Social Media Marketing

In 2004 Tim O’Reilly defined the term Web 2.0 as “… the understanding that the network is the platform, and on the network as a platform the rules for business are different. The cardinal rule is this one: Users Add Value”. To gain or sustain a competitive edge in today’s rapidly evolving markets, successful companies are drastically altering how they communicate with their customers. What used to be a very one-dimensional and one sided “push marketing” approach is now giving-way to much more natural and conversational” pull marketing” strategies.

Why Change?

There are a few reasons why traditional methods are quickly becoming obsolete. Consumers can perceive the traditional approach as:

one sided
high pressure
non-transparent
unbelievable content
too commercial and thus biased

Making change in this area requires the adoption of an entirely different mind-set, a different way of thinking about customers, and a willingness to foster 2-way communication. Successful businesses need to relinquish some control on their communities, and in doing so allow the people who are, or potentially will be customers, to actively take part in a discussion.

How can this be done? Every day the tools developed and used for the social media concept grow at an astounding rate. Excite can develop a strategy to put social media to work for your business by augmenting your web presence with the necessary Web 2.0 applications and tools like a corporate blog, Facebook and Twitter. In doing so, your business can begin tapping into the benefits of true community interaction and the potential for a significant competitive advantage.