HI6008 - Social Networks in Business: Woolworths Supermarket Analysis

This literature review analyzes the advantages and disadvantages of using social networks in business, specifically in the context of Woolworths Supermarket in Australia. It begins by defining social networks and their increasing importance in modern business, highlighting platforms like Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. The review then delves into the benefits, such as increased brand awareness, improved customer interaction, cost-effective marketing, and enhanced customer loyalty. Conversely, it addresses the drawbacks, including the time and effort required for content updates, potential for negative feedback and reputational damage, legal considerations, and the risk of fraud and identity theft. The review synthesizes various authors' perspectives to provide a comprehensive understanding of how social networks impact businesses like Woolworths.

Running head: BUSINESS RESEARCH
To analyze the Advantages and Disadvantages of Using Social Networks: In context of Woolworth
supermarket, Australia"
Submitted by

BUSINESS RESEARCH 2
Table of Contents
Introduction......................................................................................................................................3
Project objective..............................................................................................................................3
Project Scope...................................................................................................................................4
Literature Review............................................................................................................................4
Conclusion.......................................................................................................................................9
References......................................................................................................................................11

BUSINESS RESEARCH 3
Introduction
The social media includes the different web-based communication technology that could be used
by an organization to share the information and interact with others. In the recent business
situation, there is a wide range of social networks are used by companies to share the
information. These social networks could be Snapchat, Facebook, Pinterest, LinkedIn, Instagram,
WhatsApp, and Twitter. It is analyzed that approximately 46 billion people are implemented the
social networking system to communicate with other people and share their ideas and beliefs
through the web. It is evaluated that Facebook is a recognized social network because
approximately 1.86 million of customers uses this site at the global level. As per the existing
situation, it can be evaluated that high amount of individuals who uses social networking are
young people especially the student of college (He, et. al., 2015).
Social networking plays a significant role in the existing business scenario. A company can
persuade the bulk of customers and deal with the business operation by using the social network.
They can exercise the social networking system to create awareness regarding their products and
services among the bulk of consumers. Consequently, it could be beneficial to increase the
profitability of minimum time and cost. A literature review of this section contains the
discussion, reviews, and detail given by several authors on the research topic (Peppard, and
Ward, 2016). The topic of this research is to analyze the Advantages and Disadvantages of Using
Social Networks in context of Woolworth supermarket, Australia.
Project objective
The main aim of this research is to analyze the advantages and disadvantages of using the social
network in business in the context of Woolworth supermarket, Australia. Following objectives
are used to accomplish the main aim of this research:

BUSINESS RESEARCH 4
 To explore the meaning and concepts of social network
 To identify the advantages of using the social network in business: In the context of
Woolworth supermarket, Australia.
 To evaluate the disadvantages of using the social network in business: In the context of
Woolworth supermarket, Australia.
Project Scope
The scope of this project is very wide because social network topic is recently popular. The
literature review is analyzed from the number of blogs, articles, and journals written as it could
be beneficial for the reader to develop the depth understanding of uses of the social network in
business practices. This project is also beneficial for retailers because it provides knowledge
about the advantages of using the social network. It could be also significant for companies and
people who use the social network as it develops an understanding regarding disadvantages of
using a social network (Nadeem, et. al., 2015).
Literature Review
Introduction
These literature review parts aid the researcher to increase the knowledge about the practices of
social media in business. It also creates the knowledge regarding advantages of using social
networking in business. This section also provides understanding about disadvantages of using
social networking in business.
Meaning and concept of Social network in business
According to Turban et al. (2015), the social network is driving force in the existing business
scenario. It is buzzword which is exercised by a large number of the company to gain the
awareness regarding the business and to publicize it. Social network plays a significant role in

BUSINESS RESEARCH 5
the business success. It is the type of media which link the viewers or readers via social media
platforms such as Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube. In the current situation, business is
implementing a social network to communicate with the existing and potential consumers. It also
aids to spread the message about the products and services in the target market. As a result, the
company can approach the right set of consumers.
In support of this, Varley (2014) stated that social network aids to interact with a large amount of
population in across the Australia. It also enables the company to extend their business. It is
stated that there is a different business such as electronics, travel and tourism, retail and another
kind of business which operates through online. In the globalization, the company faces
difficulties in terms of marketing and promotions. When a business develops good social
network then it aids to get a good response from the current and potential customers. In contrast
to this, Agnihotri et al. (2016) evaluated that traditional technique of sale is the key method of
stimulating the revenue of the corporation since social networking is costly and not reliable. It is
analyzed that people may visit through the advertisement and promotion but they may ignore
this. It may also decline the goodwill of company and gain the expenses of the organization.
Advantages of using Social network in business
According to Tsimonis and Dimitriadis (2014), the social network creates the awareness
regarding the products and services among customers as it supports them to make their own
decision. Through the social network, a business can improve the interaction with the customers.
From the different studies, it is observed that a large number of users have increased their
presence online as it creates the opportunity for the organization to enlarge their business through
an online platform. It is stated that online communication is easier and faster procedure which
enables the organization to make an effective relationship with the customers.

