Using Social Media in Moderation

In advertising, social media has been used modestly with most companies. A brand that primarily focuses on social media for advertising, such as PepsiCo, is not very successful. However, brands that use social media modestly, such as Zappos and Old Spice, have had more success. These brands understand social media is only one medium for advertising and there are other available channels. Ed Keller and Brad Fay discuss how social media should be used in moderation in Chapter 6 of The Face-to-Face Book.

Keller and Fay begin their discussion with Facebook. Dan Rose, Facebook's vice president for partnerships, is a regular speaker for the company. In 2011, Rose spoke at a marketing event to explain the impact Facebook has on culture and business. He stated while Facebook is a took to record your activities, Facebook is also an activity in itself. Rose also discussed how people are more likely to remember an ad if a friend's name pops up in the ad. By including a name in the advertisement, it is more likely someone will remember the ad and purchase the item in the ad. The person who saw the ad would be more likely to remember the friend's name, and then the ad. Then, the person may tell others about the ad.

Apple is considered to be a great brand from the word-of-mouth perspective. The company did not have a Facebook page in summer 2011. Also, they had a light Twitter presence with two feeds. One feed focused on the App store, while the other was dedicated to the iTunes music store. These feeds mainly promote apps and music and do not have a strong focus on engaging with consumers. Apple relies a lot on the retail stores, not social media. By relying on stores, they want potential customers to come into a store and check out their products. Apple is a successful company because of the marketing and design of their products. Apple shows how a company can be successful and not use social media on a frequent basis.

Later in the chapter, Keller and Fay explain how brands use social media correctly. These brands use social media as a way to learn what people say about them. They do not try to learn what people say about them in real life. Social media is a supplement to other channels to share news and promotions. Also, social media is used as a way to help with customer service, but it is not the only way to get assistance. While successful brands have a social media presence, they do not rely solely on social media. They use a variety of channels to get their advertisements out to the public.

I agree with the idea of using social media in moderation. Social media has to be used in conjunction with other mediums, such as television and print advertisements. Not everyone is glued to social media. Some people prefer a print or television ad to check out. Those types of advertising should still exist. When social media and other mediums are used in advertising, it has the potential to reach the maximum number of potential customers.