Social networking has also influenced online retail in major ways. The increasing integration of all the networks and websites online has helped e-commerce. Whenever someone buys a product using these websites the friends of the user are notified on the social networking sites. This could get some of the users interested in the products and could also increase the product sales. One of the examples of such a notification service is beacon which is developed by facebook the most popular social network website. Facebook can be also used for event promotion.
As the social networks are increasingly synced with people’s smart phones and their calendars, businesses can use this synchronization to their benefit by keeping the users updated about business developments and any public events. If a user chooses to attend the event it will be added to his calendar and his friends will also be able to see it, this kind of viral marketing helps the business improve its products. Through social networks everyone that is involved in the process of buying-selling and getting employed and criticizing the product is brought together. This way the entire process is speeding up.
All the consumers benefit as they get better products and the businesses benefit as they get higher consumer satisfaction. All this can be done fast, through social networks and a win-win situation for all is created. The increasing integration of social networks with gadgets means that social networks can also be made capable of accessing the other features of the device. Due to integration of social networks with one of the most popular features of the phones today- GPS (Global Positioning System) tells the friends on the networks about the places that the user is checking into.
Businesses can use this data to build statistics and target the people or areas where they have low popularity and promote their product. This way a lot of money can be saved. Another use of social networking based technology is video conferencing. Using video conferencing technologies business can create a formal meeting environment at a very low cost and also save countless hours of skilful labour. The pollution due to the travel is also reduced. The excessive and hidden use of social networks during working hours has hampered productivity.
Due to this, businesses nowadays block these websites on the company networks and also have started prohibiting the use of these services during office hours. Also employees are asked to take special care of the accounts as anything negative from broadcasted from these accounts might lead to negative publicity of the business. The development and introduction of social networking has also had an impact on the economies. These networks have created more jobs and this has helped its country of origin as the use of these services in other countries will bring money in the home country.
The increasing popularity of these services has also created job opportunities for developers for these websites. Conclusion Social networks have had a major impact on our lives in a lot of major ways. Due to their increasing popularity and the ability to communicate with around the world fast is helping the rate of globalisation everywhere around the world. Talent is gaining recognition is deserves faster than before. The one major area of its impact is business and employment. The amount of positive impact the use of social networks has had on businesses is far greater than its negative impact.
The number of jobs created, the amount of precious man-hours, skilful labour time and money that’s been saved tells us that our efficiency and resource allocation has improved. Also it is helping the consumers get better products and businesses deliver better. Also the widespread use of these networks has increased consumer awareness. Professionals from various fields now have a commonplace which anyone can access easily and where anyone can share their thoughts. The increasing popularity has also made it a medium through which consumer relations and corporate social responsibility of a business can be taken care of.
These services are also proving to be very helpful in job-finding for employees from various fields. The fast and reliable real-time communication speed that these networks offer has also made it another reason for business to adapt to them. In my opinion the use of social networks is making the world a better place to live. As the purpose of every kind of technology is to make living easier, social networking can be called a step towards a better future. Six months ago, I highlighted many benefits of social media for small business, but several new research articles add urgency to this message. Swiftly Changing Landscape
Social media marketing is a rapidly changing environment, as we all know. But the good news is that your customers are embracing social media as a normal part of their lives. Even the over-50 population is adapting at staggering rates. The following 26 stats should impress upon you the importance of developing a social media strategy for your business. #1: There are now more than 800 million active Facebook users, with over 200 million added in 2011. Notice the growth trend traced by Ben Foster. Facebook is growing rapidly. Which side of the wave are you on? Nielsen found the following in their 3Q 2011 Social Media Report:
#2: Over 80% of all Americans use a social network. #3: Americans spend more time on Facebook than any other U. S. website. #4: Approximately 40% of social media users access their accounts through mobile devices. #5: Nearly 23% of online time is spent on social networks. #6: Facebook is the top destination among social networks and blogs: Nielsen found U. S. users spend nearly 10x more time on Facebook than Twitter or LinkedIn. #7: Social media users are more active and influential offline: Social media users are more active offline and have greater influence than their peers (Nielsen).