BUSINESS RESEARCH 6
In support of this, Zikmund et al. (2013) stated that social networking is a significant technique
which has increased the popularity of current globalization era. Social networking marketing is
entailed by business for marketing product and services. It could be economically good for the
corporation because it spreads the valuable data in minimum time to the customers. Social
network system facilitates the international connectivity. The forums and communities on social
network aid the people to communicate with others and share their views as it would be
beneficial to make final buying decisions. Furthermore, target advertising could be done by using
the online social networks within the business. It is the significant approach to bringing the
information of a corporation in front of a large number of customers which can be performed
24*7.
He et al. (2015) opined that the advertising could be successful in most of the cases hence it
should be practiced by a company. There is different fee-based alternation which offers the
content to the corporation in order to target the customers who have interest in their products and
services. It aids the corporation to reach a large number of population and minimize the waste.
Social networking has used to uprising the speed of information and news regarding the
company. In the current scenario, there are large numbers of businesses which pool the spread
the information regarding their products and services through social networking sites. Since, uses
of smartphones and the internet have been increasing hence it leads to increase the access to
social media.
In favored to this, Bolton et al. (2013) stated that social networking improves the good
association amid the business and their users as it aids the company to get business growth.
Moreover, the number of customers is increasing which will aid to increase the publicity and
supports the business to increase the profits. From the study conducted by social habit, it is

BUSINESS RESEARCH 7
analyzed that there are about fifty-three percent Americans which are loyal towards the brand if
they follow it on the social media channel. It demonstrates that social networking aids to lead the
customer’s loyalty to their brand. There are more than 3 million of internet users where 2 million
of customers are active on the account of social media. Hence, it is a prominent option for
business which aids to increase their valuable insight among a large number of customers. Thus,
social media ultimately aid to meet the needs of the customers. Moreover, business needs to
regularly check the online content of business. Hence, unfavorable feedbacks and comments
could be managed at the time.
Kim et al. (2015) illustrated that social networking plays an effective role to improve the
customer’s satisfaction level. It is a significant tool for a company to persuade the organization
with respect to products and services and improve the productivity in long-term. Furthermore,
the consumer should be aware when consumer comment and posts on the page of the corporation
as they can positively persuade the consumers by responding promptly.
Prpić et al. (2015) opined that social network engages the business activity with the customers
and provides opportunities for the corporation to gain the customer retention and loyalty. It also
creates the opportunity for the business such as increasing customers towards their business. It is
evaluated that clear visibility can aid to gain more opportunities for alteration. Moreover, each
image, videos, blog post, and comment may influence the customers towards products and
services and improves traffic. The social media marketing can facilitate the corporation to build
favorable impression by humanization factor. Furthermore, social media could be used by the
corporation to share their creative post, ideas, and comment to increase their productivity
methodologically. It is evaluated that when the business implemented social networking then

BUSINESS RESEARCH 8
they can advertise and market their offering with minimum costs to the larger audience. It could
be effective to enhance the ranking of the corporation on search engines and engages the
customers in an effective way.
Kim et al. (2015) evaluated that there are different social media platforms within the market
which are used by the company to advertise the business such as Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram,
YouTube, and Twitter. There are approximately 70% of the companies which cannot exist in the
current business circumstances to communicate with the customers without using digital social
media tools. The company should exercise this platform in which it can engage with their
audience and target customers without difficulty. For example, Woolworths Company uses
Facebook which has more than1.59 billion users and these users belong to different
demographics and nationalities. Twitter is exercised by the corporation to create the awareness
among customers about their special feature and characteristics.
Disadvantages of using social network in business
According to Piotrowicz and Cuthbertson (2014), updating the data and information regarding
business practices on social media may need efforts and time. Furthermore, updating of new
information and replacement of existing data may take more time. Social media may lead to
decline the number of followers in the business practices. It also creates several uncertainties
within the business. There is lack of personal and emotional connection amid the business and
customers.
In contrast to this, Ioanăs and Stoica (2014) evaluated that social networking entails the legal
consideration which could be costly for the corporation. Its effect could be temporary and
disappeared after a certain period of time. Thus, it creates wastage of time and may generate
unfavorable feedback of the users which destroy the image and reputation of a corporation.

