Coca-Cola’s #ShareACoke Campaign and ALS Organization’s #IceBucketChallenge–do they ring a bell?
These hashtag campaigns are some of the classics that showed the substantial impact of social media marketing in encouraging numerous engagements among the audience. May it be on Facebook, X (formerly known as Twitter), or Instagram, people around the world jumped in on these trends and shared their creative entries.
Since then, social media has proved its prowess in conquering the digital landscape. These campaigns are proof that social platforms are not for personal interactions alone.
Social media for business is also a thing.
Social media is comprised of a congested market that businesses can take advantage of when it comes to reaching their target audience and creating a community that evangelises their brand.
It is no surprise that today, companies are effortlessly tapping on it and translating our likes, comments, reactions, and shares into profits, without us immediately realising it.
Leveraging social media for business motivations is a great opportunity to build brand awareness through content creation and distribution. However, it is more complex than creating a post and then publishing it whenever.
Businesses should not create social media content in vain.
They must employ social media marketing strategies that are laser-focused on enhancing website traffic and sales, fostering brand recognition, and engaging with their target audience.
Are you considering incorporating social media marketing into your campaign plans?
Stick around and discover more about the impact of social media marketing on your business’s growth. We’ll also unravel how this digital marketing strategy helped different brands in their advertising endeavours.
What is Social Media Marketing?
Social media marketing revolves around the goal of having a shared discourse with your audience. It is simply the use of social media platforms to advertise a product, have a two-way conversation with your target market, and then lead to a purchase.
Brands that use this marketing strategy produce and publish content on various social media platforms. These contents may be in the form of reels, interactive and educational posts, images, and more.
Moreover, it’s not unusual nowadays to see people scrolling through their phones both in public and private places.
In October 2023, there were 4.95 billion social media users across the globe. The number equates to 61.4% of the total global population. Social media is indeed a saturated place and in marketing, it’s only logical to go where the crowd is.
And where exactly is the crowd? Based on Data Reportal’s statistics, Facebook is the world’s most-used social media platform as of October 2023, with Pinterest landing the last spot.
All these statistics show how powerful social networking applications and sites can be. They stress the importance of using social media marketing in your business to drive sales and engagement.
What is the Impact of Social Media Marketing on Businesses?
From ever-changing trends to consumer behaviour, social media has revolutionised the business landscape.
It has opened a world of information where the audience is free to research and learn more about the brand and the product it sells before hitting that checkout button.
Without a doubt, the impact of social media can really be significant on your business’s overall performance.
But it is always worthwhile to check over both sides of the coin.
Positive Impacts Of Marketing In Social Media
First, let’s explore some positive impacts of social media marketing on your business.
- It’s budget-friendly
One of the positive impacts of social media marketing that can surely catch your attention is its cost-effectiveness. Compared to traditional advertising strategies, social media marketing can reach a large audience without extensively spending money.
- It can push your brand to go viral
Circling back to Coca-Cola and ALS’s campaigns, these groups are proof that you can spread brand awareness like wildfire online. With the right campaign message and strategy, you can get everyone to talk about your offers and your business using social media platforms.
- It has ‘targeting’ capabilities
Social media platforms have advanced targeting features that can guide companies in creating ads that are related to specific interests and demographics. With targeted content, you can get in touch with the right audience.
- It gets you to the right engagement
Having the right audience within your reach allows you to acquire the right engagement as well. There will be a higher chance that the right people will interact with posts that resonate with them. Fostering this relationship with your audience may result in having people who advocate for your brand.
Negative Impacts Of Marketing In Social Media
On the flip side, here are some negative impacts of social media marketing on your business.
- Unfiltered feedback
There’s freedom in the online platform, and it is always open for individuals to throw in their ideas and opinions. But people on the internet can get harsh. Are you prepared to handle negative feedback? Creating a plan of action to address these negative reviews before it tarnishes your brand name is necessary.
- It needs a lot of your time, energy, effort
Once you start your social media campaign, you need to be consistent. You have to make sure you stay active to maintain your online presence. It will take a lot of time and effort to think about content ideas weekly, create visuals for them, and publish them to different social media platforms. You’ll need a lot of dedication to succeed.
- Be careful with misleading information
Social media can be a double-edged sword when it comes to information. It provides access to different resources, but it can also be a breeding ground for false info. You must share factual information in your social media marketing campaigns to establish authority for your brand.
- Security and data privacy may be an issue
Facebook or Instagram accounts getting hacked is not a new thing anymore. It is important to secure your social media business accounts before information from your company or your customers gets stolen. Businesses must be transparent to their customers as well when it comes to data-gathering procedures for their targeted advertising goals.
Example Of Social Media Marketing Impacts On Businesses
Through the years, different brands have come up with marketing strategies that did not just make a mark on the public. But also left positive denouement to their business’s sales, conversions, and identity.
Aside from #ShareACoke and #IceBucketChallenge, here are other examples of social media marketing campaigns that truly left a lasting impression.
Spotify’s Wrapped Campaign
Have you previously participated in this trend?
Spotify’s Annual Wrapped Campaign gives users their ‘year-end round-up’ containing insights and stats on songs, artists, podcasts, and genres they listened to throughout the year.
With more people joining this campaign yearly and sharing their entries on their social media accounts, Spotify has grown its app downloads.
Artists and influencers are also signing up on the bandwagon as they post their entries on their social media accounts. This contributes to the increased sales and brand awareness of the music-streaming company.
Starbucks’s Pumpkin Spice Campaign
Starbucks markets their products purposefully. The company is known for their holiday marketing campaigns, and it is because of its seasonal drink— the Pumpkin Spice Latte— that the brand gained more glory.
The company first offered the drink in the fall of 2003 and it is well-loved by many until today. For this year, Starbucks used Instagram to creatively announce the arrival of its campaign.
Their visuals are eye-catching. The caption is short but striking. Emojis were used to attract views, and they used hip language to hook and excite their audience.
Nike’s Dream Crazy Campaign
Nike’s Dream Crazy campaign is another example of intentional social media marketing. Starring former NFL player Colin Kaepernick, the brand encouraged people to find their voice and stand by their beliefs even if it entails making a sacrifice. It resonated not just with the people involved in sports, but with all walks of life.
It became a hot topic on social media which resulted in increased brand interactions, mentions and online purchases.
Conclusion
Social media has infiltrated the business landscape in many ways. It transformed how people interact and transact with brands. It gave businesses the chance to creatively present themselves to their audience.
In social media marketing, engagement is important. There is power in being the ‘talk of the town.’ But as much as it offers positive outcomes for your brand, you have to be cautious of the negative impacts as well.
What you’ll need is a well-thought-out and purposeful social media advertising strategy that will drive traffic, conversions, and sales to your brand. The success of Spotify, Starbucks, and Nike was not achieved overnight. It was a combination of hard work and a great campaign strategy.
iFoundries is a digital marketing company in Singapore that can help you drive positive impacts of social media marketing on your brand. Reach the full potential of your campaign and connect with us.
