Social Media has taken the world by storm, especially with the myspace and facebook phenomenons. But these are companies that were made to thrive in Social Media. Knowing this, how have the traditional companies (who’ve been around for years) been impacted? What’s their future in social media?
The graph below illustrates how often each brand is “mentioned” in some of the top social mediums…
Of course, Google, Yahoo, Apple and Microsoft are really no surprise. These brands are predominately mentioned in the blogosphere and on delicious. Yet, what’s most surprising? What’s most notable? Here’s my take:
Canon: YouTube drives most of the conversation for Canon, which is expected with around 42,000 search results. Although most of these are irrelevant, new product demos like this one, instructional videos, and canon interviews, really benefit the Canon’s brand. From brand awareness to bad press, users utilize YouTube to 1) show off their new camera, 2) give advice to others on how to take care of a camera, 3) or general talk about overall experiences.
What should Canon do? It’s definitely been noted that Canon can thrive in the blogosphere by using social media to their benefit (other users have already started: canon blog, user#1 blog, and user#2 blog). But, where’s Canon’s corporate blog?
A corporate blog will help Canon:
- Embrace the thriving social media culture that has already begun
- Strengthen their brand presence + build trust
- Acknowledge and join the “new” community
- See first hand how their rate amongst users
Amazon.com: Looks like delicious is the leader for all Amazon.com mentions in social media. With 170,000 mentions its easy to see why, as the majority of the listings are coupons/deal offers.
Notably, the first search result is S3 (online storage). What’s going to happen with the online storage industry? It will become cheaper…cheaper to store information, cheaper to use information, and cheaper to view information.
Jeremiah suggested that users will be paid to upload data…not in cash though.
It’s probable users will receive cash returns, but highly unlikely; instead, users will receive “credits.” Towards what? Social Media tools..like widgets/gifts for facebook, discount coupons to companies like Amazon, or even promotions (free one month web hosting, etc). To say users will be paid to upload data is not false…its misleading. Especially since no premium will be paid and its likely companies will use it as another marketing/sales gimmick to get people using the “made” money towards something else.
My questions is: how will companies validate that the info you enter is correct?
Disney: Like Canon, YouTube drives a lot of the online conversation for Disney. However, it may not be as beneficial.
Disadvantages of YouTube:
- Copyright issues – you can’t stop it
- The Disney audience is children…they shouldn’t be on YouTube
- Can’t control users (parody videos, porn Disney, etc)
Advantages of YouTube:
- Free viral marketing – things spread fast
- It’s easy and accessible
- Generates hype, interest, and creativity
YouTube isn’t a bad thing for Disney, but by all means they should not rely on it. Instead take this as a sign that Disney is in the Top 10 of all online mentions along with eBay, Google, and Microsoft. That’s a big deal…and there’s a tremendous amount of potential for social media. From blogs to virtual 2.0 worlds…users want it thats a given…and the stats just reaffirms that.
All in all, this is an excellent report on how brands are influenced by social media alone. It’s amazing actually, since most of social media costs very little (if not free), compared to traditional advertising and marketing. What will these companies do? Time will tell, but it will not be a smart move to ignore the “new” internet.