BUSINESS RESEARCH 9
Social networking system also makes competent to business to arrive at the larger population. It
also persuades the users to become an honest user as it leads the rivalry to hamper the company’s
image.
In support of this, Carlson, and Lee (2015) exhibited that there is a risk of fraud and identity theft
in case the business implemented social networking for advertising and marketing. It is stated
that poor management of social media strategies may affect the business goals and objectives.
When the company advertises through social media and network then it may create different
risks such as business and legal risks. Another risk is associated with the image of the brand and
loss of trustworthiness to the corporation. It is evaluated that customers may post misleading
information which will negatively reflect the amount of revenue to the corporation.
Schaltegger and Wagner (2017) evaluated that there are hidden expenses could be occurred when
a company advertises through social media. For advertising through the social network, the
company needs to make videos by professional videographers and photographers. These people
are creative people which are to be paid for their work. There is need to measure the outcome of
social networking within the business. It becomes complex to assess the brand communication
and relations which is made with the customers through online platforms. The company needs to
act on all type of online media to gain the presence of brand as it takes more time.
Conclusion
From the above discussion, it can be concluded that social networking in business is essential
when the company needs to add a mechanism in current globalization era. Social networking
system is used to enhance the capabilities of the business to communicate with people and also
gain the business profitability. It can be summarized that there are different channels of social
networking system which could be used the company to gain the business potential and to arrive

BUSINESS RESEARCH 10
at a large amount of customer in the marketplace. But, at the same time, it is analyzed that there
are different risks which the company faced while using the social networking system in the
business practices.
It can be concluded that social networks generate the opportunities for the corporations and
create certain challenges which need to be attained. It also enhances the business connectivity
with the customers and aids the business to grab the opportunity and to take benefits of it. It can
be summarized that social networking system can mislead the customers as negative publicity. It
can be also evaluated that when the business uses social networking system effectively then it
aids to generate the outcome in the competitive atmosphere.

BUSINESS RESEARCH 11
References
Agnihotri, R., Dingus, R., Hu, M. Y., and Krush, M. T. (2016) ‘Social media: Influencing
customer satisfaction in B2B sales’, Industrial Marketing Management, 53, pp.172-180.
Ainin, S., Parveen, F., Moghavvemi, S., Jaafar, N. I., and Mohd Shuib, N. L. (2015) ‘Factors
influencing the use of social media by SMEs and its performance outcomes’, Industrial
Management and Data Systems, 115(3), pp. 570-588.
Bolton, R. N., Parasuraman, A., Hoefnagels, A., Migchels, N., Kabadayi, S., Gruber, T., ... and
Solnet, D. (2013) ‘Understanding Generation Y and their use of social media: a review and
research agenda’, Journal of Service Management, 24(3), pp. 245-267.
Carlson, A., and Lee, C. C. (2015) ‘Followership and social media marketing’, Academy of
Marketing Studies Journal, 19(1), P. 80.
Gensler, S., Völckner, F., Liu-Thompkins, Y., and Wiertz, C. (2013) ‘Managing brands in the
social media environment’, Journal of Interactive Marketing, 27(4), pp. 242-256.
He, W., Shen, J., Tian, X., Li, Y., Akula, V., Yan, G., and Tao, R. (2015) ‘Gaining competitive
intelligence from social media data: Evidence from two largest retail chains in the
world’, Industrial Management and Data Systems, 115(9), pp. 1622-1636.
He, W., Wu, H., Yan, G., Akula, V., and Shen, J. (2015) ‘A novel social media competitive
analytics framework with sentiment benchmarks’, Information and Management, 52(7), pp. 801-
812.
Ioanăs, E., and Stoica, I. (2014) ‘Social media and its impact on consumers
behavior’, International Journal of Economic Practices and Theories, 4(2), pp. 295-303.
Kim, W. G., Lim, H., and Brymer, R. A. (2015) ‘The effectiveness of managing social media on
hotel performance’, International Journal of Hospitality Management, 44, pp. 165-171.

BUSINESS RESEARCH 12
Nadeem, W., Andreini, D., Salo, J., and Laukkanen, T. (2015) ‘Engaging consumers online
through websites and social media: A gender study of Italian Generation Y clothing
consumers’, International Journal of Information Management, 35(4), pp. 432-442.
Peppard, J., and Ward, J. (2016) The strategic management of information systems: Building a
digital strategy. USA: John Wiley and Sons.
Piotrowicz, W., and Cuthbertson, R. (2014) ‘Introduction to the special issue information
technology in retail: Toward omnichannel retailing’, International Journal of Electronic
Commerce, 18(4), pp. 5-16.
Prpić, J., Shukla, P. P., Kietzmann, J. H., and McCarthy, I. P. (2015) ‘How to work a crowd:
Developing crowd capital through crowdsourcing’, Business Horizons, 58(1), pp. 77-85.
Schaltegger, S., and Wagner, M. (Eds.). (2017) Managing the business case for sustainability:
The integration of social, environmental and economic performance. UK: Routledge.
Tsimonis, G., and Dimitriadis, S. (2014) ‘Brand strategies in social media’, Marketing
Intelligence and Planning, 32(3), pp. 328-344.
Turban, E., King, D., Lee, J. K., Liang, T. P., and Turban, D. C. (2015) Electronic Commerce: A
managerial and social networks perspective. Berlin: Springer.
Varley, R. (2014) Retail product management: buying and merchandising. UK: Routledge.
Zikmund, W. G., Babin, B. J., Carr, J. C., and Griffin, M. (2013) Business research methods.
USA: Cengage Learning.