post.
  2. Add PressThis to your browser. It creates a new blog post for you about any interesting  page you read on the web.
  3. Make some changes to this page, and then hit preview on the right. You can always preview any post or edit it before you share it to the world.