Advantages and Disadvantages of Using Social Networking in Business

Running head: RESEARCH PROJECT REPORT
Research Project Report
Name of the student
Name of the university
Author note

RESEARCH PROJECT REPORT1
Table of Contents
Executive Summary...................................................................................................................3
Part 1: Topic Approval and Charter...........................................................................................4
Topic: Advantages and disadvantages of using social network in business..............................4
Part 2: Literature review.............................................................................................................6
Literature Review.......................................................................................................................6
Concept and importance of social networking in business........................................................6
Advantages of social networking in business............................................................................9
Figure 1: traditional marketing drawbacks............................................................................9
It helps in increasing the traffic..............................................................................................9
It helps on enhancing sales.....................................................................................................9
It helps in managing the reputation of the company..............................................................9
It helps in carrying out marketing research activities..........................................................10
It is an inexpensive technique of advertising and promotion of the company’s products and
services.................................................................................................................................10
This social marketing strategy has got a global reach..........................................................10
Brand loyalty of customers is enhanced...............................................................................11
The company can get better insights of the marketplace.....................................................11
Disadvantages of social networking in business..................................................................11
Loss of goodwill...................................................................................................................11
Additional resources needed to manage the reputation of the company..............................12
Risk of lack of confidentiality..............................................................................................12
Repetitive and boring content..............................................................................................12
Exposure to competitors.......................................................................................................12
Part 3: Documenting the research methodology......................................................................13
Section A: Research Methodology.......................................................................................13
Section B: Data Collection Plan...........................................................................................14

RESEARCH PROJECT REPORT2
Section C: Data Analysis Technique....................................................................................14
Research Ethics................................................................................................................15
Survey Questionnaire.......................................................................................................16
Pilot Testing.....................................................................................................................18
Revised Survey Questionnaire Design.............................................................................20
References................................................................................................................................22

RESEARCH PROJECT REPORT3
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
This report had proposed to examine the disadvantages and advantages of using social
networking in business. The objectives of the research had been formulated and the literature
review had critically analysed past literature to identify the positives and negatives of using
social networking in business. The research methodology had proposed methods, instruments
and frameworks necessary for addressing the objective in the research. The sample size and
target population had also been discussed. A survey questionnaire had been formulated and
had been sent for pilot testing. The questionnaire had been modified as per the feedback from
the users.

RESEARCH PROJECT REPORT4
PART 1: TOPIC APPROVAL AND CHARTER
TOPIC: ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGES OF USING SOCIAL NETWORK IN BUSINESS
1. Research Topic identification and overview/discussion
The non-appearance of internet-based social media has completed it possible for one
person to interact with thousands of people around the world. The use of social media in the
business keep the noteworthy value as social media has detonated in the form of the category
of online discussion where people are free to develop content and share them with a number
of people in one go. All kind of social media offers a chance for everyone to endorse their
products to dynamic communities that can be interested. A social network in business focuses
on people instead of products (Taneja & Toombs, 2014). The company has main focused on
the promotional tool at the time of promoting the products. However, there is a number of
advantages of network business that help companies to move further with proper planning, on
the other hand, it has some negative aspects as well that become the reason of scary social
media marketing and confronting for marketers.
2. Initial literature search
The use of social network in business has advantages as well as disadvantages. According
to Leonardi, Huysman and Steinfield (2013), due to the popularity of digital marketing on the
rise, there is number of businesses investigate how social media can facilitate them endorse
their services and products to existing as well as potential customers. The businesses have
adopted social networking sites such as Facebook and Twitter in which some businesses
direct customers in the range of social network pages. The primary advantages of social
media marketing are decreasing costs and increasing approach to reach. The major
advantages for social media platform are less cost to promote the product in comparison to
other marketing platforms. Moreover, social networking permits organizations to reach
customers which cannot be accessible because of locational and temporal limitations of
remaining distribution channels (Giacomucci, 2014). Initially, the marketing firm can offer
unlimited information to customers exclusive of human intervention. It is a major benefit
over other levels of contact as the amount of information that can be given is huge in
comparison to any other form of communication. Moreover, and more vitally, the
information can be given at the level that customers can better understand. For instance,

RESEARCH PROJECT REPORT5
airline reservations and schedule system are hard to develop and handle to serve individual
needs. Moreover, with respect to, the options are huge and hard to offer in any format that is
effective in comparison of web-based format. Customer service is another approach to attain
competitive advantages and that is why many business links to Frequently Asked Questions
(FAQs) for the purpose of helping the customers in the process of buying. It is necessary for
the marketer to do not keep focus only on online assistance because in number of cases, it is
more suitable for the customers to call a company. Hence, customers can use a toll free phone
number for further assistance (Nadaraja & Yazdanifard, 2013).
The online environment enhances online opportunities, along with that, it develops
various complications and confronts for the social media marketing process. It has been
found that the transparency of the web shows all information on the portal, which can become
the major issue for the organizations. There are five major disadvantages that need to be
focused on social media marketing, which entails team intensive, copyright issues, trust,
security issues, negative feedbacks and user-generated content (Constantinides & Zinck
Stagno, 2011). It is of extreme importance for companies to prevent their own copyright and
trademarks when using social media to endorse their products and brands. The capacity of
social media is to help informal communication often on a real-time basis can help companies
in developing their brands and broadcast copyrighted material. The study of Culnan, McHugh
& Zubillaga (2010), has represented that panic of online credit card fraud has been major
reason customers. In the context of the disadvantages, one factor of social networking that is
majorly harmful to marketing campaigns is negative post responses. There is number of
customers and industry that can post negative feedback on the portal of their competitors,
which can hamper the image of the company in the view of customers. It is necessary for
making satisfy the customers by the company to provide an instant response to their
customers in case of facing issues by them.
According to Jussila, Kärkkäinen & Aramo-Immonen (2014), the online marketing
environment increases a series of prospects and confronts for social media practitioners. It
can be said that the use of social network can be great medium for the business to enhance the
revenues, on the other hand, it has some negative aspects as well that can lead the company
into a hazardous situation. It has been found that social media permit the activity to gather,
analyse and use the data of the customer. The cost related factors, interactivity and social
interactions are outstanding characteristics for company to focus on proactive-reactive
attitude and to achieve something in social media marketing. Social networking enables