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Digital Transformation in Business and Society pp 61–81Cite as

Palgrave Macmillan

Social Media in Marketing Communications: A Synthesis of Successful Strategies for the Digital Generation

Abstract

In social media marketing, emphasis needs to be placed on creating and adopting effective strategies that can generate electronic word-of-mouth (eWOM) and make the brand go viral. This study, therefore, identifies a series of available strategies for harnessing the power of the social media for firms to stimulate their marketing efforts. Firstly, as with any communication exercise, it is necessary to plan social media marketing campaigns extensively before their launch. Also, in contrast to traditional marketing, which involves limited customer participation, managers need to develop new forms of advertorial content that encourage user engagement. Further, it is necessary to create separate strategies for each social media channel, employ the right people to spread the message, form virtual communities of individuals with common interests, and design products and services that create buzz. To further stimulate eWOM, the marketing message must be sufficiently memorable and trigger the consumer’s emotions. Marketing managers must leverage on emotional connections, provide exclusivity, harness the power of stories, solicit feedbacks, and increase social media presence. Finally, social media marketing must be complemented with the rest of the marketing communications mix.

Keywords

  • Social media
  • Marketing communications
  • Strategies
  • Electronic Word-of-Mouth

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Pan-Atlantic University, Lagos, Nigeria

    Ogechi Adeola & Olaniyi Evans

  2. University of Ghana Business School, Accra, Ghana

    Robert Ebo Hinson

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  1. Ogechi Adeola
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  2. Robert Ebo Hinson
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  3. Olaniyi Evans
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Correspondence to Ogechi Adeola .

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  1. Fort Hays State University, Hays, KS, USA

    Babu George

  2. University of Puerto Rico, San Juan, Puerto Rico

    Justin Paul

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Adeola, O., Hinson, R.E., Evans, O. (2020). Social Media in Marketing Communications: A Synthesis of Successful Strategies for the Digital Generation. In: George, B., Paul, J. (eds) Digital Transformation in Business and Society. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-08277-2_4

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