Virtual channels,real gains

Another favourite is the social networking and micro-blogging phenomenon known as Twitter. This 140-character world has a population of about 100 million,and is growing at the speed of light. The rate of new user growth peaked in July 2010,with 7.8 million people joining Twitter per month. These numbers indicate and assert the vast reach of social networking sites,which are now increasingly being referred to as social media and the Fifth Estate. With various other platforms like LinkedIn a site for professional networking,YouTube a video sharing and video blogging platform,MySpace a social entertainment platform,and Digg a social news website,the Fifth Estate is quite a formidable force.

Social medias enormous reach and the buzz surrounding it has compelled the corporate world to sit up and take notice. It is gaining acceptance in business circles as companies across sectors are leveraging its power to promote products and services. In a fragmented society like India,social media marketing is as important as on-ground marketing for brand-building and engaging with consumers,say experts.

The India Social Media Report Edition 2,by Blogworks a social media agency and NM Incite a Nielsen/McKinsey company states,92 per cent of Indian businesses,both big and small medium enterprises SMEs,undertake social media activities of which 78 per cent have taken to it in the last two years. Most social media programmes are business-to-consumer B2C oriented,and marketing,ORM Online Reputation Management and lead generation are the top three purposes for which brands use these platforms.

The report further states that Facebook 90 per cent and Twitter 83 per cent are the most popular social media channels used by firms,whereas LinkedIn is the most preferred channel to answer brand/business questions. More than 30 per cent marketers are spending 10 per cent of their digital budgets on social media,11 per cent of them are heavy spenders with more than 30 per cent of digital budgets going towards it. While most firms manage social media engagements in-house,23 per cent outsource them from independent social media agencies and consultancies,which are growing by the day.

Moksh Juneja,co-founder of Avignyata Inc,a social media consultancy,says,Social media agencies build online communities for their clients firms and track conversations of users in cyberspace. This allows clients to understand consumer behaviour and perception towards their brands and enable them to devise strategies that appeal to the consumer. One of Avignyatas retail clients is Inorbit Mall,one of the largest mall chains in the country. It has 84,500 fans on its FB page,who post,like,comment and share content regularly. The Inorbit Monthly Newsletter on the page keeps users updated about new outlets,products,offers and activities in the malls.

Other companies in the retail space with significant social media presence are Titan Industries,Pantaloons,Big Bazaar,Shoppers Stop and so on. Titans Fastrack page on FB has 1.2 million fans,while its Tanishq page invites 70,500 users.

A report by technology research agency,Gartner states that digital strategies such as social media and mobile marketing will influence at least 80 per cent of consumers discretionary spending. Currently,only 26 per cent brands are present on the mobile social media platform. About 46 per cent intend to do that in the future. Adam Sarner,research director at Gartner,says,Marketers still need to shift their traditional campaign management strategies around executing campaigns to a customer and move towards digital marketinga two-way engagement approach. Customer-focused strategies harnessing digital channels will increase engagement,response and conversion rates.

The telecom sector in India is one of the top propagators of social media,says a digital media consultant. Telecom Talk,which tracks developments in the telecom industry,mentions in a survey report that Vodafone Essar has the maximum social media presence followed by Tata Docomo and Idea Cellular.

Docomo has 1.7 million fans on FB and 15,000 followers on Twitter and its ad jingle is one of the most downloaded items on YouTube. Ideas campaigns for Mobile Number Portability and 3G featuring Abhishek Bachchan increased its fan base to 3.2 lakh on multiple pages on FB and Idea has 3,200 followers on Twitter. It made optimum use of its catchy tagline What an Idea,Sir jee to build a consumer connect on the web.

The number of fans on Vodafones country-specific pages sum up to a few million,with its India page having 47,000 users. Vodafone BlackBerry Boys and Vodafone Zoozoos are some of the most talked about things in social media. The official Vodafone Zoozoo page on FB has more than 1.6 million entries,and is filled with Zoozoo links,videos,widgets and wallpapers.

