Chapter 18
Social Media and Markeng
This chapter begins with the learning outcome summaries followed by a set of lesson plans for
instructors to use to deliver the content.
Lecture (for large sections) on page 4
Company Clips (video) on page 6
Group Work (for smaller sections) on page 8
Review and Assignments begin on page 9
Review questions
Application questions
Application exercise
Ethics exercise
Video assignment
Case assignment
Great Ideas for Teaching Marketing from faculty around the country begin on page 19
We’ve also created integrated cases that cover the topics in Chapters 15 through 18.
Yellow Tail on page 21
Boston Blazers on page 27
Learning Outcomes
18-1 Describe social media, how they are used, and their relation to integrated marketing
communications
Social media, commonly thought of as digital technology, offer a way for marketers to
communicate one-on-one with consumers and measure the effects of those interactions. Social
media include social networks, microblogs, and media-sharing sites, all of which are used by the
majority of adults. Smartphones and tablet computers have given consumers greater freedom to
access social media on the go, which is likely to increase the usage of social media sites. With
social media, the audience is often in control of the message, the medium, the response, or all
three. Using consumers to develop and market products is called crowdsourcing. Crowdsourcing
describes how the input of many people can be leveraged to make decisions that used to be based
on the input of only a few people.
18-2 Explain how to create a social media campaign
Social media is an exciting new field, and its potential for expanding a brand’s impact is
enormous. A social media campaign should take advantage of the three media categories: owned
media, earned media, and paid media. To use these types of media in a social media campaign,
first implement an effective listening system. After establishing a listening platform, the
organization should develop a list of objectives for its social media team to accomplish. . Second,
develop a list of objectives that reflects how social media dynamically communicate with
customers and build relationships. Marketing managers must set objectives that reflect this
reality. Engage in conversations and answer customers’ questions candidly.
18-3 Evaluate the various methods of measurement for social media
Social media have the potential to revolutionize the way organizations communicate with
stakeholders. Given the relative ease and efficiency with which organizations can use social
media, a positive return on investment (ROI) is likely for many—if not most—organizations.
Some marketers accept this unknown variable and focus on the fact that social media are less
about ROI than about deepening relationships with customers; others work tirelessly to
understand better the measurement of social media’s effectiveness
18-4 Explain consumer behavior on social media
Social media have changed the way that people interact in their everyday lives. To effectively
leverage social media, marketers must understand who uses social media and how they use it. If
a brand’s target market does not use social media, its campaign might not be useful. There are six
categories of social media users: creators, critics, collectors, joiners, spectators, and inactives. A
new category is emerging called “conversationalists,” who post status updates on social
networking sites or microblogs.
18-5 Describe the social media tools in a marketer’s toolbox and how they are useful
A marketer has many tools to implement a social media campaign. However, new tools emerge
daily, so these resources will change rapidly. Some of the strongest social media platforms are
blogs, microblogs, social networks, media creation and sharing sites, social news sites,
location-based social networking sites, review sites, and virtual worlds and online gaming. Blogs
allows marketers to create content in the form of posts, which ideally build trust and a sense of
authenticity in customers. Microblogs, like Twitter, allow brands to follow, retweet, respond to
potential customers’ tweets, and tweet content that inspires customers to engage the brand, laying
a foundation for meaningful two-way conversation. Social networks allow marketers to increase
awareness, target audiences, promote products, forge relationships, attract event participants,
perform research, and generate new business. Media-sharing sites give brands an interactive
channel to disseminate content. Social news sites are useful to marketers to promote campaigns,
create conversations, and build Web site traffic. Location-based social networking sites can forge
lasting relationships and loyalty in customers. Review sites allow marketers to respond to
customer reviews and comments about their brand. Online gaming presents additional
opportunities for marketers to engage with consumers.
18-6 Describe the impact of mobile technology on social media
The mobile platform is an effective marketing tool—especially when targeting a younger
audience. There are six reasons for the popularity of mobile marketing: (1) mobile platforms are
standardized, (2) fewer consumers are concerned about privacy and pricing policies, (3)
advertising can be done in real time, (4) mobile marketing is measurable, (5) in-store notification
technology such as Apple’s iBeacon can send promotional messages based on real-time
interactions with customers, and (6) there is a higher response rate than with traditional
advertising. Because of the rapid growth of smartphones, well-branded, integrated apps allow
marketers to create buzz and generate customer engagement. Widgets allow customers to post a
company’s information to its site, are less expensive than apps, and broaden the company’s
exposure.
18-7 Understand the aspects of developing a social media plan
The tools in the social media toolbox are important to have a clearly outlined social media plan.
