More and more people are exposed to social networks; About 80% of the Spanish population are active users of social networks, taking into account in turn, the current tendency to make online purchases. However, there are significant differences between social commerce and social marketing , and in Gowtech we will explain what they consist of.
Both social networks and online sale have become a vital aspect in our lives and there are few companies that coordinate both efficiently. Those who do obtain certain benefits as some of those mentioned below.
What is social commerce?
In this way, the social commerce is the online trade that uses social networks to open new online sales channels and improve customer experience. Not only consists of selling on social networks but also allows us to obtain synergies and more flexible during the purchase cycle .
It also allows us to interact with the client in each step of the process , allowing to increase brand recognition as well as promote their products through advertising campaigns. It also allows us to have a better knowledge about our clients and can better answer their doubts and needs.
When we buy online in a traditional way, we can arrive through an active search for the product that is intended to acquire, or through digital advertising. However, in this case, the connection occurs through social relations between users.
Social networks have been used for years to disseminate the company's contents and generate brand and year -aware , but they can also be used to use them to sell, taking advantage of the purchase impulses that users can have while using a certain social network.
Another of the possible strategies that can be used to promote sales through the social would be user evaluations , since individuals identify with the comments of other Internet users about a certain product or service, generating greater confidence and security.
What is social marketing?
Unlike social commerce , social marketing can be defined as the combination of marketing techniques to spread a company or brand through online media such as blogs, social networks or content aggregators. The objective is to generate a link with the target audience leaving aside vertical communication with users, in order to establish a dialogue with them.
The Social Media Marketing adjusts the message (language and tone used) and the frequency of its actions to the different social networks. In this way, they allow us to increase brand recognition, obtain greater loyalty of customers and high conversion levels, in addition to reducing marketing costs . They also allow us to obtain greater traffic especially from users who are not familiar with the brand or do not know it.
Planning of an effective social marketing strategy
In order for social marketing to be consistent, it is essential that it be part of a digital strategy that has to be established on the basis of the company's objectives and position.
It is necessary to follow a series of steps :
- Define the objectives.
- Define the target audience.
- Determine the content.
- Design a media strategy.
- Choose the tools.
- Define the budget.
- And evaluate the plan.
The objectives are the starting point for the Marketing Social where the goals to be achieved and how the success of the campaign will be measured will be defined.
In order for our campaign to succeed, it is essential to define the target audience , that is, determine who potential clients are and design a message addressed to them. The content is the heart of a social media campaign, the type of content to be published must be selected, as well as the tone and style.
The media strategy must take into account the target audience, the type of content and the objective of the campaign, it is also essential to establish a budget for the Social Media campaign.
And, finally, the evaluation of the marketing plan that plays an important role must be reviewed periodically the plan to see if the defined objectives are being achieved.
As we can see, the differences between the social commerce and the social marketing are clear. Thus, the Social Commerce focuses on the sale of products and services, while social marketing focuses on building customer relationships.
Social Marketing plays a more important role in the long term, while the Social Commerce has greater relevance in the short term.