What is Social Media Marketing?

Definition

Google termed the word Marketing as "the action or business of promoting and selling products or services, including market research and advertising." Now add "through social media" and you get your answer. That is it, Social media marketing is the action or business of promoting and selling products or services through social media.

Breaking Down "Social Media Marketing"

Many people believe that Social Media Marketing is just about posting links to products or services that they like to sell on Facebook and Twitter. But it is more than that. Social Media Marketing is everything a company, business or brand does to connect and build a strong relationship with their consumers over social media platforms. This even includes small tasks such as wishing new year. Social media is all about interacting and showing genuine care to costumers, this is done by creating quality contents for social media, telling the story of the brand, listening to consumers and replying to them as soon as possible. The ultimate goal of Social media marketing is to build a following over the internet and eventually turn them into loyal costumers.

Why is it trending?

"Social media is not just an activity, it is an investment of valuable time and resources. Surround yourself with people who not just support you and stay with you, but inform your thinking about ways to WOW your online presence" - Sean Gardener

Recently every major brand have started to use the Social Media Marketing strategy from Nike to PepsiCo. Even Brands in Nepal like Ncell uses Social Media to promote their brand. But why is it trending?

Social media is the only advertising platform which allows targeted marketing. Through social media it is possible to sort your potential consumers on the basis of  their interests, geography, gender, etc. This helps business to sell their products to only people who are interested. This has shown to be effective. According to Socionomics; 90% of people's buying decisions are effected by Social Media.