Use of Social Media Marketing Tools - Essay Example

Use of Social Media Marketing Tools In the current marketing world, the use of social media is no longer a strategic business option but one of the necessities that provide huge development opportunities. Many companies have realised that the use of social media can easily assist the company to outflank its opponents by simply sharing their ideas over these platforms. Companies that ignore the use of social media tend to misconstrue the true impact of this method of marketing and the impact it has in improving or reducing the company’s visibility to the global audience. Of great importance in dealing with this important topic is the examination and evaluation of how Apple Inc and Samsung use the social media. Apple Inc. has been known for its “ignore it” policy when it came to the usage of social media. Samsung fully embraced this idea and made it possible to understand the importance of engaging with stakeholders via a variety of platforms. The use of social media is an important means of achieving marketing benefits while making good steps towards the utility of the resources available as well as maximising on the ability to reach out to more users compared to traditional methods of communication. Social media usage These two companies are globally recognised for their process in the IT sector, with their technological innovations having a wide following across the globe. Started as small companies aimed at serving only a portion of the country’s population, the two companies have expanded to feature almost every individual across the globe with their various innovation such as Smartphones, laptops, notebooks, and different operating software programs (Miltiadis, Ernesto & Patricia 2009:196). They understand that they have a wide following with many people always enthusiastic about the products emanating from these two technology giants. Their market share keeps shifting as the internet usage continues to expand across the developing nations, with so much potential experienced in areas where the traditional major Smartphone providers were unable or unwilling to reach (Boyd, & Ellison 2007: 212). These two understand that the power of the numbers lies primarily in the utility of the available mechanisms to meet the demands of the society. To show their understanding of the growing utility of the internet, their products contain different avenues of communication that define and determine the growing aspects of specific products in their production line. For instance, the use of the laptops has been a big boost as cheaper and more affordable laptops became available. However, the only way of understanding how this works is by looking at their outreach through the social media platform (Kaplan & Haenlein 2010: 64). The social platforms include the use of Twitter, Facebook, Tumblr, LinkedIn, and Instagram amongst others. The use of social media varies across these two companies, with Apple ignoring the use of social media while Samsung embraces it fully. Apple seems to have a negative feeling against the use of social media despite the benefits expected from its usage (Boyd, & Ellison 2007: 215). The main attribute is determining how well this can assist them in achieving its goals as well as the growing need for the utility of these measures while still making good reviews of the impact this has on the products and brand as a whole. For instance, Samsung hit close to 25 million fans on Facebook and that catapulted it to the number one brand across Europe (Kaplan & Haenlein 2010: 66). Samsung understand that social media had such a huge ability to push the company to a higher spot in the global map. This made Samsung a household name while Apple was still looking for ways of blacking itself out of the social media platform. Apple does recognise that social media is the best thing that has happened in the digital marketing era. When launching its iPad Air 2, Apple paid $200,000 a day to promote it on twitter, and analysts think that costs could have increased as the ad went on trending (Heine 2014). This is in comparison to Samsung that is already on social media and can use hashtags to trend its products when released. In fact, on twitter, it had close to 10 million users who could receive its tweet on a single day (Heine 2014). This could be retweeted and reach out to more than the initial ten million targeted. This means that Samsung understands how important it is to have as many people view its tweet while still using its Facebook page to seek for ideas on the development of their products. Though Apple has continued to make good use of its various platforms to promote its products, they may be losing out a lot when it comes to marketing their products. However, there could be another way of looking at this ignore it policy. If the clients still make Apple one of the largest corporations in the world, and make it as profitable as it is yet they d not use social media, it means they have a secret that works for them. It is premature to consider Apple a loser before making a close look at the benefits accrued by either of the two based on their approach to social media marketing (Kaplan & Haenlein 2010: 64). The company has managed to remain among the top cream of the technology companies in the world to date despite being out of the main social media platforms that others relish. Different approaches to social media Notably, Samsung has taken advantage of the growing usage of social media to benefit its production line. Owens (2014) notes that the competition present in the technology sector today has made companies to rethink their strategies. To outperform apple, Samsung went ahead to seek the services social media analytics to gain knowledge of how to deal with their main competitor. The social media analysts used a variety of tools to make learn so much about the weaknesses that Apple had. Samsung was able to gain an insight on what the consumers wanted was also at a position to provide them with what they needed. From their commissioned research, Samsung learned of the weak spots specific to Apple products. They learned that clients were unable with the poor battery life and the inefficiencies noted using the apple Maps. They also learned of the small screen and the discontent with the lighting cable as well as the inability to customise Apple products (Owens 2014). Ungerleider (2014) notes that the patent lawsuits pegging the two companies have been quite