Social media channels are great for tracking down former school mates that you’ve lost touch with and they’re great at helping you to keep up-to-date with what your friends have been up to but what about as a marketing tool for a business? Is it really worth the time and effort involved in setting up – and then updating on a regular basis – a dedicated presence on sites like Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn?
Some major global businesses clearly believe so. Take fmcg businesses. A number of these are eschewing more conventional forms of marketing and investing increasing amounts of resources into their social media profile. Many have built up armies of followers for their brands that rank in the millions (just check out the presence of products like Red Bull and Coca-Cola on Facebook). Others are using the channel not just as a means of engaging with customers but as a direct selling tool (Heinz started selling bottles of a limited edition sauce via Facebook earlier this year and it’s not the only brand to go down this route).
But it’s not just fmcgs that are using these channels. The shining example of a print business that has successfully embraced the power of social media is Kodak. The manufacturer, which employs a social media manager, says that the use of social media has had a major effect on the business to the extent that it has been integrated into Kodak’s communication mix. It’s now actively urging printers to start engaging with their audience – talking and listening to them – via social media channels and has pulled together a useful ‘how to’ guide for clients looking to take advantage of tools such as Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn.
Some printers are already making the most of these channels. US print behemoth QuadGraphics has a presence on Facebook, YouTube, LinkedIn and Twitter, where it hosts a weekly #PrintChat debate about print-related issues – the company’s Twitter feed has just shy of 4,000 followers. At the other end of the spectrum Bristol-based printer The Local Printer uses its Twitter site to inform its 1,250 followers about special offers it’s running on a particular day. (more…)
