If you knew there was a marketing platform with over 800 million people interacting daily with businesses like yours, that cost nothing to implement, and brought a high number of leads, would you be interested in more information? This is exactly what marketing through social media offers. If you are not currently using this venue, then you are missing out on one of the Internet’s most lucrative marketing platforms.
1. People Are Using It
The most effective marketing efforts are those that target forms of media people are actually using. Social media are those forms of media. According to Media Bistro, Facebook has over 800 million active users, and 200 million of those joined the site in 2011 alone. In second place, Twitter has 100 million active users. In these to sites alone, your marketing potential is huge.
2. Social Media is Free
One of the biggest reasons to consider launching a social media campaign is the cost. Social media is, at the most basic level, free. You may opt to outsource some of your marketing to a freelance social media expert, but you do not have to. The only investment you must make is time. If you have the time to invest, you can get a successful campaign up and running with minimal cost to your business.
According to the 2011 Social Media Marketing Industry Report, marketing through social media actually cuts marketing costs, as much as 58 percent for small businesses. It is also effective, while being cheaper. The same report indicated that 59 percent of businesses reported new partnerships and 48 percent reported better sales as a result of social media marketing, all while reducing costs. What other marketing options can you say this about?
3. Valuable Networking Potential
Because of the millions of people on social media networks, it is one of your more valuable networking potential. You can get information in the hands of your customers instantaneously. Not only that, but through social media you can generate new leads for your business and research fresh ideas that you may not have access to without this powerful tool. The Social Media Marketing Industry Report indicated that businesses were twice as likely to generate new leads using social media than other marketing platforms. Those are strong numbers.
4. Broadening Your Target Market
When you harness social media as a marketing tool, you suddenly can market to people around the globe. These websites are open to people of all geographic areas, and your message can reach them. If your business is such that your service or product can be utilized in more than just your geographic area, this is highly valuable. There are few other viable ways to launch an international marketing campaign without spending a fortune.
5. Statistics Say It Works
Simply stating that there are millions of people on social media does not mean it can be successful as a marketing tool, but according to statistics, it is. According to Social Media Today, 68 percent of people say they are more likely to buy something if they see a positive referral from a Facebook friend. Peer recommendations from social media are trusted by 73 percent of people, verses 14 percent who trust ads. These are numbers that show that this type of marketing strategy works.
Like all marketing strategies, social media is no magic solution to your marketing efforts. However, it is a highly successful platform to use, costs little but time to implement, and has the potential to reach millions of potential customers. Because of this, it is something that the successful business needs to invest some time and effort into building as part of their overall marketing strategy.
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