Social Media Marketing
BS33008FP
2023 Revision 3
Contents
Unit 1: DETERMINE MARKETING REQUIREMENTS ........................................................................... 2
1.
Needs and Wants ........................................................................................................................ 2
2.
The 4Ps of Marketing .................................................................................................................. 5
3.
Describe the key steps of the marketing process for a business .............................................. 10
4.
Describe the purpose and features of distribution channels ................................................... 18
5.
Outline the promotional mix .................................................................................................... 20
6.
Describe the types of traditional marketing strategy (audience, marketing objectives, media)
24
UNIT 2: Comply with Regulatory Requirements for Content Creation .......................................... 29
Define Intellectual Property ...................................................................................................... 29
Describe Types of IP And Sources of Information..................................................................... 30
Describe ways to acknowledge IP ............................................................................................. 40
Describe the Consequences of Infringement of Intellectual Property ..................................... 43
UNIT 3: Create Social Media Content .......................................................................................... 46
1.
Describe the advantages and disadvantages of social media marketing ................................. 46
2.
Describe the types of content marketing strategy ................................................................... 49
3.
Describe ways to align different social media platforms to marketing strategy ...................... 51
4.
Outline Types of Digital Marketing ........................................................................................... 53
5.
Describe the Various Social Media Platforms ........................................................................... 57
6.
Describe Common Considerations in Social Media Marketing Campaigns .............................. 66
7.
Outline the Development of Social Media Content .................................................................. 74
UNIT 4: Manage Social Media Communities ................................................................................ 93
1.
Describe the Possible Issues that Arise from Organisation’s Social Media Platforms .............. 93
2. Describe the Process to Respond to the Possible Issues Arising from the Use of Social Media
Platforms ........................................................................................................................................... 99
3.
Increasing use of Social Media ..................................................... Error! Bookmark not defined.
4.
Information required from social media by the organization ................................................ 101
Types of user response in social media platforms .......................................................................... 104
5.
Types of data to collect ........................................................................................................... 106
UNIT 5: Evaluate Social Media Marketing Strategy .................................................................... 108
1.
Social Media Marketing Strategy ................................................. Error! Bookmark not defined.
2.
Ways to evaluate social media marketing strategy ................................................................ 108
3.
Effectiveness of social media platforms ...................................... Error! Bookmark not defined.
1
Unit 1: DETERMINE MARKETING
REQUIREMENTS
1. Needs and Wants
Needs and wants are a matter of interest for marketing.
Needs 1
A need is something necessary for a person to live and get the job done, such as air,
water, food and protection from environmental dangers. Needs also include the need for
human interaction, need to socialise and sense of belonging.
Wants2
A want is something that can improve your quality of life or is desired. It is said that
everybody has unlimited wants but limited resources to acquire everything. Therefore,
people cannot afford to have everything they want and must always look for more affordable
alternatives.
For example, a person working as a salesman might want to own a Porsche but needs a car
for work. You may need to make a phone call, but you want the latest smartphone with the
latest technology.
1
2
(2019, August 29). Need. Retrieved from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Need
(2019, July 29). Want. Retrieved from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Want
2
Target Market and Audience
Target Market
A target market is defined as a particular group of consumers at which a product or service is
aimed.
Target Audience
A business must define its target audience to connect with the customers they want to reach.
Target audiences are distinct groups or segments of customers. Clearly defining your
business’ target audiences will help you promote the aspects of your business that are most
relevant to each group.
Knowing your target audiences well will help you deliver your marketing messages in a way
customer will respond to best.
Why do we target a specific group or groups of people?
-
It costs too much money to target everybody.
People are different and have different needs and wants. Their differences can be
profiled using demographics and psychographics.
Target
Audience
3
Demographics and Psychographics
Demographic information categorises people by age, occupation, gender and income. Some
examples of Demographic Profiles include:
•
Age Range
•
Education
•
Income Range
•
Occupation
•
Housing
•
Gender
Psychographic factors define people based on their interests, like people who collect stamps
or coins to people who like cats or people who like counting buses. Some examples of
Psychographic Factors include:
•
Special Interests
•
Hobbies
•
Values
•
Lifestyles
•
Opinions
•
Attitudes
•
Beliefs
•
Personalities
•
Social Class
It is important to keep in mind that customer preferences are always changing, and a
successful business must be able to adapt to these constant changes.
4
2. The 4Ps of Marketing
The Marketing Mix
The Marketing Mix is a tool for business owners to understand and plan a successful product
or service offering.
The 4Ps of marketing, Product, Price, Promotion, and Place, are broad categories for
marketing decision-making and serve as the foundation model for businesses.
