How Social Media Has Influenced Marketing Strategies and Activities - Coursework Example

The paper "How Social Media Has Influenced Marketing Strategies and Activities" is an outstanding example of marketing coursework. In the century of technology, social media has become one of the most popular phenomena connecting millions of people across the world. Millions of people around the world interact with their friends around the world through social media every day. Facebook recorded the highest number of users with more than half a billion people across the globe. Other popular platforms include a blog, Myspace, Twitter and LinkedIn among others. However, business organizations have found the media as a vital tool for connecting with their customers spread all over the world. Business organizations are using the media to create brand awareness, attract and engage customers. In addition, the organizations are using the sites to keep track of the customers and monitor customers’ behaviors in the markets. This paper analyzes how social media has influenced marketing strategies and activities.

1.0 Introduction

Social media has become one of the mysteries of the 21st century. The explosive popularity of social media in the past decade has drawn the attention of both individuals and all kinds of business organizations. It is pretty hard to find an individual or an organization that does not recognize the influence of social media in society and peoples’ lives. To most individuals, social media is a way to connect with friends, keep in touch with them and know what they are doing (Michael 2010). For business organizations of all size, nature and shape, social media has provided a marketing opportunity, an avenue where they can extend their marketing strategy to a wide range of customers.

Social media connects millions of people from different parts of the world. It provides a platform where people can chat, exchange ideas and opinions and make new friends. However, business organizations are capitalizing on the features provided by social media to attain greater visibility in the eye of their customers. The organizations are using the avenue to engage customers, promote their products and services and collect customers’ feedback. Despite these promising benefits, embarking on the social media bandwagon has remained a daunting decision for most business organizations managers and marketers (Threatt 2014). Marketers and managers are not only sceptical about social media but are also highly starved about the influence of social media on marketing strategies and activities. Most of them lack sufficient information about the new development hence shying away from applying the technology in their marketing strategy (Acar & Polonsky 2012). This paper will explore the influence of social media on marketing.

1.1 Significance of the Study

The influence of social media in marketing is an area which needs to be addressed and looked at so that the dynamics, impacts and benefits of social media in marketing can be better understood. A recent survey indicates that only a small number of business organizations have adopted social media in their marketing strategies and programs (Threatt 2014). Social media has and remains a big challenge to organizations that have managed to control their marketing strategy through the traditional media channel. The rapid growth of the social media, the dynamics associated with the technology and the impacts of the technology remains a mystery to most organizations hence justifying their reluctance to adopt social media to facilitate their marketing strategies. The significance of this research paper is to explore the influence of social media on marketing hence clear the mystery of the social media. It will help the marketers and managers to understand social media marketing so that they can embrace the technology and innovatively integrate it in their marketing strategy.