Social Media Marketing

     Today is the first day of my Principles of Social Media course. I am a little nervous about this course, it is my first time taking a J-term course. Every day I will be assigned to read a chapter from our online textbook called Essentials of Social Media Marketing by Michelle Charello. Today I read chapter one and I would like to share my thoughts with everyone. 

     Section one is a look at the rapid evolution of social media over recent years. An example of this rapid growth is shown in the reading saying that Facebook took 3.5 years to reach 50 million users but by the time Angry Birds came out it only took 35 days to reach 50 million users. As of 2021 5.22 billion people have mobile phones. Personally, I do not remember a time where I didn't have my phone in my hand or pocket. To be honest, I don't think I could do without my phone either, I use to communicate with everyone and I still have to look up directions to and from college.  Social Media has captured so much of our population in a very short amount of time and it will just keep getting bigger. Social Media today is a huge communication device so it only makes sense that companies and organizations would use it to market and build relationships with their publics. Social Media has also given more control to the consumer as well with the ability to provide feedback, negative and positive, very publically. The growth of social media has also created influencers, which are not only beneficial to the company but to consumers as well. I personally love hearing what an influencer uses to do their makeup or hair. I trust an influencer's opinion more than a magazine ad. With all the huge surge in social media activity, marketing is moving from print to digital.

    There are always pros and cons to a situation. While social media has many advantages it is important to know the risks. Some disadvantages of social media that I find important are the lack of face-to-face connection, social media skills gap, the risk of harassment, bullying, and general inappropriate behavior. I am always very cautious as to what I post on any social media platform because anyone can see it and it never truly goes away. Some major advantages of social media that I feel outweigh some disadvantages include free use, tons of exposure to the general and key public, two-way communication, immediate measurement through analytics. There are many different types of social media metrics to measure progress like clicks, engagements, and mentions. Metrics are important so a business can see if their tactics are working, for example, if a business makes a lot of posts in the morning but those posts aren't getting very many likes then they could consider changing the times of their posts. 

    Social Media is important to a business because it raises brand awareness, creates communication with its publics, and is a less expensive marketing tactic. Social Media marketing is important to customers as well because it's where most people spend their time. Without SMM I would never see any advertisements because I don't listen to the radio or watch much live TV. Without SMM businesses and consumers would miss out big time. When using SMM its crucial for a business to have owned, earned, and paid media. While owned and paid media are the easiest to do, earned media is the most valuable. When a customer or organization goes out of its way to post about your business, viewers will notice. 

    While Social Media has grown quickly the skills to manage it in the workforce have not, which is a big issue for businesses. While my generation doesn't remember a time without the internet, phones ad social media, my parents didn't get a phone till they were in college. The current workforce does not have the skill set to run the needed social media marketing tactics. And even though the younger generation grew up with social media handling social media for a company is a completely different task and the training to teach these needed skills is still rare. There are a few skills that are required such as community management, writing skills, strategic focus, decisive, and customer service. Many would argue that the most important skill and most demanded are writing skills. 

    In conclusion, chapter one gave an overview as to what social media marketing is and why it is important. As social media grows and faster the demand for the skills to manage to grow as well. in my opinion the advantages of social media marketing greatly outweigh the disadvantages. I am excited to get more in-depth and share my learning with you all. See you tomorrow with insight and opinions about chapter 2! 

Until Next Time My Dudes, 

Em