Requested Information on Social Media

TO: Derek Mason, Manager/Owner

FROM: Lauren Glover, Head Marketer

DATE: April 7, 2015

SUBJECT: Requested Information on Social Media

This report includes information that you requested on social media. The report will incorporate the definition and proper use of social media, different types and how social media can affect a company positively and negatively. As more people start to live their lives on social media, companies will have to change their approach to advertisement. Social media has changed the delivery, structure, and availability of information to reach current and future customers and others. (Taneja, S., & Toombs, L., 2014). Small businesses need to promote their business by increasing their visibility, viability, and sustainability in order to survive in the current competitive market. While larger companies can try and prevent new competition from entering the market, by either buying all the adverting space like billboards, commercials on the radio and T.V or simply satisfying their customer’s needs. Unfortunately, some social media websites have allowed you to control what kind of advertisement you want to see on your Facebook wall or Twitter page.

THE USE OF SOCIAL MEDIA

Social media is a tool that allows people to share pictures/videos, personal messages, and/or information to their friends and family or whoever is following them. It is also, a place where people can connect with each other people even if they are miles apart. Social networking is a phenomenon that has transformed the interaction and communication of individuals throughout the world. However, social media is not a new concept - it has been evolving since the dawn of human interaction. (Edosomwan, S., Prakasan, S. K., Kouame, D., Watson, J., & Seymour, T., 2011). For most people social media is part of their daily lives; it allows people to communicate with others faster and more efficiently, it is a place where people create new ideas for their company or home.

If you want your company to be successful in using social media, then you should be asking this question, “What determines whether an internal social media initiative brings business benefits? One essential — but often overlooked — factor is how employees feel about the organization.” (Huy, Q., & Shipilov, A., 2012). It’s simple, if someone doesn’t like their job or the atmosphere they are working in, then they aren’t going to do their job to their full potential, which results in the reduction of the success of the company. For example, in a 2010 survey we conducted of 1,060 global executives, only about 50% said that their companies had adopted social media initiatives within their organizations; of those, about 60% reported that social media had positive effects on their company’s internal communications. Thus, only about 30% of executives whom we surveyed work for companies that have both adopted internal use of social media and seen positive effects on the company’s internal communications as a result. (Huy, Q., & Shipilov, A., 2012). In order to create success, companies have to be able to develop emotional capital. Emotion capital is defined as “the aggregate feelings of goodwill toward a company and the way it operates.” (Huy, Q., & Shipilov, A., 2012). Without this theory, companies do not succeed.

DIFFERENT KINDS OF SOCIAL MEDIA

There are many different kinds of social media websites, some of the most popular are Facebook, YouTube and Twitter. Each website uses a different type of strategy for advertising. Here are some websites that we could potential use to promote our company:

Facebook was launched in 2004 and is privately operated by Facebook Inc. People can create their own personal profile, where they can add family and friends, exchange instant messages, share photos and comment on other peoples photos. Also you can join groups with people who share the same interests as you. “On October 24, 2007, Microsoft announced that it had purchased a 1 .6% share of Facebook for $240 million, giving Facebook a total implied value of around $15 billion. Microsoft's purchase included rights to place international ads on Facebook; other companies have equally followed suit.” (Edosomwan, S., Prakasan, S. K., Kouame, D., Watson, J., & Seymour, T., 2011). In 2009, Facebook was ranked as the most used social network worldwide and by 2010, Facebook had over 500 million active users. Also, in 2010, Google discovered that more people visited Facebook than any other website in the world.

YouTube was founded in 2005, and since then became the world's