Definition of social media marketing
We follow the approach that every organization MUST deal with the topic of social media – regardless of whether social media is used proactively in marketing or not. In addition, we do not see social media marketing purely as a means of customer interaction but as a cross-functional stakeholder management strategy.
Based on this, we propose the following definition of terms:
Social media marketing is generally understood to mean the targeted and market-oriented use of social media. A distinction should be made between active and passive social media marketing.
Proactive social media marketing
Active social media marketing means strategic and cross-functional management of social media to use them – alone or with other channels – to achieve corporate goals. Users can contribute their content and enter into dialogue with the company and other users.
Reactive (=passive) social media marketing (“must have”)
In contrast, passive social media marketing describes the use of third-party content from social media to achieve corporate goals without actively providing your content. User and competitor activities are recorded, analyzed, processed, and used as sole or supplementary information for strategic and operational planning. (Social media monitoring is also relevant in this context.)
Fields of action of social media marketing
Based on case studies, expert interviews (managers, consultants, and agencies), and literary analyses, we were able to identify seven fields of action for social media marketing: The Bamberg social media strategy model.
Definition of social media monitoring
A definition of social media monitoring (1) must be organization-independent and not only refer to companies. Because NGOs, politicians, etc., can (and should) also carry out monitoring. It must also (2) be a cross-stakeholder. This is mainly because, for example, Airbus “customers” (e.g., airline buyers) write very little about their experiences with the aircraft. However, it can be end customers who complain or praise the plane. Or the general public, current/former employees. Furthermore, a monitoring definition should not stop at analysis but (3) also include the subsequent steps – archiving, which also provides integration into knowledge management, etc.
Social media marketing is a form of online marketing that uses social media. There are many ways to use social media sensibly in companies. A wide variety of objectives can be pursued not only in marketing or in corporate communication, for example:
- maintain image
- increase popularity
- generate requests
- increase sales
- information exchange
- provide support
- strengthen customer loyalty
- get opinions
- Generate traffic for your company website or blog
- search engine optimization*
- training
- staff recruitment
A little more detailed:
As fewer and fewer people get their information (only) from company websites, the area of social media is becoming increasingly important for marketing. People prefer to get information independently in forums, communities, on blogs. You ask your friends on Facebook and Twitter etc.
So, in the spirit of inbound marketing (being found by the customer), you should be present in these channels if you assume that your potential customers use these channels. You should interact in the forums, run a Facebook page and create a Google My Business entry for search engine optimization. But which platforms make sense for you? And what activities should they engage in there?
Dealing with social media can be:*
• Proactive – you actively engage in social media marketing
• Reactive – you only act when you “have to” react to something
• Passive – you read and engage with social media but are not active yourself
• None – they completely ignore social media and don’t react even when there are negative headlines
social media tools
What types of social media are there?
• Weblogs/blogs (combinations of text, image, audio, and video are possible)
• Podcasts (audio/video)
• Social networking platforms (Facebook, Twitter, Google+, etc.)
• Wikis
What Is Spin Brands?
This is a UK-based agency with a presence in ten countries. It’s a full-service agency to help you with strategy and planning, content creation and distribution, influencer management, and other aspects of your campaign.
They have received several awards, including the prestigious Drum Awards. Also, they have been named as one of the top agencies by various sources. They have worked with several renowned brands such as Viacom and MUJI.
Here are the primary services they offer:
- Organic – Organic creation of content and posts on social media platforms.
- Paid – optimization of advertising on social media.
- Creative – Creating content that aligns with your brand and goals.
- Ambassadors – Management of influencers and influencer marketing campaigns.