Thursday, October 29, 2015

It's Just Advertising

Brenda Keck
bk562515@ohio.edu

Brands use social media to find loyal customers

"A May 2010 report from research firm BIA/Kelsey predicts that brands will spend upward of $8.3 billion on social media advertising by 2015. From Facebook to Tumblr to Groupon, millions of consumers have gravitated to social media sites, making them an ideal space for brands. Brands can play many roles in social media and have much greater opportunities to connect with consumers outside of the typical promotional and marketing scope. Social media gives brands a forum for interacting with consumers in a much more personal and collaborative way." by Amy Adkins, Demand Media

Brands use social media to market to new and existing customers. Brands use their Facebook pages and You Tube accounts to encourage consumers to post photos and videos of themselves using the product or service. The more natural role of brands in social media is to let the consumer speak and to talk. Brands still use marketing and promotional tactics like contests, coupons and advertising,but that is only one part of their role. Social Media platforms like Facebook give brands the ability to get feedback on new products and services.

What journalists need to know bout ‘content marketing’
http://www.poynter.org/news/media-innovation/187229/what-journalists-need-to-know-about-content-marketing/
  • Understand the differences between objective journalism and “brand content”
  • Make honesty the highest priority
  • Make honesty the highest priority
  • Disclose anything that resembles a conflict
  • Dialogue is necessary
"Today’s journalist faces an abundance of ethical challenges, some due to fast-paced publishing pressure, others to new, growing opportunities for work." Shane Snow

The media must keep the Code of Ethics near and dear to their heart as the social media takes off full speed ahead. Journalists have an obligation to be unbiased to the viewers. The power of social media has such an impact on the public that if a catastrophe were announced via social media and not confirmed, chaos could be created. However, it something like this did happen and journalist were not trusted, the same outcome could happen.

It is so important for reporters and journalist, writers and editors, to keep ethical reporting front and center, so that little doubt can be perceived through public opinion and what they hear is what they can believe.

1 comment:

  1. You are right about the power of social media. The only problem is that, because so many people use various forms of social media, if there is a major national/international catastrophe in the near future, it will definitely be announced on social media. Plenty of people believe everything they read on Facebook, so you are right that it is up to us as journalists to fight fear mongering. - Isabella Andersen

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