Mashable Marketing Post As Referred: http://mashable.com/2012/01/17/business-social-media-progress/

Kill it, or be killed.

Some are addicted to drugs, some to alcohol, but for the most part, we’re all addicted to the internet.  As of December 22, 2011 – The Wall Street Journal published that on a global scale, 1 in every 5 minutes spent online is considered social media activity.  Many businesses quickly caught on and adopted a social media presence.

As a result, social media has become a vital component for all companies as it has grown into an upscale channel of communication from company to customer and contrariwise (including prospects).   What I am trying to stress is that, because the world interacts through social media channels every day at a growing rate, it’s imperative that companies implement their services into these channels.  Why?  Simply because social media is like a loaded gun just ready to shoot money into the company’s pocket.

Take for example Martell Home Builders, an Atlantic Canadian custom homebuilder company who in the past relied “heavily on realtors to keep their business moving forward.”  After embracing social media, the company “creat[ed] a direct-to-consumer model where they were no longer reliant on a middleman to bring them business” – this abolishment of dependence saves millions per annum.  Martel also allows their clients to literally stalk their contractors on the job through a GPS system supported by most social media platforms and furthermore giving clients “access to photos of their homes being built.”  All in all, by providing a real-time, socially connected customer service, Martel kept their clients both content and trusting in the company’s service.  This temporary happiness translates to long term trust in the company and satisfaction which leads to a guarantee for both future business and external recommendations.

Although for many companies social media seems to be the golden ticket, others are still battling the war in figuring out how to properly inject the gravy of social activity into their turkey.  Riley Gibson, CEO and co-founder of Napkin Labs, further mentions this war in his blog post “5 Ways Businesses Can Use Social Media as a Tool for Progress.”  The key problem that many companies impose on themselves is failing to ask for new ideas through social media.  All types of customers love the opportunity of influencing the direction of companies.  However, unless customers are prompted first, companies will not receive valuable ideas.  League of Legends is an online video game whose board of marketing has devoted a large pool of both money and time towards social media – in particular, developing engaging questions across social media feeds such as: what do you think of the newly released champions, and always updating the crowd with new information about the game.  Aside from keeping players involved and satisfied, social media also embodies raw advertising resulting in an influx of cash spent on in-game merchandise.  A subset problem is a lack of actual carrying out what customers recommend.  Usually those who monitor social media waterways within a company are not the same people who make bold decisions.  To get to the point, this means that the many golden ideas that appear on the company pan are left to sink in the river.  Communication is essential in order for feedback to actually cause change.

Social media is prime real estate for communicating with customers that has never been possible before.  Companies engaging in activity through social channels must be astute with how they interact and follow up with customers.  At the end of the day, money is the only thing that matters and companies choosing against the implementation of social media into their business will suffer lost revenue.

Wall Street Journal Reference – 1 in every 5 minutes spent online is a minute spent in social media: http://blogs.wsj.com/tech-europe/2011/12/22/social-networks-account-for-20-of-time-spent-online/

Social Media Online Statistics:
http://blogs.wsj.com/tech-europe/2011/12/22/social-networks-account-for-20-of-time-spent-online/