EDU10010: Critical Essay on Social Media Marketing Analysis

This critical essay delves into the multifaceted world of social media marketing, examining its advantages and disadvantages in a comprehensive manner. It explores the cost-effectiveness of social media compared to traditional marketing channels, highlighting platforms like Facebook and Instagram that facilitate direct interaction with target audiences, exemplified by Amazon's promotional strategies. The essay further analyzes the quick response times and ease of customer interaction, using Flipkart's customer service as a case study. It also discusses the potential for viral data leaks to negatively impact a company's image. The essay also explores the benefits of effective customer service through social media platforms. It concludes by acknowledging the time-consuming nature of social media marketing and the increasing competition, emphasizing the need for innovative strategies and the importance of maintaining a competitive edge through customer feedback and service.

Critical Essay

Critical Essay
Advantages and disadvantages of social media marketing
Social media marketing is the platform through which it can be easy to promote products and
services. The company’s focus on social media marketing so that the knowledge of the
customers can be boosted. Social media marketing is also considered as internet marketing that
involves creating and sharing of information on social media networks in order to attain the goals
related to marketing and branding. The activities which are included in this form of marketing
are posting the pictures with information, videos and also the content that boost the engagement
level of the customers (Ashley and Tuten, 2015). There are various disadvantages and
advantages of social media marketing. The advantages can be cost-effectiveness, quick response,
easy to interact with the target audience and effective customer service. But the disadvantages or
the issues can also be related to the time-consuming process and leakage of the information or
the data. Therefore, in this paper, the discussion will be made on all these factors in relation to
social media marketing.
Cost-effectiveness is one of the advantages in relation to social media marketing. In the present
scenario, social media marketing is becoming one of the popular sources for companies. In the
present scenario, there are many social media channel that is free and it helps the companies to
interact with the target audience. As compared to other sources like newspaper advertisements it
can be seen that the cost incurred is less in promoting the products and services. For example:
Amazon uses social media marketing channels like Facebook and Instagram to promote its
products in the market (Felix, Rauschnabel and Hinsch, 2017). Therefore, it is concluded that it
should be considered by the companies so that it can be easy to boost the profits.
The next advantage is a quick response through social media marketing. It is examined that the
information can be shared with the target audience in less time. Synchronizing is also one of the
aspects through the users can easily emphasize on automatic updates. The customers have the
chance to interact with the executives according to their convenience. It is a platform that assists
the customers to consider the right decision which is beneficial for them in the highly
competitive market. For example: Flip-Kart post on their Facebook profile, about the discounts
and offers given to the customers on Facebook and also reply to the queries of the customers.
Customer satisfaction is essential for the companies and it can only be boosted when the focus is
given on social media marketing. It is one of the best ways that can help in boosting the
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Critical Essay
satisfaction level of the customers in a highly competitive market. To introduce the new products
and services, the companies consider the strategy of social marketing, which helps to boost the
demand of the products and services offered by the company in the market (Chang, Yu and Lu,
2015). So, it can be said that through media marketing, the companies can solve the queries of
the customers in less time.
With the help of social media marketing, it is analyzed that interaction with the target audience
could be easy. It can also be known as one of the important aspects that can help in maintaining
long-time relations with the customers and also boost the sales of the company. It is a platform
that the company can easily emphasize on the need of the target audience. But it can be seen that
sometimes, social media marketing viral the data, which impacts the image of the company. The
posts on social media sites can affect the image of the company as the comments were given by
the customers can negatively impact the image of the company. For example: Amazon target
youth and also old age people, so the company promotes its products on the social media
marketing which directly boost the entire sales in the competitive market (Dwivedi, Kapoor and
Chen, 2015). So, it is stated that one of the best sources to target the audience is social media
marketing that can help the companies in maintaining the overall demand for the products in the
market. It is important to promote the products in relation to the target audience and it can only
be done if the social media marketing strategy is considered by the companies.
Effective customer service is also the benefit is related to social media marketing. By
considering the social media marketing strategy, the companies can easily maintain customer
service. It is a platform which is also used by the customers, so to solve their issues or to take
immediate information, the customers communicate through the official pages of the company.
The interaction of the customers can be boosted through different social media channels like
Facebook and Instagram. Through social marketing channels, the customers also give feedback
to the companies and it will also help the company to implement the changes required by the
customers. Also, one of the social learning theories is a basic process that is connected with the
behavioral pattern and with the behavior of the customers. In this process, the interaction
between the parents and children increases and this assist in maintaining the understanding of the
different products offered in the market (Constantinides, 2014).
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Critical Essay
It is evaluated that social media marketing is a time-consuming process and this is one of the
disadvantages in relation to the overall concept. The ratio of using social websites by the
customers has been increased, but it is now difficult for the companies to focus on considering
the innovative ways. There are various customers in the digital market, who spend a minimum of
6 hours on social media marketing. The scope of competition between the companies has been
enhanced just because of social media marketing (Fardouly et al., 2015). For example: the
competition level between Amazon and Flip- Kart is increased and now they have to find the
new alternative so that it can be easy to grab the large market share. So, it can be said that it is
one of the time-consuming approaches through which the customers spend time in choosing the
best alternative and also the companies’ focuses on considering the best approach to attain the set
targets. It can be concluded that social media marketing is a process of time consumption and it
is important for the companies to focus on reducing this issue by considering the innovative
ways. The companies should consider new ways so that it can be easy to compete with
competitors.
It can be concluded that it is important to focus on social media marketing so that the promotion
of the products and services can be done effectively. Social media marketing has both
advantages and also disadvantages which is important to be maintained so that growth can be
achieved in the highly competitive market. Through social media marketing, the companies have
the scope to boost the market share and also they can emphasize on maintaining its competitive
advantage. The interaction between the customers and company can be done effectively and also
emphasize can be given on considering the feedback of the customers, as it could help in
managing the entire operations of the organization. It is noted that with the help of social media
marketing, it can be easy to boost customer service by the companies. The customers have the
chance to solve their queries and doubts with the management, which directly boost the
satisfaction level of the customers towards the products and services offered in the market.
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Critical Essay
References
Ashley, C. and Tuten, T., 2015. Creative strategies in social media marketing: An exploratory
study of branded social content and consumer engagement. Psychology & Marketing, 32(1),
pp.15-27.
Chang, Y.T., Yu, H. and Lu, H.P., 2015. Persuasive messages, popularity cohesion, and message
diffusion in social media marketing. Journal of Business Research, 68(4), pp.777-782.
Constantinides, E., 2014. Foundations of social media marketing. Procedia-Social and
behavioral sciences, 148(5), pp.40-57.
Dwivedi, Y.K., Kapoor, K.K. and Chen, H., 2015. Social media marketing and advertising. The
Marketing Review, 15(3), pp.289-309.
Fardouly, J., Diedrichs, P.C., Vartanian, L.R. and Halliwell, E., 2015. Social comparisons on
social media: The impact of Facebook on young women's body image concerns and mood. Body
Image, 13, pp.38-45.
Felix, R., Rauschnabel, P.A. and Hinsch, C., 2017. Elements of strategic social media marketing:
A holistic framework. Journal of Business Research, 70(6), pp.118-126.
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