Basically, social media marketing refers to the process of marketing through such social media sites as Facebook, YouTube, and Twitter. By using the web’s social aspect, you can interact and connect on a much more dynamic and personalized level than when utilizing traditional marketing.
You can have a social media marketing strategy simply by creating a Twitter account, setting up a company blog, or attaching “Tweet This” or “Digg This” tags to the end of each article. You can also have a full marketing campaign that encompasses Twitter, blogs, viral videos through YouTube, and social networking.
Social news
Tagging articles and blog entries for voting and easy submission on social news sites such as Digg is the simplest form of social media marketing. If you have ever encountered a Share This widget or a Digg vote counter or at the end of an article, then you have seen this kind of social media marketing in action.
Social networking
In this time when everything is becoming virtual, it has become important for us to have accounts on social networking sites such as MySpace and Facebook. These social networks and other specialized ones might be the right place for you to advertise your products or services. For example, if you are a musician, you might want to create a profile on MySpace as well as Last.FM. You can also promote movies through Facebook and Flixster.
Blogs
Blogs, in many respects, can be an extension of traditional media like newspapers and magazines. Much as a review articles might be sent to a traditional media outlet, it can also be sent to blogs about the subject.
Twitter is one of the most ideal venues for social media marketing. While it has grown beyond its microblogging beginnings, you can think of Twitter like a company blog. The primary purpose of using Twitter is to get the word out, with a personal touch. In addition, using Twitter lets you interact with fans and customers more effectively.
YouTube
Many effective social media marketing center on YouTube. While making viral videos are often expensive and time-consuming, YouTube can become the centerpiece of a large-scale social media campaign. Considering its social nature, it can be a nice way to connect and interact with your customers and involve them in the marketing and the product or service.