E-Commerce and E-Business
Technology has transformed the business landscape, especially since the start of the 21st century. No matter a company's size, technology has become an integral component for most organizations, particularly in the development of management and marketing information systems and company websites. Technology has been of great help to marketers in better understanding their customers' preferences, behaviors, and purchase trends, allowing them to design the most effective marketing strategy based on this intelligence. Meanwhile, the internet has resulted in the development of social media platforms like Facebook, enabling networking among consumers and with organizations that profoundly affect how marketers interact with their customers. The internet has also enabled the boom in electronic commerce (e-commerce) and the emergence of many online marketers, from Amazon to Etsy. This chapter discusses how e-commerce and e-business have increasingly become necessary components of business strategy and strong catalysts for economic development. However, technology continues to evolve, and organizations must keep pace to maintain their competitive edge.
Social media strategy
Social media strategy
Social media can be used strategically in a number of marketing and communication challenges:
- Community management
- Support and customer service
- Reputation management
- Search engine optimisation
- Communication and outreach
- Advertising and awareness
- Sales and lead generation
- Insights and research.
Creating a social media strategy requires careful planning, and a strong foundation that will allow you to be dynamic.
The steps to creating a social media strategy include:
- Get buy-in
- Understand the landscape
- Analyse
- Set objectives
- Create an action plan
- Implement
- Track, analyse, optimise!
Social media is a vital strategic consideration for any brand. Whether your organisation is actively involved in social media or not, your consumers are. If nothing else, this means that there is market data available to you, if you just take a little time to find it.
Organisations that make a considered move in the social media sphere will find it both challenging and rewarding. The rapid feedback loop can often change preconceptions or even marketing plans, as the voice of the customer is amplified through social media. In addition, the collaboration with passionate customer stakeholders is extremely rewarding.