The first big thing I learned from this book was what exactly online social marketing is used for. The author makes a statement that online marketing doesn't build a company, it just highlights successes and story's related to the company. In other words social marketing shouldn't be the place where you try to immediately boost your sales but rather to share with others how you helped other people solve the problem your product is the solution for.
Another point made about tracking your success interested me a lot. It caught my attention because during my job shadow experience with Advice Inc the owner asked me my view on social media and how you can show your client proof of its effectiveness. I really didn't know how to answer this question at the time other than, well I guess you really can't. Well I was wrong you can. First you have to know what you are trying to achieve and then you can choose the appropriate way to track your success. For example if your tactic is to drive traffic to your web page then you measure your success by the number of new web page views you have rather than your increase in sales. Also to be effective you must understand where in the buying and converting process the person is in order to market to them in the correct way.
Another great point made was that about having a great website. In class we have been focusing on how we drive people to the brands web page and how we are communicating and we rarely consider the site itself because the company or brand usually has one to start with. When starting to market yourself as an advertiser or designer through a web page is critical. Like the example they made in the book about social proofing and having everything about you appear professional and put together, the web page you have is the glue that the people on the internet are judging you on. This is very true because people look for congruency in everyone. If we are looking to date someone we watch to see if they way they act around us in consistent with their core values and who they really are. The same holds true with the relationship you build with your customers. They want you to look believable and then not let them down once they have committed to you and the web page is a major piece of that puzzle in today's technology based society.
The next big point I want to bring up is probably the most obvious about social media marketing. That is the point of communication. The book makes a good point about how you can't talk back to your Tv and have anybody hear you. Therefore you cannot us the same tactics to talk to people on the internet than you do in other traditional mediums. The whole point of the web is for interaction purposes and now I understand why integrating audience participation is so effective. It is effective because that is what makes the internet different. People use new things because of what new they can do for them and once again the internet is new because they can tell you their opinion about how they feel about you as a company. So use your online palace as a place to display good feedback from others because a consumer will trust another consumer way before they believe someone on the inside.
After all this complicated stuff I want to hit lastly on the most important thing of all for this over worked high paced society, simplicity. Whether it is how easy it is to navigate your web page or how quick someone can pay once your consumer has filled their online shopping cart, it all revolves around being simple. It isn't that as a people we are stupid and we can't figure things out on our own. The fact of the matter is that for everything you need there are 10 or more people or companies that can make it happen for you and make their living off doing so. Therefore which ever one of those companies or people make it quickest, easiest, and most enjoyable they are going to pick your brand every time. I guess the point to make here as I wrap up is that you really have to think about what you are doing and put yourself in the customers shoes. The faster and simpler someone gets from point a to point b, then the faster you shall grow my friend.
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