This is an article I wrote about the need for social media marketing in regard to the Social Media Summit in Uganda for East Africa Business Week that came out yesterday. This post is for those who missed the article in print media.

 

Today, in the business world, there is a constantly growing buzz about social media marketing; and believe it or not, I cannot count on one hand how many people I meet daily that wonder whether ‘social media’ would be the appropriate choice for their businesses. And there is no hesitation from me telling them to stop hiding behind the invisible cloak of wonder and join the budding movement that is social media before they get left behind by the rest of humanity.

To most of the business minded people that cross my path, social media (they believe) serves only as a distraction from real work, and is major cause of procrastination in the work places. Even though that is sometimes undeniably true, I choose to show them the other side of social media; the other side that is a great way to drive repeat business and to attract new customers. I show them that on the other side of things, regardless whether one is a beginner or a pro/guru; they definitely need social media in one way or the other.

So, “What is social media, after all?” This is a practice of gaining and garnering attention through the use of social networking websites and platforms like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Google+, WhatsApp, LinkedIn and several others. This kind of attention creates content that attracts and encourages readers to share across their networks.

Social media marketing is the way of using the above networking sites to build relationships, enterprise reprise businesses and attract new customers through friends sharing with friends. To put it even more simply, social media marketing is really just word-of-mouth powered by technology.

 

Just like any other notable marketing tool in business, social media marketing does too run on set goals that are not only meant to understand the inner workings of said business, but also adapt to the ever changing and evolving ways in which consumers react to products. The most obvious and probably important objective of social media marketing in businesses is to spread the word to both already existing and potential customers, who you are and what you can do for them, which is more or less a simpler abut more effective form of brand awareness. Other goals of social media, however, may include;

 

It helps company promotions and adverts go viral using technology. Social media marketing documents stories (about products) that spread across the globe in seconds at just the mere click of a button. In which case boost publicity for a brand, freely promote it and may even popularise a commodity, all from just having a good internet connection.

 

It is also good with providing great customer services. Through social media, customers have the chance to openly express and share their views about a product they are using to their friends, and sometimes with the brand creators directly. This creates an avenue for brand creators to respond directly and also get back relevant responses to the products. It’s a wonderful feedback loop! Under the same umbrella social media marketing offers the possibility to create a great and long standing relationship between clients and brand makers built on trust and great service provision.

 

There is clearly a lot more to learn, share and perhaps teach on the ways of social media marketing. For this reason NITA Uganda and Intensity Technology organised a Social Media Summit on 26th November 2014 to help all that are interested to acquire knowledge about this topic of marketing and how it can help their businesses and organisations. If you are on twitter tweet @SMUg_14 for any details you might need or check out the website

Patricia Kahill

Patricia Kahill is a multipotentialite Christian entrepreneur, Content Marketing Coach and founder of the Content Marketing agency, Kahill Insights that helps business owners create engaging and interactive content items for digital platforms with a focus on returning a desired outcome. Patricia was the producer of SlamDunk Basketball Talk a show on House of Talent online TV, a former fellow at Harvest Institute for leadership and now an assessor there, and an alumnus of the YELP class of 2017. A member of the BNI Integrity chapter and African Women Entrepreneur Cooperative. She is driven by passion and curiosity, been taking every opportunity that has been given to her with an ambition of stamping her footprint on the world.

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