GEETHU RANGANMTECH TECHNOLOGY MANAGEMENT

DEPT OF FUTURES STUDIESUNIVERSITY OF KERALA

ROLE OF SOCIAL MEDIA IN BUSINESS

ORGANIZATIONS AND

GOVERNANCE

Impacts of Social Media• Gone are the days of recommendations to keep social media usage out of the

enterprise.

• Businesses today find that social media use is no longer the exception, but rather the rule.

• Business units such as research and development, marketing, human resources, sales, and customer service are realizing the potential for utilizing

social media tools to stimulate innovation, create brand recognition, hire and retain employees, generate revenue, and improve customer satisfaction.

• Social media use is no longer just an option for enterprises that want to lead in today’s business environment

What Is Considered “Social Media”?

• Social media technology involves the creation and dissemination of content through social networks using the Internet.

• The differences between traditional and social media are defined by the level of interaction and interactivity available to the consumer.

• For example, a viewer can watch a news broadcast on television with no interactive feedback mechanisms,while social media tools allow consumers to comment, discuss and even distribute the news.

• Use of social media has created highly effective communication platforms where any user, virtually anywhere in the world, can freely create content and disseminate this information in real time to a global audience ranging in size from a handful to literally millions—in less time than it takes to read this document.

Social Media Tools• Blogs such as WordPress and TypePad

• Microblogs such as Twitter and Tumblr

• Image and video sharing sites such as Flickr and YouTube

• Social networking sites such as Facebook and MySpace

• Professional networking sites such as LinkedIn

• The common link among all forms of social media is that the content is supplied and managed by individual users who

leverage the tools and platforms provided by social media sites.

Role of Social Media in Business Organizations

1. Social media is an easy way to learn about your audience

• For businesses in any industry, the key to success is knowing your audience.

• Social media makes this possible, and easier to accomplish than ever.

• With tools like Facebook Insights you can learn the dominant languages spoken among your social media audience, as well as their age and gender. This knowledge can help you cater campaigns and product offers to your target audience, which will provide you a better return on investment.

2. Social media helps target audiences more effectively

• Geo-targeting is an effective way to send your message out to a specific audience or demographic based on their location.

• Social networks like Facebook and Twitter have tools that allow you to communicate the right kind of content to your audience.

• For example, you can target by ‘Location’, ‘Language’, ‘Age’, ‘Gender’, ‘Relationship status’, ‘Interested in’, and ‘Education’ on Facebook, and ‘Country(s)’ on Twitter.

• For example, if you want to send out a post to people who speak Spanish, geo-targeting is an easy and effective way to do it

3. Social media helps find new customers and expand your audience

• Social networks like Twitter allow small businesses to locate their current customers or seek out potential customers.

• For example, if you open a new coffee shop in the neighbourhood, you can create a geo search to locate anyone tweeting about needing a morning cup of coffee within your area. After locating those tweeting about coffee, you can start reaching out to them, and invite them to come try a hot beverage at your new coffee shop.

4. Social media allows you to receive instant feedback from your customers’ perspective

• Social media for business gives you instant access to positive or negative feedback, which provides you with valuable insights on the customer perspective.

• For example, if you launch a new product and share it on social media, you’ll instantly learn what your customers think of it. Another way to gain customer perspective with social media is by learning how they use your product; brands often base new products or services on their customers’ original ideas.

5. Improve market intelligence and get ahead of your competitors with social media

• With social media monitoring you can gain key information on your competitors, therefore improving your market intelligence.

• This kind of intelligence will allow you to make strategic business decisions in order to stay ahead of your competition.

• For example, you can create search streams to monitor mentions of your competitor’s name or product. Based on your search results, you can improve your business to offer something your competitors are missing

6. Social media can help increase website traffic and search ranking

• One of the best benefits of social media for business is using it to increase your website traffic.

• Not only does social media help you direct people to your website, but the more social media shares you receive, the higher your search ranking will be.

• For example, if every person who follows Twitter retweets this post, it’s more likely to rank higher in Google’s search engine results page for variations of “social media for business.”