Product
Products and Services
Price
Setting a price that the customer is willing to pay and to
maximizes profits for a company.
Place
(Distribution)
Getting the product to the customer.
Promotion
Communicating with the customer
5
Product
Product refers to an item that satisfies the consumer's needs or wants.
•
Products may be tangible goods (physical items)
o
Examples of physical products



•
Electronic products such as laptops, cell
phones or hard drives
Pre-packaged food such as tomato
sauces, cooking oil, potato chips
Machines such as cars, motorcycles
and buses.
Products may also be intangible (services, ideas or experiences).
o
Examples of intangible products



Services such as hair cuts, cell phone
repair, and cleaners at food courts.
Experiences such as travel companies
selling tour packages or hotels selling
their rooms for a night’s stay or a day at
the zoo.
Advertising agencies sell ideas to their
clients, and Entrepreneurs sell their ideas
to investors.
Price
Price refers to the amount a customer pays for a
product as well as the willingness a customer is
prepared to sacrifice to acquire a product. It may
involve both monetary and psychological costs, such
as the time and effort spent in acquiring the product.
For businesses, they need to consider various factors
when pricing their products. These factors include:
•
•
•
•
•
List Price
Price discounts
Special offers
Payments by Credit
Credit terms
6
Place
Place refers to providing customer access and convenience for the consumer.
Businesses need to make decisions to setup a physical location to carry out the business,
storage, distribution, etc. Increasingly, place also refers to virtual locations online.
Promotion
Promotion refers to the marketing communication used to make the offer known to potential
customers and persuade them to investigate it further. Promotion elements include
advertising, public relations, direct selling and sales promotions.
7
The Digital Marketing Mix
The digital marketing mix is fundamentally the same as the Marketing Mix, adapted to the
digital age through the use of digital technology.
Product or Service or Solution
Products remain the same; they are both tangible and intangible. Some intangible products
are redefined as virtual products in the digital space, allowing customers to purchase digital
content such as STEAM games or subscribe to streaming platforms such as Netflix or
Spotify for their content.
Price or Value
Products or services are priced as per their offline counterparts. The main advantage is that
pricing changes may be adjusted in real-time digitally, compared to physical stores.
The Internet enables consumers to make a comparison of real-time prices before they make
a purchase decision, which saves time and effort for the customer, providing a higher degree
of price transparency with customers.
Pricing becomes competitive as the massive overheads of Rent, Labor and Utilities are
minimised.
Digital Games on the STEAM Platform
8
Place or Access
The internet has enabled companies to sell online through an E-commerce Platform,
providing a cheaper alternative to physical retail places. It also allows companies to
distribute their products and services without the need to rent a physical store. Enabling new
companies to set up a business through an internet storefront.
Common E-commerce Platforms found in Singapore include;
•
•
•
•
Shopee
Lazada
Amazon
Qoo10
Promotion
Promotion still refers to the concept of the marketing communication used to make the offer
known to potential customers and persuade them to investigate it further. However, in the
digital space, the selection of target markets becomes more important.
Promotion in digital marketing includes:
•
•
•
•
•
•
Display Ads
Search Marketing
o Search Engine Optimisation (SEO)
o Pay-per-click (PPC) mechanics
o Search Engine Marketing
Opt-in E-mail Advertising
Online Public Relations
o Managing positive and negative online comments.
Interactive Advertising
Social Media Marketing (see section 3.4)
9
3. Describe the key steps of the marketing
process for a business
3.1.
Traditional marketing mix
Use the 4Ps to help to decide and define what market strategy will best suit your product or
service offering.
•
The Product should fit the task consumers want it for, it should work, and it should
be what the consumers are expecting to get.
•
Assess how much the target customers are willing to pay for the product. Determine
and set the Price.
•
Determine the Place where the product should be made available.
•
Determine the message to Promote the product or service. How to use the product
and the usefulness of the product are common messages.
3.2.
Perform market research & analytics
In order to start marketing a product or service, it is important to understand what is
happening with your Target Market. Where they frequent, what websites they visit, and how
long they stay on a webpage. Some valuable tools you may use are as follows;
A. Google Analytics
Google Analytics provides insights into how your customers are behaving when
visiting your website, and It can show you which products they viewed and what they
purchased or did not purchase. It can also show you what social media channels they
are responding to.
B. Google Keywords Tool
The Google Keywords tool provides information into the behaviour of consumers
when searching online for products or services similar to what you are offering.
C. Google Trends
Google Trends is data gathered from its search engine. Providing an instant
snapshot of consumer social media and search behaviour, coupled with the latest
news and opinions from within your industry.
