Social media pays a pivotal role within our daily lives. Facebook has a lot more than 150 million users, Twitter, a family member newcomer to social networking, has exceeded10 million users, and it appears like everyone features a blog.

Tapping into this goldmine of existing and potential consumers is the goal of many companies Goth Egg. A cultural media strategy has turned into a vital element of achieving a company's marketing goals. Whether used to produce a buzz about the company, launch a new product, or incite customer loyalty and feedback, social networking is an effective tool for connecting a company to its consumers.

WHY YOU NEED SOCIAL MEDIA
Social media creates a level playing field for companies large and small to market their brand, product, or service to the masses. It allows the company to recruit clients while breeding loyalty among existing customers. Used included in a comprehensive marketing campaign, social networking helps drive traffic to the company's campaign website and incites a desire to purchase the product.

Social media not just makes people conscious of the company or brand, in addition it allows the business enterprise to protect their reputation by tracking what is said about the company or product. In the face of negative comments and feedback, a company can perform damage control earlier and relate solely to the public straight to renew confidence in the product or brand.

SOCIAL MEDIA & YOUR BUSINESS
Though social networking is the responsibility of the marketing department, it is important that most departments from executives to IT are on-board with the social marketing strategy to simply help ensure its efficacy. For a lot of businesses, the simplest medium to break into is just a company blog, in which the president, CEO, or other designated employee posts brief articles regarding the company or thoughts of general interest to the consumer.

"How well someone is deploying social networking depends on the niche they're in," says Kevin Palmer, Owner and Chief Strategist for Boston-based Social Media Answers. "Companies need to appear inside their industry and evaluate who the leaders are and why they're successful. If nobody in their industry is just a leader, it is ripe to allow them to develop a strategy and become the thought leader inside their industry."

The most effective exemplory instance of social networking permeating all quantities of the company is the use of Twitter by the online shoe and apparel retailer Zappos. Not just does CEO Tony Hsieh tweet regularly, his employees also post messages on the individual Twitter feeds, sharing what they're doing and what interests them on zappos.com and beyond. The employee Twitter feeds are linked to the Zappos website so anyone on the webpage can read what's going on at the company. Zappos tracks who is speaking about the company on Twitter and posts these links to their website as well. As a result, the buyer feels a connection to the company which can lead to increased sales.

Although some companies may only update their status to announce a new product, promotion, or event, companies which are most successful with social networking maintain relevance by posting on a regular basis. Content remains king and it is imperative to utilize the status update to your advantage.

Starbucks is one company that's mastered the art of updating the company's status with relevant content. Though Starbucks is ubiquitous atlanta divorce attorneys town, they take advantage of their social networking as an inferior company would. The Starbucks Facebook fan page announces a lot more than new products. They post videos, music and book reviews, articles about their staff, and encourage fan participation with fun polls and surveys. As a result, Starbucks remains on the radar of these tech-embracing consumers by updating their status and posting new content every few days. The amount of engagement they've using their Facebook fans results in an active, and loyal, consumer base willing to supply feedback and promote the company to their online social groups.

In the changing world of the internet, nothing is immediate, including results. Companies needs to have realistic expectations. "Take time and do research when you dive in," says Palmer, "Listen from what people assert within your industry, about your product, and figure out where your target market is and how they're using social media."

Though tales of instant social networking buzz do occur, much like sightings of Sasquatch, it might take a few weeks or months to generate enough buzz to improve sales. This really is especially true for small to medium sized companies who may not have the brand recognition that large, established companies have.