Explain how companies use popular social media channels for marketing

• Explain how companies use popular social media channels for marketing
• Identify ways that companies can integrate social media into their marketing campaigns
• Describe the most popular social media channels used for business purposes

Module Reading and Resources

Textbook: Marketing: An Introduction, Chapter 14
This chapter will provide an overview of how companies use online, social, and mobile marketing.

Access this resource by going to the MyMarketingLab area under the course Table of Contents menu.

Presentation: Marketing Concept Glossary VI
Module-related marketing concepts and terms are presented. Visit the glossary for a quick review of the key terms from this week. You can also look up words in the glossary found along the left-hand navigation bar.

Video: Social Media
This video illustrates the pet store’s and a competitor’s use of social media. Transcript available here.

Assignment Calendar
Assignment Calendar Module Six

Module Overview

Social media is still referred to as a new or untraditional marketing activity; however, it has not just exhibited staying power but significant growth. It has earned its place as an important and unavoidable piece of a marketing strategy. Many companies that cannot afford to advertise on national TV or to run expensive ads in glossy print magazines can have a “free” Facebook page, a Twitter account, or LinkedIn page.

Social media has brought new questions to companies and marketers alike. Some have to do with the growing pains of a new and instantaneous communications format:

• How should companies use social media?
• How is the return on investment (ROI) of a social media campaign determined?
• What about paid promotions on social media?
• Some questions are specific to the company:
  • What sites are the right fit for the company?
  • How much of an investment (time or money) should go into social media?
  • Is the company prepared (e.g., with staff, time, and other resources) to respond to customers who reach out via social media?
  • How does social media fit into the larger marketing strategy?

Similar to traditional advertising, social media needs to be informed by strategy. A company needs to evaluate what its marketing strategy is and what its objectives are. The company then needs to decide whether social media aligns with those objectives. Social media is dynamic, so it is not enough for a company to simply have a Facebook page or Instagram account. If those sites are not nurtured and updated, they can be more harmful to a company’s brand than if the company had no social media presence.

The list of social networking sites is growing; when examined in terms of usage and longevity, there are clear leaders (Table 6.1):

• Explain how companies use popular social media channels for marketing
• Identify ways that companies can integrate social media into their marketing campaigns
• Describe the most popular social media channels used for business purposes

Module Reading and Resources

Textbook: Marketing: An Introduction, Chapter 14
This chapter will provide an overview of how companies use online, social, and mobile marketing.

Access this resource by going to the MyMarketingLab area under the course Table of Contents menu.

Presentation: Marketing Concept Glossary VI
Module-related marketing concepts and terms are presented. Visit the glossary for a quick review of the key terms from this week. You can also look up words in the glossary found along the left-hand navigation bar.

Video: Social Media
This video illustrates the pet store’s and a competitor’s use of social media. Transcript available here.

Assignment Calendar
Assignment Calendar Module Six

Module Overview

Social media is still referred to as a new or untraditional marketing activity; however, it has not just exhibited staying power but significant growth. It has earned its place as an important and unavoidable piece of a marketing strategy. Many companies that cannot afford to advertise on national TV or to run expensive ads in glossy print magazines can have a “free” Facebook page, a Twitter account, or LinkedIn page.

Social media has brought new questions to companies and marketers alike. Some have to do with the growing pains of a new and instantaneous communications format:

• How should companies use social media?
• How is the return on investment (ROI) of a social media campaign determined?
• What about paid promotions on social media?
• Some questions are specific to the company:
  • What sites are the right fit for the company?
  • How much of an investment (time or money) should go into social media?
  • Is the company prepared (e.g., with staff, time, and other resources) to respond to customers who reach out via social media?
  • How does social media fit into the larger marketing strategy?

Similar to traditional advertising, social media needs to be informed by strategy. A company needs to evaluate what its marketing strategy is and what its objectives are. The company then needs to decide whether social media aligns with those objectives. Social media is dynamic, so it is not enough for a company to simply have a Facebook page or Instagram account. If those sites are not nurtured and updated, they can be more harmful to a company’s brand than if the company had no social media presence.

The list of social networking sites is growing; when examined in terms of usage and longevity, there are clear leaders (Table 6.1):