Notwithstanding General Motors’ decision to log out of Facebook, where it has sensed own ads making “little impact”, advertisers across board from auto to fast-moving consumer goods have given thumbs-up to social media.
Companies such as Coca-Cola, Cadbury-Kraft, LG, Samsung, Nissan and even Indian players such as Mahindra & Mahindra and Maruti Suzuki say the way one leveraged decided the success on Facebook and such sites. They are not a means to purely advertise, says L K Gupta, chief marketing officer, LG Electronics India. “People want to have fun on Facebook. If you realise this, your content will be geared to handle this,” he adds.
Coca-Cola India finds social media a “great tool” for feedback and comments. “We see a potential in ideas that go beyond mainstream channels of communication,” notes a spokesperson.
Maruti Suzuki says its experience has been very successful with media such as Facebook. “It has worked for us,” says Shashank Srivastava, chief marketing officer of the auto major. A Nissan India spokesperson says social media campaigns contribute “in many ways” towards brand-building, awareness generation and engagement generating word of mouth.
According to Facebook’s website, its monthly active users at the end of March 2012 were 901 million (data for the months of April and May have not been indicated). Of this, almost 80 per cent of users were outside of the US and Canada in markets such as India, where the monthly active users are 50 million.
Analysts say one of the likely reasons for GM to stop advertising on Facebook was because the Detroit-based auto major’s user base sits outside of the US. But even then advertisers insist that social media strategies have to be tailor-made to the medium. A Mahindra & Mahindra spokesperson says, “Social media is more for engaging with the consumer and establishing a bond with them.”
A brand’s social media strategy, says experts, should revolve around the two Cs -- conversations and communities -- for it to be effective. “If this principle is followed, brands will crack the social media code,” says CVL Srinivas, chairman, Starcom MediaVest Group (India), a media agency.