Chapter 1

The first chapter begins with clearly defining social media and it works within the advertising world. Social refers to the instinctual needs we humans have to connect with other humans while media is what we use to make all of those connections. The book explains how we can use social media and other technologies effectively to reach out and connect with other people to create relationships, to build trust, and to be there when those people in those relationships are ready to purchase the product we may be offering. The social media that has emerged in the last decade is effective because it is two-way communication and the new way to sell is to not sell at all. Social media is all about listening first, understanding the conversation, and then creating a dialogue last. The most obvious use for social media is for marketing sales, public relations, and communications.

The book gave an example of Pioneer Electronics Inc. and their attempt to increase their click through rate during the holiday season. They became successful through PostRelease and online forums. They found that consumers visit discussion forums to discuss a product and are therefore more open to relevant sponsored messages and they’re more likely to respond.

In my opinion, social media could be successful if the service the company is providing over the media is successful and provides a good service, but if that service is received negatively the customer’s reaction could spread like wildfire. Advertising started with “word of mouth” advertising, and that form of advertising is still present today. It used to be if some released a bad or good service they would spread their experience to about 10-20 people, but now with social media customer’s experience with a company can be spread to thousands of others. This is an example of when social media can be either positive or negative, it all depends on the approach of the media vehicle that the company uses. I think social media can be very effective to build the trust for customers, for example airlines now use twitter to reimburse customers and address complaints (see JetBlue twitter http://twitter.com/#!/JetBlue!). In one instance JetBlue addressed a customer about a mechanical issue while the customer was still on the plane. These company’s uses of social media allows them to address customer’s quickly and directly which further contributes to their brand image and reputation along with positive advertising. The use of Twitter that these airlines have started using is an effective form social media that I believe other company’s should invest in for further customer service opportunities.

-Caroline