Businesses
told to tap social media for growth
THE current global economic outlook may not be
encouraging, yet there is still a silver lining for companies.
The proliferation of social media tools can be exploited by companies to improve their businesses, according to regional president and chief executive officer of Asia World Markets Prashant Kumar.
"With all the negativity out there, growth is still possible, and social media at the root of it," he said.
Prashant said word of mouth has always been the most trusted source of product or service information, but it had no leverage until social peer-to-peer technologies emerged.
The proliferation of social media tools can be exploited by companies to improve their businesses, according to regional president and chief executive officer of Asia World Markets Prashant Kumar.
"With all the negativity out there, growth is still possible, and social media at the root of it," he said.
Prashant said word of mouth has always been the most trusted source of product or service information, but it had no leverage until social peer-to-peer technologies emerged.
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"Social media gives companies exponential reach, empowering
brands to leverage their content and messaging more efficiently than other
marketing channels," he said, noting that social media is playing an
increasingly vital role in business.
He observed that in Malaysia, many companies are under-utilising the potential reach of their social media.
Many companies are still in the early stages of implementing social media and they do not have a clear understanding of how to take advantage of its many benefits.
"They should be promoting their social media channels as aggressively as possible.
"They can do so by optimising each page to speak their company's target audience, sharing valuable content their audience finds useful, adding social share buttons on their website, blog, and all offline marketing pieces, emailing existing customers to encourage them to interact with their social media, and interacting with fans and followers," he said.
Prashant noted that social venues like LinkedIn, Twitter, Google+, mainstream media sites with comments, and blogs have created the opportunity for prospects and clients to connect with and educate each other very quickly.
In an interview with Business Times recently, Prashant shared the results of a study conducted by the global media powerhouse Universal McCann, called Wave 6. It takes in the experience of nearly 42,000 daily Internet users in 62 countries.
Wave 6, which explores "the business of social", reveals that companies need to develop more sophisticated social media strategies to achieve specific commercial objectives to reach the ever-growing social network community.
"Social is not about media anymore, it's about marketing and it's about business. It's about transforming the way brands do product innovation, discover insights, propagate their communication, collect feedback and engage communities," Prashant said.
He said with a 22 per cent penetration, Malaysia is one of the countries with the world's highest tablet adoption.
"Malaysians are among the most connected people in the world and they are leveraging social media to be in regular contact with friends and family."
According to the Wave 6 study, consu-mers across all age groups view the brand website as one-dimensional and prefer instead to get responded on brand issues and customer complaints.
The study also reveals that Malaysians are getting comfortable with sharing their personal data using social networks, which has become an integral part of their lives, particularly among those aged between 45 to 54 years.
He observed that in Malaysia, many companies are under-utilising the potential reach of their social media.
Many companies are still in the early stages of implementing social media and they do not have a clear understanding of how to take advantage of its many benefits.
"They should be promoting their social media channels as aggressively as possible.
"They can do so by optimising each page to speak their company's target audience, sharing valuable content their audience finds useful, adding social share buttons on their website, blog, and all offline marketing pieces, emailing existing customers to encourage them to interact with their social media, and interacting with fans and followers," he said.
Prashant noted that social venues like LinkedIn, Twitter, Google+, mainstream media sites with comments, and blogs have created the opportunity for prospects and clients to connect with and educate each other very quickly.
In an interview with Business Times recently, Prashant shared the results of a study conducted by the global media powerhouse Universal McCann, called Wave 6. It takes in the experience of nearly 42,000 daily Internet users in 62 countries.
Wave 6, which explores "the business of social", reveals that companies need to develop more sophisticated social media strategies to achieve specific commercial objectives to reach the ever-growing social network community.
"Social is not about media anymore, it's about marketing and it's about business. It's about transforming the way brands do product innovation, discover insights, propagate their communication, collect feedback and engage communities," Prashant said.
He said with a 22 per cent penetration, Malaysia is one of the countries with the world's highest tablet adoption.
"Malaysians are among the most connected people in the world and they are leveraging social media to be in regular contact with friends and family."
According to the Wave 6 study, consu-mers across all age groups view the brand website as one-dimensional and prefer instead to get responded on brand issues and customer complaints.
The study also reveals that Malaysians are getting comfortable with sharing their personal data using social networks, which has become an integral part of their lives, particularly among those aged between 45 to 54 years.
Source : Business Times
Date : 2 May 2012
Date : 2 May 2012
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