Anuradha Aggarwal,VP,marketing,brand communication amp; consumer insights,Vodafone Essar,says,Companies overlap their brand proposition with some form of digital engagement and then look to amplify audience enjoyment. This opens the door for value exchange between the brand and consumers. After Zoozoos were launched,FB fans wanted moreZoozoo movies,comic books,merchandise and memorabilia. The effect of Zoozoos on fans gave us opportunities to build a long-term relationship with them to turn their affinity to advocacy.

The aviation sector is next in line in terms of social media usage. Airline operators including Jet Airways and Kingfisher have an aggregate of 16,000 followers on Twitter and 1.88 lakh fans on FB where customers can book tickets,check flight schedules and post queries. Belson Coutinho,senior GM,e-commerce amp; innovations,Jet Airways,says,Social media cant be ignored. For airline operators it is of great help during natural disruptions to flights when passengers look for instant updates. Answers to their queries and flight statuses are posted online.

Kingfisher goes a step ahead to advertise on Best Aviation Jobs inviting thousands of hits and comments on its FB page. Jet,too,uses LinkedIn for HR human resources purposes and to answer business queries. It is also the first major airline to mark its presence on Foursquare,a location-based mobile networking tool. Coutinho adds,On Foursquare,we provide information about airports,visitor lounges and cafes.

The FMCG industry is another big user of social media. Beverage brands like Coco-Cola,Pepsi and biscuit maker Britannia utilise social media to the fullest to attract consumers towards their products and campaigns. Coke has 24.3 million fans on FB and got 1.14 million 11.4 lakh hits on YouTube for its Brrr campaign. Pepsis Change the Game campaign and Nikes Bleed Blue battle-cry swept social networking sites during the Cricket World Cup. Tarun Puri,MD of Nike India,says,Bleed Blue started as a handprint activity. It turned into a mass movement riding on its popularity and reach on Facebook and YouTube. About 11.5 million fans pledged their support for the campaign,with many sporting Bleed Blue badges on their profile pictures on FB.

FMCG major Parle Agro used inventory tracking on Twitter,for improving distribution of Hippo chips. Sajan Raj Kurup,founder amp; creative chairman of Creativeland Asia,the agency which devised an award-winning digital campaign for Hippo,says,Social media is online word of mouth,and no brand can ignore it. Retail outlets and local grocery shops were falling short of Hippo packets as sales were on a high. Customers who failed to get Hippo packets at a particular outlet posted a tweet on the Hippo page mentioning the location of the store,and Parle immediately transported items to that place. It was a highly successful way of replenishing stock.

Chocolate maker Cadbury carried out a successful social media campaign during the recent launch of Oreo cookies. The Oreo page gained 18.2 million fans on FB and two lakh hits on its commercial on YouTube. Cadbury Indias official FB page has more than two lakh users. Other FMCG companies like ITC,Nestle and Dabur are steadily catching up on social media.

Despite the increased awareness and usage of social media most firms lack a definitive digital approach. Gaurav Kohli,founder and CEO of SecretSauce,a provider of digital marketing solutions,says,Social media campaigns are mostly an after-thought. After using traditional forms of media like print and TV,companies think of promoting their products on the web. It is very rare that social media agencies are given a definite roll-out plan months before the launch of a product. Clients expect immediate results. They do not realise that it takes time to build a network and spread one8217;s reach.

In the media and entertainment space,TV channels,newspapers,magazines,film production houses and studios are big on social media. SecretSauce designed the social media strategy for Viacom 18 Motion Pictures earlier known as Studio 18 for their small-budget film Striker,which met with decent success at the box office. Kohli adds,We started work on Striker months before its release. Viacom 18 gave us enough time to build a good network on Facebook and the page was a great hit.

With increased participation from corporate houses and rising popularity amongst masses,social media is the most happening thing today. Quite aptly,Twitters home page asks,Whats happening? and the world jumps on the bandwagon of seeking answers to that.