revealing about the wars the two have against each other. The details of the survey conducted to find the aspects that Apple owners dislike about their phones were revealed in court and this made many view this as an attempt to deconstruct Apple’s flagship project. Whether this was an aggressive marketing strategy or not, it reveals a lot about the power of digital marketing platforms. It is easy to come across analytic tools provided free on the internet and data that was readily available on various social media platforms. Ungerleider argues that the only reason that made Samsung disrupt Apple was its ability to make good use of information faster than apple could. This made the whole difference and Samsung became a number one brand overnight. This simple analogy had the ability to make millions of dollars for the company while disadvantaging Apple from making better progress in it interaction with its consumers (Ungerleider 2014). Samsung was now armed with a host of details that would contribute to its next improvements as well as the needed product line that would replace the Apple products as the most endearing in the market. This shows how competitive everyone is in the Smartphone industry. It also shows steps each is willing take to outdo the other as well as capture the client base from the other (Wright, Khanfar, Harrington & Kizer 2010: 75). Apple seems to be approaching the issue of social media from a very safe spot. It is looking at the different ways it can make good products and keep people talking about them without having to be necessarily present. It seems to observe a need to maintain its silence and keep people guessing and anxious over what will happen next in regard to the next product in line. It also thinks that the use of social media lessens the company’s ability to keep its products as private as possible, leading to masses of people thronging their outlets to buy the new product. Their aim, it seems, is to create a buzz about their product and ensure that people remain anxious until the date of release is confirmed (Research-Technology Management, 2010: 65). Apple is not entirely blacked out on social media. Two its products, iTunes and Ping, have social media pages on both twitter and Facebook, and that make it easier to reach out to their fans across the globe. These are however not very influential when fighting the brand wars that Samsung seems to have mastered so well over the years (Wright, Khanfar, Harrington & Kizer 2010: 77). Samsung seems to understand that the social media platforms are offering so much to enable them meet the general demands of the company as well as create new methods of meeting their revolutionary products. Apple should work on beginning a social media presence because Foulger (2014) notes that its dormant Facebook page has more than 10 millions likes despite lacking any official communication from the company since its creation in 2011 (Moth 2012). The implication is that the company has its unique set of followers that remain loyal despite having nothing to read from their favourite company. The twitter page has a massive following despite having tweeted nothing since creating the page. Moth (2012) says that the pages created by Apple have not in been any way responsive to consumer needs, something that Samsung seems to capture and capitalise on at the peril of its rivals. The fact that fans and enthusiast use social media to create a buzz on the upcoming releases, even writing blogs about their expectations. However, as McCarty (2010) wrote, the important thing about the use of social media is the ability to meet the demands of the clients and make good attempts towards the maximisation on the growing needs of the society. The important aspect is to understand that the embracing the use of social media involves a lot of advantages that benefit the company from variety of avenues. Samsung has been able to improve its client interactions with the clients, providing up to a 1000% increase in customer relationships and interactions. This has boosted its ability to responded to queries as well as comprehending the main attributes that define the needs of their clients (McCarty 2010). They are able to maximise on their ability to tailor their needs to meet their client’s needs as well as maximise on the growing demands of their clients. Samsung understands that tailoring its products to suit the needs of their clients is an aspect they cannot avoid, and take great advantage of the fact that the social media is an important meeting place where stakeholders can meet and discuss issues regarding different products. Lessons learned These two are fortune 500 companies that control a huge array of assets and products across the globe. They have a huge client base and customer support platform because of their products. However, in the digital marketing era, only those companies that can meet the demands of its clients will manage to woo as many clients as possible. By hitting the 25 million mark in the number of Facebook fans, Samsung was a number one brand in Europe. This means that the use of social media has the ability to improve on the clients view the services and products produced in these companies. Samsung took an initiative to look for new methods of utilising the growing need of the societal needs and made a quick calculation on the advantages it would gain. It did not hesitate to do so because it new that the benefits it would accrue would double or triple its revenue. This made them the best brand in the world and increased their visibility across the world Smartphone industry (Westland 2010: 8). Samsung’s marketing aggression in upcoming areas was also promoted through social media, allowing so many people to access the internet via cheap affordable and stylish phones available in different localities. This ability to cut across the divide made Samsung a darling to many and its marketing prowess has catapulted it to the top spot in the Smartphone industry (Westland 2010: 12-3). This made Apple, one that rode on the back of Steve Job’s fame, to miss a great potential that would made it easier to produce products that would address the main queries and discontent that Apple users had. Instead, Samsung took advantage of this and was able to steal a considerable number of users to its list. Using social media allows the company to reach out to millions of people and make it easier to address the main issues that clients have when using their products. As