Nowadays, Social Media has become one of the most sought after weapon for mass marketing in every industry. Be it IT, Banking or Media – you name any one of them and you would realize that it uses “Social Media” as their best tool for mass marketing to reach their target customers. Infact, it has turned into a new mass marketing phenomenon. You talk about Infosys or American Express or TOI – they all are now expanding their services through Social Media. Besides the traditional mass marketing channels, for companies like these, Social Media has become an essential medium to communicate about their products to masses.
Not only companies, but individuals themselves also use this means for mass marketing or to target masses. The innate desire to network and share information got flourished more, when in 2006, the concept of micro blogging was introduced by Twitter. A start-up co-founded by Evan Williams and Jack Dorsey realized that status updates posted commonly on social network can be more useful if it is done away from the computer. People could send update and receive updates from their friends via text message through this. As text messages are limited to only 160 characters in length, out of which 20 are reserved for the username and the routing information, thus leaving 140 characters for each message or for what we now call “Tweet”. The concept of “re-tweet” became very popular, where people enjoyed responding to another users tweet and then becoming followers of each other.
Facebook – Popular Imperative for Mass Marketing Through Social Media
If I ask you, which is the most popular social networking site in the world or a mass marketing platform which connects billions of people across the globe, what comes to your mind? Yes, the one which you are guessing is right, the one which has more than two billion users. Yes I am talking about Facebook. Almost half of the 2 billion users access the site on a daily basis which has made it a top contender for business marketing. Considering the fact that, it was formed just a decade back in 2004, the progress it has been able to achieve is considerable. Infact, marketing through it, has become a new normal today. 
All digital marketing plans are made around it. For internet marketing, it is one of the most essential type of marketing methods to reach out to the end customer. It has grown to become world’s largest social networking brand, with more than 100 million users. When thecompany went for an IPO in the year 2012, it was valued at whopping 100 billion dollars. Such is the impact of facebook, so why would companies deter from using it. Today, even customer services are being delivered through Facebook. Companies like Coca Cola, HCL, Toyota essentially do their business marketing through it in the online space. Since, Facebook also provides a prominent way of knowing what’s latest in each other’s life, it Is like a constant update, which provides huge potential for marketers to have deep research into the lives of their consumers – what they do, what they like and what not. In short, social media provides an open platform for companies to know their consumers and market their product accordingly and then plan their mass marketing campaigns.
All digital marketing plans are made around it. For internet marketing, it is one of the most essential type of marketing methods to reach out to the end customer. It has grown to become world’s largest social networking brand, with more than 100 million users. When thecompany went for an IPO in the year 2012, it was valued at whopping 100 billion dollars. Such is the impact of facebook, so why would companies deter from using it. Today, even customer services are being delivered through Facebook. Companies like Coca Cola, HCL, Toyota essentially do their business marketing through it in the online space. Since, Facebook also provides a prominent way of knowing what’s latest in each other’s life, it Is like a constant update, which provides huge potential for marketers to have deep research into the lives of their consumers – what they do, what they like and what not. In short, social media provides an open platform for companies to know their consumers and market their product accordingly and then plan their mass marketing campaigns.Other Connects For Mass Marketing Though Social Media, Besides Facebook
Around 80% of the internet users are using social networking sites of one kind or the other, be it for a purpose of networking or for mass marketing of a product or a service. They are using it extensively to share photos, share videos, share updates, post recent event updates, sharing opinion about things of interest, selling and marketing products. Apart from Facebook some of the other social networking sites are LinkedIn, Tumblr (recently acquired by Yahoo) and newly launched networking site by Google called Google+. Some of the online networking companies which are lesser known globally are Weibo, Cyworld, Mezday, Tuenti to name a few. They are all big players in their own countries but may sound niche in this overall mass marketing through social media. Along with their mass marketing benefits, they also provide a very good opportunity for niche marketing targeted at specific customer profiles with special characteristics.
Twitter – Emerging Social Media Platform For Mass Marketing
Not only companies, but individuals themselves also use this means for mass marketing or to target masses. The innate desire to network and share information got flourished more, when in 2006, the concept of micro blogging was introduced by Twitter. A start-up co-founded by Evan Williams and Jack Dorsey realized that status updates posted commonly on social network can be more useful if it is done away from the computer. People could send update and receive updates from their friends via text message through this. As text messages are limited to only 160 characters in length, out of which 20 are reserved for the username and the routing information, thus leaving 140 characters for each message or for what we now call “Tweet”. The concept of “re-tweet” became very popular, where people enjoyed responding to another users tweet and then becoming followers of each other.
All the celebrities, head of states joined the twitter network. In India, the tweeting trend was started by the author turned politician Shashi Tharoor. His popularity over this medium literally forced other celebrities like figures from varied spheres like politics, bollywood, cricket, corporate and also media giants to hurriedly join this platform. Big names like Shahrukh Khan, Amitabh Bachan, Yuvraj Singh, Ratan Tata etc. to name a few are now active contributors on Twitter. Pope Benedict XVI also joined Twitter in December 2012. Twitter is being used by them actively to engage with their fans and stay popular with them.
It has become evident that social networking has become the routine part of our daily life. This social media channel or medium is used by youngsters to make new friends while the old generation uses it find out and thus reconnect with the old one’s or stay in touch with their families.
Niche Players In Social Networking And Mass Marketing Platforms
Some networking sites are just specialized for specific type of sharing for example; Flickr for photos, Youtube for videos, Soundcloud for sound clips, which are again a good platform for mass marketing. The thing which is common between them is that they allow sharing content with friends and families who in turn can also share it with their own personal group or close circle thus leading to an increased sharing of ideas through a larger network or a “network of networks”. Also, the user is not only allowed to consume the information, he can comment on it, discuss it and can create a new content altogether. It is also providing good opportunities for small businesses as well, who have less to invest but want to target mass markets and promote and execute their mass marketing.
Human Beings Are By Birth Social Animals
Reasons For Success Of Social Media As A Mass Marketing Channel
Why communication over social platform has become so popular? Why has it gained more importance as compared to the traditional method of mass marketing? Actually, there is no single straightforward answer to it.
The first and the foremost, human beings are by birth social animals. Humans function more effectively in groups. Since most of the people are connected to these social platforms, hence marketers are more likely to find their right audience here that too with easy access.
Second they love advertising and talking about their status, they want to show their superiority, show their expertise and thus with this exchange of updates and information through social media, they get the chance to do the same. This gives an opportunity for business owners to know about the likes & dislikes of their audience without much of an effort.
Thirdly, through next generation internet based networking the human gets the unique chance to extend the exchange of information across space and time to people who are not physically present with utmost ease.
What’s Next In Store in Mass Marketing Through Social Media
Today’s social media environment illuminates new perspective of mass marketing. Many of the ways in which we distribute, consume, share and utilize information is based on the deep historical roots of marketing. But the rapid and unimaginable growth of social networking sites has raised a host of difficult questions for mass marketing? Will the internet based networking lead to trivialization and extinction of traditional ways of mass marketing? Or social media is just another fad that can be ignored.
Today’s social media environment illuminates new perspective of mass marketing. Many of the ways in which we distribute, consume, share and utilize information is based on the deep historical roots of marketing. But the rapid and unimaginable growth of social networking sites has raised a host of difficult questions for mass marketing? Will the internet based networking lead to trivialization and extinction of traditional ways of mass marketing? Or social media is just another fad that can be ignored.
Whatever maybe the answer, with its strong social and political effect, we will surely experience a profound shift in the marketing strategies and marketing tactics which are used in mass marketing as a whole.
By Tarun Gupta
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