Today we are in the 21st century and people do not find time to meet and interact with each other. Social media helps connect with social networking sites through which people can now stay apart and yet stay connected. Apart from this, media like Facebook creates a loyal connection between product and individual which leads to great advertising opportunities. Similarly, other social media like blogs create a platform to post a comment on any event that needs to be publicized and can also be used as a promotional technique for customer adoption and promotions. Now users gain followers and subscribers and direct them to your social network page. These media have a competitive advantage over other popular public media such as television because there is a time lag between the occurrence of the social event and when it is broadcast. This research paper highlights the strategies that can take this mode of viral marketing beyond the current normal social media. As a result, it can also help you build your community strong enough to make your marketing and purchasing efforts successful. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay Social media marketing refers to the process of gaining website traffic or attention through social media sites. Social media marketing programs usually focus on efforts to create content that attracts attention and encourages readers to share it with their social networks. A company message spreads from user to user and presumably resonates because it appears to come from a trusted, third-party source, as opposed to the brand or company itself. Therefore, this form of marketing is driven by word of mouth, meaning it results in earned media rather than paid media. Social media has become a platform easily accessible to anyone with access to the internet. Greater communication between organizations drives brand awareness and, often, better customer service. Additionally, social media serves as a relatively inexpensive platform for organizations to implement marketing campaigns. The different social media outlets/platforms: Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, Google+, blogs. Social networking websites allow people to interact with each other and build relationships. When products or companies join such sites, people can interact with the product or company. Such interaction feels personal to users due to their previous experiences with interactions on social networking sites. Social networking sites such as Twitter, Facebook, Google Plus, YouTube, Pinterest, and blogs allow individual followers to "retweet" or "repost" comments made by the promoted product. By repeating the message, all of the user's connections can see the message, thus reaching more people. Social networking sites act as word of mouth. As product information is published and repeated, more traffic is brought to the product/company. Through social networking sites, products/companies can have conversations and interactions with individual followers. This personal interaction can instill a feeling of loyalty among followers and potential customers. Furthermore, by choosing who to follow on these sites, products can reach a very narrow target audience. Cell phone usage has also become an advantage for social media marketing. Today, many cell phones have social networking capabilities: individuals are informed of anyhappening on social networking sites through their mobile phones, in real time. This constant connection to social networking sites means that products and companies can constantly remember and update followers about their capabilities, uses, importance, etc. Since mobile phones are connected to social networking sites, advertisements are always in sight. Additionally, many companies now place QR codes along with products for individuals to access the company's website or online services with their smartphones. In the context of the social web, engagement means that customers and stakeholders are participants rather than spectators. Social media in business allows anyone to express and share an opinion or idea somewhere along the company's path to market. Each participating customer becomes part of the marketing department, while other customers read their comments or reviews. The engagement process is therefore crucial to successful social media marketing. ADIDAS: In 2007, Adidas and their agency Carat created a social media experience for soccer players. Adidas pitted two different types of cleats against each other and asked people to "pick a side." The content focused on promoting an environment for friendly discussion and debate about Adidas' two elite soccer shoe/cleat models, Predator and F50 TUNIT. Community visitors had the opportunity to align with a product “team” and offer comments in support of their favorite model. The community included content about Adidas professional soccer players from each "team", rotating product views, downloadable graphics, forum discussions, a link to additional product information, and a link to the Adidas Mexico Footbol profile page. BETTY WHITE: Social networking sites can have a big impact on the outcome of events. In 2010, a Facebook campaign emerged in the form of a petition. Users have virtually signed a petition asking NBC Universal to have actress Betty White as the host of Saturday Night Live. Once signed, users forwarded the petition to all their followers. The petition went viral, and Betty White hosted SNL on May 8, 2010. PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION: The 2008 presidential campaign had a huge presence on social networking sites. Barack Obama, a Democratic candidate for president of the United States, used Twitter and Facebook to differentiate his campaign. His social networking site's profile pages were constantly updated and interacted with followers. The use of social networking sites gave Barack Obama's campaign access to email addresses, posted on the profile pages of social networking sites. This allowed the Democratic Party to launch email campaigns asking for votes and donations. LOCAL BUSINESSES: Even small businesses use social networking sites as a promotional technique. Businesses can track the usage of individual social networking sites in the local area and advertise specials and offers. These can be exclusive and in the form of “get a free drink with a copy of this tweet”. This type of message encourages other venues to follow the activity on the sites to get the promotional deal. In this way the company gets noticed and promotes itself. TWITTER TACTIC: Twitter allows companies to promote products on an individual level. The use of a product can be explained in short messages that followers are more likely to read. These messages appear on followers' home pages. Messages can link to your product website, Facebook profile, photos, videos,etc. This link gives followers the opportunity to spend more time interacting with the product online. This interaction can create a loyal connection between product and individual and can also lead to more advertising opportunities. Twitter promotes a product in real time and attracts customers. FACEBOOK Facebook profiles are more detailed than Twitter. They allow a product to provide videos, photos, and longer descriptions. Videos can show when you can use a product and how to use it. These can also include testimonials as other followers can comment on product pages for others to see. Facebook can connect to the product's Twitter page and send event reminders. Facebook promotes a product in real time and attracts customers. As marketers see more value in social media marketing, advertisers continue to increase sequential social ad spend by 25%. Strategies for Extending Reach Sponsored stories and acquiring new fans with Facebook ads continue to drive spend on the site. The study attributes 84% ​​of “engagement” or clicks to Likes that link to Facebook advertising. Today, brands increase their number of fans by an average of 9% per month, growing their fan base by twice the annual amount. BLOGS: Blogs allow a product or company to provide longer descriptions of products or services. The longer description may include reasoning and uses. May include testimonials and may link to and from Facebook, Twitter and many social networking and blog pages. Blogs can be updated frequently and are promotional techniques to retain customers. Other promotional uses are to acquire followers and subscribers and direct them to social network pages. SOCIAL MEDIA MARKETING TOOLS: In addition to search tools, there are many companies that provide specialized platforms/tools for social media marketing, such as tools for: Social media monitoring; Aggregation; Social Book Marking; Tagging Social Analytics; Reporting Automation; Social Media Blog; Marketing Validation. IMPLICATION ON TRADITIONAL ADVERTISING USAGE MINIMIZATION: Traditional advertising techniques include print and television advertising. The Internet had already surpassed television as the largest advertising market. Websites often include banner or pop-up ads. Social networking sites don't always contain ads. In exchange, the products have full pages and are able to interact with users. Television commercials often end with a spokesperson asking viewers to visit the product's website for more information. Print ads are also starting to include barcodes. These barcodes can be scanned by mobile phones and computers, directing users to the product website. Advertising is starting to shift viewers from traditional channels to electronic ones. LEAKS: Leaks on the Internet and social networks are one of the problems facing traditional advertising. Video and print ads are often released to the world via the Internet before their scheduled presentation. Social networking sites allow these leaks to go viral and be seen by many users more quickly. The time difference is also a problem that traditional advertisers face. When social events occur and are televised, there is often a delay between the airing on the East and West Coasts of the United States. Social networking sites became a hub for comments and interactions regarding the event. This allows people watching the event on the West Coast (delayed)."