PROS AND CONS OF SOCIAL NETWORKING

Marketing through social networking

E-commerce businesses are finding new ways to market their products online. Their marketing strategy often revolves around digital marketing, as they are more likely to attract potential consumers from the global internet community. Amongst so many digital marketing strategies, advertising through social media channels appears to be the most prevailing.

People commonly use social media platforms, such as Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, Twitter, etc. as a means to socialize with others across the globe. However, in recent times, businesses have found strategies to use the said platforms to their advantage.

Marketing through social networking brings dynamic progress to your marketing campaign, which directly benefits your business. Yet, it is undeniable that certain businesses have had to pay a heavy price at the hands of social media.

Advertisement through social media channels can be just as detrimental as it is beneficial. It is always best to take precautionary measures before social media can take your business down on their luck.

What is best for the novel start-ups is that they do not blindly jump on the bandwagon before carrying out a proper strategy on how to manage their business accounts. The pros and cons of social networking will help your business avoid the internet “land mines” while running a profitable business.

CONS:

TIME CONSUMING

Marketing through social media channels is no child’s play. It is extremely time-consuming, as creating creative content to attract traffic demands a lot of time. Innovative ideas are not always there at the back of our minds. They require proper and timely planning to collect all the required content that will lay the foundation for your account’s appeal.

Other than that, factors like SEO and constant updates are too laborious work. Your business account needs to remain constantly up to date so that your customers remain engaged with your services and you do not lose a connection with them.

LONG WAIT FOR THE RETURN OF INVESTMENT

The more your business invests in marketing through social networking the effective the marketing campaign is. However, shrewd planning can also help efficiently increase brand awareness. In that case, it is not necessarily important to invest a lot in social media channels for advertisement.

It is difficult to analyse the progress of your marketing campaign as the return of investment takes a long time to show. Every business has different goals set for different time frames, but the arduous wait for the results makes it difficult for businesses to meet them.

NEGATIVITY CHANNELS THROUGH SOCIAL NETWORKING

The key to having a run a successful marketing campaign is that you acknowledge all comments directed to your brand. That means countering negative comments with professionalism and patience.

People will try to bring down your business as you expose your brand on social media platforms. Others might buy into their false claims, which can put a negative impact on your business.

Your competitors may or may not have a hand in this but calling them out without valid evidence within itself be absurd and irrational. Negativity is going to come your way, and the best you can do is meet them with a professional attitude.

ONLINE SHAMS

Through social media, word spreads faster than it ever used to be. Within seconds, your loyal customers can turn against you if a post that represents your brand name under a negative image is gone viral. This way you will no longer have the control of the reputation of your brand.

One feedback can become a defining feature of your entire business feat and the best you can do is come with an effective strategy to gain back your customer’s loyalty.

INCONSISTENT VOICES

As social media marketing demands a lot of time, many businesses allot a separate department that accounts for all social media activities. Everyone has a unique idea of showcasing their product has, therefore, they have different voices to execute them.

This can pose a problem in social media marketing. When there is more than one person handling social networking, the brand voice dilutes and perfect synchrony cannot be established.

PROS:

COST-EFFECTIVE MARKETING

Unlike traditional marketing, digital marketing does not demand a lot of investment. The key to efficient digital marketing is effective planning and optimized content. Once you have that out of the way, your business will start seeing a rise in their sales and increased brand awareness.

See Also: Benefits of Facebook Marketing For Your Marketing

Despite that it takes long before you start seeing the return of investment, the return is mostly greater than your investment. Digital marketing is considered amongst the most effective yet cost-effective marketing strategies that a company can employ.

TARGET LARGER AUDIENCE

The dynamic approach of your advertising campaign to market your products can help you reach out to a larger community than you can via traditional marketing. Almost everyone is familiar with social networking.

Millions of people use the most renowned social media platforms across the world. When you advertise your product on these platforms, you stand a very good chance that your product will attract the attention of many people.

As you can find a diversity of people on these platforms, you can expect that your advertisement targets a specific audience, who will be interested in your products. This will ultimately lead to greater lead generation and help you yield profits.

EFFICIENT AND SPEEDY

Social networking is amongst the fastest ways to connect with people. Social media marketing is trusted by many businesses to provide them with faster results and bring immediate visibility to the people. The efficiency of social networking unmatched as the users are able to launch their advertisements on social media platforms and get the results just as quickly.

Responding to your customer’s queries becomes faster and easier through social networking. People can interact with your brand effortlessly too, and give you a chance to prove that your customer service is efficient and incredibly able. Satisfied, the people will impulsively become interested in your brand and will likely convert to loyal customers.

MEANINGFUL INTERACTIONS

Many factors can help you build the trust of the people in your business. Social networking is one of them. Social media channels are widely used by many people across the world. If you are able to connect with them and respond to their requests efficiently, you will establish a good customer service.

Potential clients will ask you questions and through social networking, the communication can be efficiently carried out. It’s free of cost and does not demand a lot of proficiency.

All that is required for you to interact with the customers is access to social networks. Anyone from the staff can respond to their queries, provided that they have the prerequisite knowledge on the product of the brand.

BUILDS TRUST AND LOYALTY

Social media allows businesses to establish a good relationship with their clients. As conversion rates increase, brands encourage their clients to share their experience with their brand. This helps businesses increase brand awareness.

The loyalty of your customers is voiced through referral marketing. Referral marketing is the word of mouth marketing that allows people to share brand services with their friends and family through social media.

Frequent interaction with your customers encourages their engagement with your brand, which helps in the promotion of your business. Your business can build their trust by sharing their experience with your brand and encourage your audience to give your business a chance. Your loyal customers will appreciate the recognition and help you promote your brand.

CONCLUSION

Like everything else, social networking has its bright side as well as the dark side. The negativities associated with social networking are inevitable and the best way to confront them is through professionalism.

A good marketing campaign is aware of all the potential threats that can risk the growth of your business. They must always be prepared for what lies ahead to save your business from drowning.

The benefits of social networking outweigh the negatives. Social networking can benefit your business in tons of ways than you can imagine. From establishing a good customer service to building the trust of your audience, social networking can take your business very far in the road to success.

It is always best to take every precautionary measure to save you from any trouble that may put your business at a loss. However, when given an opportunity to grow your business, one should avail it as it will help you learn and grow with your e-commerce business.

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