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Social Media: The "Wild West" of the Marketing Opportunity (Part 1)

Although social media is clearly a vast space of infinite possibility for marketers and service providers, it is largely misunderstood, untapped, and unknown. Fortunately, there are great benefits for print service providers who can pioneer this area. This article explores the ways in which service providers are leveraging social networks to promote their businesses.

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About Barb Pellow

A digital printing and publishing pioneer, marketing expert and Group Director at InfoTrends, Barbara Pellow helps companies develop multi-media strategies that ride the information wave. Barb brings the knowledge and skills to help companies expand and grow business opportunity.

Please offer your feedback to Barb. She can be reached at [email protected].

Discussion

By Bill Michael on Nov 30, 2012

Barb – thank you for sharing this article – it is great to see the adoption of social media among B2B brands, and just how powerful these channels can be. With 75% of all B2B purchasers using social media as part of their purchasing process – the importance of taking the necessary steps to ensure your brand has a presence cannot be understated. The steps you have outlined to create a brand presence are clear and straightforward. Getting involved in social media doesn’t have to be rocket science – but it does need to be strategic and calculated, as you are exposing your company to the public in a whole new light. This level of visibility makes it all that more critical to ensure you have the proper foundation in place, and a strategy to support.

And even if your company hasn’t been able to create and implement an integrated social strategy – performing simple listening exercises should be a part of your social presence right from the beginning. The conversations are certainly taking place out there – so gaining an understanding of what people are saying can help you better serve your customers. There’s no denying that social media can be intimidating, but it’s hard not to get excited when thinking about the value in communicating with customers and prospects at a more personal level!

- Bill Michael (Xerox)

 

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