The world is still getting its feet wet with social media marketing. Companies are starting to join in on the extravaganza by adding dedicated fan pages on Facebook and Twitter accounts solely about the company. There are a multitude of success stories from various companies that have increased their customer base with social media marketing tools such as Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube.
The great advantage with these tools is that they are absolutely free. Companies can easily make a Twitter account or Facebook fan page to help get their brand noticed in social media communities. There is no need for pay to play models. As long as companies are willing to use the tools and commit the time and effort into social media, then they will be able to increase their customer base while minding their budget. In other words, the company must be willing to pay to play.
One great example would be BlendTec. I’m sure you’ve seen their humorous and enjoyable video series “Will It Blend?” on YouTube. They’ve blended various items like an iPhone, GPS systems, digital cameras, and many more. These videos have increased BlendTec’s sales by at least five times. Viral videos like BlendTec’s bring new visitors to company’s website fast and for a low cost. To make this tactic work for you, think of creative, original content that people will want to pass on to their friends.
Another great success story is of Tony Hsieh, CEO of Zappos. His strong belief in Twitter has encouraged him to create a sub-section specifically for Twitter. This page not only consists of Tony’s Twitter posts, but all of the Zappos employees. Both Tony and employees of Zappos tweet about personal and business related articles. The willingness from Tony to be open about his personal stories on Twitter has developed a personal and close relationship with those following his account. Thus, the followers are willing to closely follow his tweets throughout the day and keep up with Zappos.
Here’s one more success story about a company using Twitter: Naked Pizza. This company, based in New Orleans, specializes in healthy pies and has seen an exponential growth in their customer base from using Twitter. Not only did 68 percent of their sales come from people calling in from Twitter, but 85 percent of those new customers were from Twitter. Even small companies, such as this example, have the possibility to double their new customer base by accessing and updating their Twitter account.
These success stories are just only the beginning of the new age. The number of users for the social media marketing websites are growing in an abundance and can help many companies increase exposure. As you can see, with social media marketing, it’s all about how to use social media platforms to your advantage. It is very possible for companies big or small to increase their customer base and/or sales with the help of these social media marketing websites.
Written Chris C.