social media chapter 4

1. Sheila McNeil
Michelle Ohiri

2.  Inthis day and age, it is almost necessary for
companies to embrace social media and all
that it has to offer.
 Be careful though because using the wrong
social media tools can possibly lead to the
death of your brand.
 There are seven broad categories of tools
that companies can use to strengthen their
brand.

3.  Blogs  Videos
 Micromessaging  Podcasts
 Social Networking  Mobile Tools
 Wikis

4.  Provide a place for anyone to write publicly
available journal-like entries.
 Most blog services also have comment
sections for each post where people can
respond to what they read.
 The corporate world has discovered that
blogs can be an effective way to convey a
company’s message.
 It is very important though that a company’s
blog has personality and doesn’t seem too
stuffy.

5.  Communication through short-form messages
as opposed to a long blog entry.
 Ex: Twitter
 Customer Service and Customer Feedback is
very important on a site like Twitter.
 If you’re going to use Twitter to build your
brand, use it correctly.
 Interact with your consumers and answer
their questions. Don’t just make a Twitter
and leave it there.

6. A web destination where the main purpose is
to maintain a network of friends.
 Facebook, Twitter, Myspace, etc.
 Designed to connect people from all over the
world.
 It is important that when using social
networking sites to promote your business,
you update frequently and respond as much
as possible.

7.  Let’s talk about Youtube.
 Youtube is getting more views than some top
television networks in the US.
 “We thought we had a good idea”, said
Youtube cofounder Steve Chen in March
2006.
 As of early 2009, there were 13 hours of
video uploaded to Youtube every minute.
 But make sure your videos are of good
quality and interesting to watch if you
choose to use this tool.

8.  The article describes the efforts of the Xavier
Entrepreneurial Center at Xavier University to use
Internet videos to promote its programs.
 Internet users upload and download videos from web
sites such as YouTube.
 The authors claim that Internet videos work well due
to the low cost of production, distribution and
hosting.
 Research shows that videos have more of an
emotional connection with viewers as opposed to
text. Xavier found that using Internet videos was a
cost effective way to draw attention to its programs.
 Authors: Clark, Thomas. Stewart, Julie.
 Source: Business Communication Quarterly; Dec2007,
Vol. 70 Issue 4, p478-482, 5p

9.  An audio or video show that is released
online.
 Less formal than a radio or television show.
 Most often, they’re downloaded for free
using services like iTunes.
 Today, big companies own the top podcast
lists.
 But there are so many unique podcasts out
there that cater to smaller, more specific
audiences.

10.  SMS or Text Messaging
 Applications – can be downloaded from smart
phones (Iphone, Blackberry, Android)
Best thing to do is to make sure your site has
mobile capability, meaning consumers can
access your site on the go.
 One example would be the Barnes & Nobles
app.
 They have an app where people can scan the
cover of a book and get all the information
they need on it.

11.  An online encyclopedia.
 Users can submit information and edit
information as well.
 There are some issues with accuracy though
seeing as anyone can submit.
 Sites like Wikipedia are really growing though
and becoming news sources for a lot of
people.

12.  Don’t be afraid to use the tools together.
 You may not need all of them, but they do
work well together.
 For example, if you’re going to do a podcast,
you can post it on your blog. You can connect
your blog to your Twitter and your Facebook
and let people know when there is a new
blog post up.
 All of your social media tools should be tied
into your company’s official website in some
way.

13. The End.