Jun
21
Posted by: Tanya
in Blog 
Building Brand Awareness Through Social Media
Posted by: Tanya
in Blog
Tagged in: twitter , social media , small business , pepsi , non-profits , facebook , coke , brand awareness
Social media has a unique ability to serve an array of functions based on what is being represented. The Harvard Business review recently featured an article on how brands like Coke and Pepsi use social media to build trust between themselves and their consumers. Twitter and Facebook are effective tools for these brands to enforce and broaden their identities as well as enhance customer relationships. Due to the already-existent acquaintance with such products as Coke and Pepsi, their incentive is primarily to expand trust around the association everyone already has with them.
For example, Pepsi launched a campaign where it asked its fans to discuss various issues (culture, food, education), then have others vote, then reward certain entrants with monetary grants. Typically, when you hear or think of “Pepsi,” you associate the word with a carbonated thirst quencher and don’t think much beyond that. But now, they’ve broadened your perception to include conversation and charity: additional, diverse and obviously-positive associations.
But how does social media work for the brands, businesses and non-profits with whom everyone doesn’t already have a seemingly-innate association? For the little guys, social media seems to mainly increase familiarity with who they are and what they do. It’s sort of as if they’re the infant versions of their "elder" namebrand counterparts. Rather than enforcing their brand’s identity, they’re creating their brand’s identity. Rather than enhancing customer relationships, they’re developing customer relationships. These are imperative tasks for any organization and social media is definitely a means of proactively assuming that responsibility.
Social media helps smaller organizations reach an audience that may not have otherwise thought to seek them out. Even if a follower doesn’t directly use a certain product or service, scanning it every day on Twitter or Facebook simply reminds the consumer that it exists. This could eventually prove valuable if/when that individual or someone he/she knows happens to be looking for such an offer. Smaller brands can also definitely create similar promotions to those that the bigger guys run, but the intent still slightly varies.
How does your company use social media to increase familiarity with your community?
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