7. Share content easier and faster with social media

• In the past, marketers faced the challenge of ensuring their content reaches their customers in the shortest possible time.

• With the help of social media, sharing content got easier and faster. When you use social media for business, specifically for sharing content about your business all you need to do is simply share it on your brand’s social network accounts.

• But keep in mind that getting your customers to share your content with their followers means you need to make sure your social media content aligns to your brand and interests your audience.

8. Create meaningful relationships with customers through social media

• Social media is great for creating meaningful relationships with your customers.

• For example, social media allows tourism brands to create dialogue with travellers, therefore creating relationships with customers before, during, and after they have booked a trip with the company.

• This kind of social media dialogue between brands and customers is something traditional advertising will never achieve.

9. Social media lets you increase brand awareness and reach with little to no budget

• Social media for business has allowed companies to increase brand awareness and reach of their brand at little to no cost.

• The costs associated with these strategies are a lot higher with traditional advertising methods.

• Recently, marketing departments across companies started hiring community managers to increase brand awareness and reach through social media. Community managers foster relationships with online audiences in different regions.

Role of Social Media in Governance

1. Inclusion & Participation Brings Governance to The People

❏ Bring government to the people ❏ Civil Engagement - Every Person can contribute ❏ An Open Grievance Redressal Mechanism, which never

was ❏ Ensures that political decisions are adapted to the needs

of the people who affected by them ❏ Direct Participation in Governance is Possible

2. Alternate Dialogue in Governance Beyond The Commercial Controlled Media

❏ Role of independent and pluralistic media in promoting participation is very important as the media reports on various aspects of the decision-making process and give stakeholders a voice in that process.

❏ Traditional Media can be bought - Social Media is beyond that

❏ Voices in Social Media can no more be ignored ❏ Today agenda can not be set plainly by controlling the

conventional media - masses decide the alternate dialogue beyond the control of any one individual

❏ Democracy flourish with multiple voices and alternate dialogues

❏ Free expression is the backbone of democratic process. Wide range of debates can take place and a variety of viewpoints be represented.

3. Countering Misinformation Campaigns & Rumors

❏ Governments can directly use the Social Media to counter misinformation campaign.

❏ It can/is be used to control/ dispel rumors and promote facts/ truth in a fast, effective and credible manner.

❏ Alternative to corruption in the conventional media. ❏ Positivity can be/is reinforced

❏ New activities/ messages/ actions can be activated and promoted

❏ Opens up access to government and government officials and create new possibilities for community driven initiatives.

4. Promotes Fundamental Human Rights

❏ Promotes Human Rights & enhance civic participation. ❏ Beyond Censorship & Control ❏ Freedom of Speech & Expression ❏ Brings Equality - Every person has a voice ❏ Help people group together and form associations ❏ Promotes equal opportunity ❏ All Minorities get a voice ❏ Crime Reporting systems to check violation of human rights

5. Saves Time and Money

❏ Can speed-up governance and action ❏ A Fast & Cost-Effective Medium/ Channel for Public-Service Delivery & interactive dialogue.

❏ Providing information through social media channels offers real efficiencies in creating faster, easier and cheaper access to information, particularly to youngsters who use, read and operate in social media spaces.

❏ Social Media strengthens “e-governance” in a cost effective manner.

❏ Help provides media and citizens with direct access to administrative information and decision-making processes

6. Feedback Mechanism

❏ Social Media has the potential to provide minute-to-minute & regular feedback of governance, government action, policies and performance.

❏ A cost effective and quick method of systematically collecting feedbacks

❏ Assists in mid-course correction & to understand the pulse of the people

❏ Detailed analysis of the data can provide important understanding of various patterns, behavior and responses.

❏ New Algorithm’s can be tested to find solutions of any existing problem.

• In good governance, everything revolves around the people; it’s about their needs and interests. As a result of Social Media all the acts of our government functionaries are immediately brought to the public eye; consequently they are forced to be more careful, discreet, prudent, responsible, transparent and accountable for their actions.

THANK YOU