Social Media Marketing: The Art and Science of Building a Brand

Well, it’s been awhile, but the book is coming along and I’m committed to finishing it this summer.  Meanwhile, the 1st chapter is ready for comments, so take a moment and download your copy today — it’s FREE.

What is Social Media Marketing?

The first chapter is a great introduction to the book.  Chapter 1 provides and overview of what social media marketing is:

Social media marketing consists of the firm’s efforts to create content on various social networking platforms.  The goal is to encourage users to engage the firm on these platforms and share its messages throughout the users’ own social network.

Social networks provide marketing tools to build one-on-one relationships with customers and create a community of loyal customers who continue buying your brand and draw in future customers.  Social networks also motivate people to share their great experiences with your products and people and become advocates for your brand.

Why You Need Social Media Marketing?

According to Richard Branson, head of Virgin Atlantic, more than 300 million people spend at least one hour a day on Facebook, approximately 200 million people are active on Twitter, and 100 million use LinkedIn. And social media use is pretty universal — reaching primarily users 18- to 34-year-olds (82%) and women (78%, vs. 66% of men).  However, according to CBS, 80% of baby boomers are online; mostly on Facebook and that number is growing.  Socially savvy consumers likely employ multiple social networks, so these numbers do not reflect unique users, but the numbers are still staggering.  By 2014, 65.8 percent of Internet users are likely to become regular social network users.

These vast numbers mean you can likely reach a large number of existing and prospective customers with little cost.  And the unique sharing features of each social network amplify your message well beyond your initial reach.

The top 3 benefits marketers find from using social media marketing are: 1) building brand awareness; 2) driving traffic to their websites and physical stores, and 3) improved customer insights.  Social media marketing is also cost-effective, trackable to allow optimization, and builds loyalty by generating community.

How Is Social Media Marketing Different?

New Media                                                                                             Traditional Media

About the Rest of the Book

After the introduction in Chapter 1, the book uses the next 2 chapters to give readers a background in marketing and consumer behavior.  Marketing concepts help you make the most of your social media marketing efforts and remove a lot of the trial and error currently dominant in social media.  Consumer behavior helps you understand how consumers make decisions and how consumers interact in social networks.

The next 7 chapters expand on a post about the 7 skills necessary for social media marketing success.

Chapter 10 talks about integrating across social networks — creating a synergistic marketing strategy that takes advantage of the strengths of each medium.

Chapter 11 delves a little into paid advertising options available online — such as banner advertising, affiliate marketing, and AdWords.

Feedback

I hope you enjoy the 1st chapter.  Please take time to give me some feedback — what’s good, what’s bad, what’s missing, what’s unclear.  I really appreciate your insights, so thanks in advance for your help.

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