Moth (2012) suggests, using social media could also be a good way of capitalising on clients’ anxiety. The veil of secrecy, as Moth refers to it, could also be a good platform to ensure that products generate some form of excitement and make people buy out their products en mass within the first day of their release. However, this could also be constraining the employees, because they have to be careful when using online platforms. Any leak of information regarding the next product could be disastrous to the company’s strategy, and this could bring tension amongst the programmers and developers in the company. They have to operate within a specific code of conduct that today’s generation seems to loathe as they are constantly on social media chatting and sharing media over the internet (Moth 2012). Unlike what many would advice, Moth (2012) thinks that the use of social media may not provide Apple with extra profits. Neither will leaving the social media allow Samsung to grow its revenue beyond what they currently have. Though subtle changes may be noted by adapt either of the marketing ideas, it is important to note that the engagement of customers’ loyalty is something that cannot be replaced by anything. Samsung has been able to reach where it is with an increased social media presence (Boyd, & Ellison 2007: 225). Apple has managed just fine without needing social media presence. Whichever strategy is in use, companies cannot ignore the fact that the availability of information is crucial in providing the society with what it wants. Profits will come from constant marketing and strategic application of social media. Apple does this indirectly by creating tensions and allowing fans to create a buzz on social media. Samsung is directly involved in creating the buzz. For some reasons, both strategies seem to work, and may disadvantage either of them against the other. Creating anxiety sees the growth of sale numbers due to the tension created before the release. Having a constant media presence could lower the anxiety of buying Samsung products because clients already know what is present. They can choose to wait for Apple to release its product before choosing which product to purchase (Westland 2010: 15). Companies relying on social media understand that it is easy to market and broadcast their products to the rest of the globe with so much ease; something that has made Samsung promotes its products at lesser costs. Apple prefers using traditional media to reach out to its clients. This has been influential since most of the televisions have a wide coverage (Kim, Jeong, & Lee 2010:225). They also know that the media houses will air their products freely and with much zeal compared to the use of social media. This strategy has worked so well for them. Despite being the most recognisable brand in the world, Coca Cola has a huge presence in the social media world. With close to 65 million fans on Facebook, the company shows that it is easy to make as much using the brand name alone, something that Samsung is trying to do by associating itself with the huge number of followers it is looking at by penetrating into different areas in the world (Kim, Jeong, & Lee 2010:229). The important thing is to look at the different avenues through which one can sell the brand and maximise on the benefits that emanate from such as association. Ideally, the growing need for a major slot in the world market makes companies result to different forms of advertisement and marketing, something that can easily disrupt the operations of a rival company. The only good way of managing this is by looking for the different platforms that allow companies to have a multiplier effect, something that can easily miss out when ignoring the usage of these social media platforms (Kim, Jeong, & Lee 2010:232). Conclusion It is important to understand that the use of social media is a universal attribute that many do not wish to ignore. Companies that benefit from this are always looking for ways of expanding their utility of these tools to maximise on their advantage. Apple has shown that its strategy of ignoring social media can work if one looks at the various methods of attaining the huge sales in their outlets. The only problem is whether they could be earning much more by having a strong social media presence, which would allow them to increase their interactions with their clients. Having people create a buzz on its behalf has made Apple more reluctant to keep a steady presence in social media, and that means this could have a negative influence on its sales and profitability in the future. If the strategy is a win for them, then they can keep it. However, as shown by Samsung, social media offers a lot of material to compete on and manage to oust top brands to be the best. References Boyd, D.M. & Ellison, N.B. (2007) “Social Network Sites: Definition, History, and Scholarship”, Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication, vol. 13, pp. 210-230. Foulger, M. (2014) Is Apple Anti-Social? viewed 31 March 2015 from . Heine, C. (2014) Apple Pays Twitter Some $200,000 for an iPad Ad but Barely Uses Free Social Media This strategy is a head-scratcher, viewed 31 March 2015 from . Kaplan A.M. & Haenlein M (2010) "Users of the world, unite! The challenges and opportunities of Social Media," Business Horizons, vol. 53, pp. 59-68. Kim, W., Jeong, O.R. & Lee, S.W. (2010) “On Social Web Sites”, Information System, vol. 35, pp. 215-236. McCarty, B. (2010) 1,000 percent increase in customer engagement? Samsung shows how social media is done, viewed 31 March 2015 from . Miltiadis, D.L., Ernesto, D. & Patricia, O.P. (2009) Web 2.0, The Business Model, Springer, New York. Moth, D. (2012) The Apple approach to social media: just ignore it, viewed 31 March 2015 from . Owens, J. (2014) How Samsung Outflanked Apple Using Social Media Research, viewed 31 March 2015 from . Research-Technology Management (2010) “The Revolution Will Be Shared: Social Media and Innovation”, vol. 54, no.1, pp. 64-66. Ungerleider, N. (2014) Networked Insights Reveals How Samsung Used Social Media To Hack The iPhone, viewed 31 March 2015 from . Westland, J.C. (2010) “Critical Mass and Willingness to Pay for Social Networks”, Electronic Commerce Research and Applications, vol. 9, pp. 6-19. Wright E, Khanfar N. M., Harrington C & Kizer L. E. (2010) "The Lasting Effects Of Social Media Trends On Advertising," Journal of Business & Economics Research, vol. 8, no. 11, pp. 73-80. Read More