There are six stages in creating an effective social media plan: (1) listening to customers, (2)
setting social media objectives, (3) defining strategies, (4) identifying the target audience, (5)
selecting the appropriate tools and platforms, and (6) implementing and monitoring the strategy.
Listening to customers and revising the social media plan to accommodate changing market
trends and needs is key to an effective social media plan.
Key Terms
Blog Media-sharing sites Social commerce
Corporate blogs Microblogs Social media
Crowdsourcing Noncorporate blogs Social media monitoring
Location-based social
networking sites
Review sites Social networking sites
Social news sites
Lesson Plan for Lecture
Suggested Homework
The end of this chapter contains an assignment on the Zappos video and the Kickstarter case.
This chapter’s online study tools include flashcards, visual summaries, practice quizzes, and
other resources that can be assigned or used as the basis for longer investigations into
marketing.
Lesson Plan for Video
Company Clip
Segment Summary: Zappos
Zappos, a large online retailer, has a vibrant culture focused on customer service. The company
uses social media to help customers and to interact with them personally. Part of each customer
reaction involves taking the time to demonstrate individual personality and the Zappos culture,
all of which make Zappos one of the top in customer service.
These teaching notes can be assigned to students to prepare before class, in class before watching
the video, during class while watching the video, or after students have watched the video.
During the viewing portion of the teaching notes, stop the video periodically where appropriate
to ask students the questions or perform the activities listed on the grid. You may even want to
give the students the questions before starting the video and have them think about the answer
while viewing the segment. That way, students will be engaged in active rather than passive
viewing.
Pre-class Prep for You Pre-class Prep for Your Students
Preview the video segment for Chapter
18. This exercise reviews concepts for
LO6.
Review your lesson plan.
Stream the video HERE.
Have students familiarize themselves
with the following terms and concepts:
mobile technology, consumer protection
and privacy, and marketing to children.
Review a variety of online retailers,
including Zappos, and other favorite
websites.
Video Review Exercise
Activity
Warm-up
Begin by asking your students the following questions:
“How many purchases do you make online in one year?”
“Do you make an equal number of purchases at local establishments?”
“Why do you choose one over the other?”
[For students who raise their hands to the last question, push them to answer
why.]
In-class
Preview
Segue into a lecture that centers around these questions: “How does
technology change consumer behavior?” and “What does this mean for
Marketing”
Review the negatives and benefits of social media and what it means to
local businesses and national businesses.
Review the Company Clips questions below with students. They should
be prepared to answer them after viewing the video.
Viewing
(Solutions
below.)
1. What is Zappos’ social media marketing plan?
2. Is Zappos’ customer service social media owned, paid, or earned media?
Explain.
Follow-up
Spark a debate in class by asking students to respond to the following
statement: “Parents should screen cell phone usage of all minor children.”
Have students use the Internet or Yellow Pages to identify a cell phone
retail store, such as those mentioned in the video. Students should then email
or call the company and ask the manager or sales personnel to describe the
level of sales to young children and parents of young children. Ask students to
be prepared to share their research at the next class meeting.
Solutions for Viewing Activities
1. What is Zappos’ social media marketing plan?
Students’ answers will vary.
2. Is Zappos’ customer service social media owned, paid, or earned media? Explain.
Zappos social media would be considered owned media, though social media blurs the ʼ
line between owned and earned media, since it is not entirely under the owner’s control.
However, because Zappos has the power to monitor content and decide what the tone of
their posts will be, social media is considered owned for Zappos.
Lesson Plan for Group Work
The group activity should be completed after some chapter content has been covered, probably in
the second or third session of the chapter coverage. For the activity listed below, divide the class
into small groups of four or five people. Provide the information and the questions asked by the
class activity.
Group Activity: Corporate Social Networking
Companies are increasingly using social networking sites such as Facebook and Twitter as part
of ongoing business practices. The outcome of this exercise is to get students to understand the
impact of corporate social networking.
Divide the class into groups of four or five students. Each group should identify one company
that engages in corporate social networking. Students are encouraged to select companies with
social networking sites that they have personally used in the past. The company may be public or
private, for-profit or nonprofit, and may provide products or services. Once a company has been
identified, groups should work to answer each of the following questions in writing:
1. What social media website(s) do(es) the company utilize?
2. Who is the company’s target market? Does the company do a good job of targeting these
individuals through its social networking site? Why, or why not?
3. Compare the company’s social networking site with its official website. How does the
content and language differ between the two sites?
4. Social media objectives are listed in Chapter 18 in section 18-2b. Identify the company’s
primary social media objectives based on actual communications on its social networking
site. Be sure to provide examples.
5. Describe the promotional methods that the company uses to market products or services on
its social networking site.
6. What do you recommend that the company do to stay on top of current social media trends?
After each group is finished, have them share their ideas with the class.