Uncategorized – Social Media Marketing

Are you familiar with the social media platform Orkut? Probably not….

Orkut was Googles first social networking platform. It launched in 2004 and lasted for about 10 years before shutting down in 2014. This particular platform was most popular among its Brazilian users as research showed that 90% of the page views were accessed by users in Brazil. This is a staggering number considering just how many members they had. Within 4 months they had 50,000 communities and after just one year this grew to about 1.5 million.

Orkut used a community style structure – how did this attract the changing role of the digital consumer?

There are several ways that Orkut was able to speak to these people. Below are just a few:

The platform was community based so they could find people with like minded interests and ideas
It let users connect with people they knew as well as people they looked up to
It has an invite only membership which made it feel prestigious
The interface was user friendly

Another reason as to why this attractive platform for digital consumers was so popular amongst the Brazilian population is because of Brazil’s strong online presence. They are ranked as one of the strongest markets for online retailers and fifth largest online market in the world.

Knowing and understanding how to make a proper marketing action plan is critical in having a successful business venture. The steps needed for this plan include the following items laid out below. Which do you think Orkut succeeded in and which do you think they fell short?

Goals
Target audience
Social media choice
Resources
Policies
Monitoring
Activity Plan

Where Orkut succeeded in this list is through steps one through 5. They had clear goals, and established target audience, their social media choice was their own platform, they were able to find and use good resources and had established policies. This is what allowed them to grow so quickly and become such a favored platform in Brazil.

Now its important to look at where they fell short. What is most important to you when using social media platforms?

Orkut clearly showed they were able to successfully use a marketing action plan but they did fall short in some key areas as discussed. One of the most important areas they seemingly did not perform well was in the monitoring of the platform. When you use social media aren’t you looking for the platform to evolve with what is trending? Orkut unfortunately failed at doing so. They attracted a large number of consumers early on but then fell short in continuing to satisfy their demands. Through research it was determined that Brazilians are attracted to platforms with online video. This is something that was not easy to do with Orkut. Had they paid attention to the changes of interest in their target audience and addressed this would they still be around today? Had they had a detailed activity plan in place allowing them to really establish a timeline for monitoring their performance would people have stayed interested? It makes you wonder where other platforms such as Facebook would be today.

Mahoney, L. M., & Tang, T. (2017). Strategic Social Media: From Marketing to Social Change. Malden: Wiley Blackwell.

Social media has become part of every day life. True or False?

The answer to this question really depends on the social media platform and how well it knows its audience. Don’t you find that the more a social media app changes and offers more aspects that impact your life, you are more willing to use it? Weixin, a popular Chinese networking app, was able to gain success in its market due to continually getting to know its audience. By really getting to know their target audience and what they would need in their everyday life, Weixin was able to become part of peoples everyday routine.

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Weixin was able to become part of the Chinese people’s daily life by integrating technology into their customs and behaviors. One example of this is the “Red Envelope” campaign they initiated. Red Envelope is a traditional custom where people can send a red envelope of money to family and friends during the holidays. By allowing the individuals to virtually send this envelope by linking their bank account they were able to make the idea of giving a little more exciting.

Would this idea work in other countries?

While Weixin was able to become popular in China, I do wonder if they would be as successful in other countries. If they took the time to follow the steps listed above, I think they would be able to make it work in another market. That being said, one study has shown that very few companies are able to make it in a global market. Even if you get to know your audience there is a chance that that audience won’t be willing to leave a competitor.

Weixin’s features fit into their audiences needs in several ways. Some examples include

Finding their audience’s needs: by developing apps such as the Red Envelope and a separate app which will help find cabs, they honed in on what was missing in the social media app marketplace.
Inputting themselves in peoples daily lives: Their app allowed for individuals to share photos, videos and messages all from this one particular platform. Their examples included sharing photos of a new baby as well as exchanging news.
Their target audience was young smartphone users: the interests of this target group is to have everything all in one location. Being able to share all information through one platform gains loyalty.
They utilized a user friendly interface. By making the app straightforward and uncomplicated they were able to appeal to a larger number of users.

Weixin gained substantial success in a fairly short amount of time. By using the tactics previously mentioned they were able to gain 300 million users in just 3 years. This is a great example that other companies who are just starting can learn from. Success in the appeal you have to your target audience and Wiexin was able to show that.

Bergero, A. (NA). WHAT IS B2B MARKETING VS. B2C MARKETING? HOW TO USE THEM TO YOUR ADVANTAGE. Retrieved from https://www.socialtools.me/blog/en/what-is-b2b-marketing-vs-b2c-marketing-how-to-use-them-to-your-advantage/

Mahoney, L. M., & Tang, T. (2017). Strategic Social Media: From Marketing to Social Change. Malden: Wiley Blackwell.

Category: Uncategorized

Case Study: Weixin