Google Trends can be used for comparative keyword research and to discover eventtriggered spikes in keyword search volume. Google Trends provides keyword-related
data, including search volume index and geographical information about search
engine users.
10
D. Survey
One of the simplest methods to obtain information about your target customer is to
perform a survey. You may use an online tool such as Survey Monkey to run a digital
survey, or you may use a more traditional printed survey, a street survey, or a
telephone survey. The information obtained is dependent on what information you
are looking for.
For example, before launching a new cell phone case, you may conduct a survey to
find out what colours your customers may like. Without a survey, you may launch a
product in a colour that may not be well received by the customers and therefore fail
to sell any of your products!
3.3.
Select a marketing strategy
Once you have gathered the data and performed an analysis, you will need to choose a
suitable marketing strategy to meet your goals. Some common strategies are as follows;
•
Social Media Marketing
o Content Marketing
o Affiliate Marketing
•
Direct Response
o E-mail Marketing (opt-in)
o Direct Mailers
•
Media Advertising
o Print
o Broadcast
11
3.4. Understanding common social media
marketing strategies
Social Media Marketing
Social media marketing is the use of social media platforms and websites to promote a
product or service.
The great thing about Social Media Marketing is
that it provides a very focused and targeted
audience to the advertiser.
For example, in Singapore, the aptly named ‘S’
Hook lady, Lerine Yeo, sold her products via her
Facebook shop called Misshopper Boutique.
Do note that she gained her audience over time by
building her network of similarly interested
individuals who ‘liked’ what she had to offer.
The key to a Social Media Marketing strategy is to;
1. Have a clear objective
2. Carefully select the social media platforms
to best reach your audience
3. Define and find your target audience on the
platform you have chosen
4. Decide on the best type of content to reach
your audience, and then select the bestpaid type of advertisement on the platform.
Always check and refresh your advertisements to stay relevant to your customers.
Some popular Social Media Marketing strategies include;
•
•
Content Marketing
Affiliate Marketing
More Social Media Marketing strategies will be discussed in Unit 5.
12
Content marketing
Content marketing is the marketing and business process for creating and distributing
relevant and valuable content to attract, acquire, and engage a clearly defined and
understood target audience – with the objective of driving profitable customer action. 3
A good example of Content Marketing was
the Coca-Cola “Share a Coke” campaign.
Customers could personalize their own
bottle or can of coke with their own name,
and they could grab one for their friend as
well.
In essence, allowing consumers to create
their own content and draw them to the
brand while making a sale.
The campaign eventually went viral when
consumers started posting images online
with their personalized drinks.
In 2015, Hootsuite ran a content marketing campaign, capitalising on the then popular
Game of Thrones TV series to draw their target audience to the Hootsuite social media
manager application. The content went viral with fans of the tv series, sparking emotion and
curiosity about the Social Media Management application.
3
Content Marketing Definition - Examples. (2017, January 13). Retrieved from https://contentmarketinginstitute.com/2012/06/content-marketingdefinition/
13
4Affiliate
marketing
Affiliate marketing is a type of performance-based marketing in which a business rewards
one or more affiliates for each visitor or customer brought by the affiliate's marketing efforts. 5
For example, you run a website reviewing specific products such as Toasters. You include
links to various resellers of each toaster you review supplied by the Affiliate.
When visitors come to your website, read your product review, and click on the links you
have provided, they are brought to specific Affiliate web pages selling the Toasters they just
read about.
If these customers make a purchase, you will
earn a commission from the sale. Affiliates
track these sales via cookies, small files that
reside in your computer to track your
movements as you surf the internet. This
enables the Affiliate to track your affiliate
marketing effort and proceed to pay your
commission.
Ryan’s Toy Review is a great example of a
profitable Affiliate marketing program,
allowing a 7-year-old child to make USD$ 11
million in 2018 by reviewing toys on YouTube.
4
What is Affiliate Marketing? Ultimate Guide for Beginners | More Niche. (2018, October 19). Retrieved from
https://moreniche.com/blog/beginners-guide-affiliate-marketing/
Affiliate marketing. (2018, December 10). Retrieved from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Affiliate_marketing
5
14
Direct Response
•
•
E-mail Marketing (opt-in)
o
E-mail marketing is one of the oldest digital marketing strategies. Advertisers
create a message and e-mail their database of customers, usually with a
promotional message to purchase.
o
It can be quite a nuisance as many customers consider E-mail marketing as
spam advertising. Laws have been introduced to manage e-mail marketing.
Most companies now ask customers permission to send them e-mails.
Direct Mailers
o
Using a database of potential customers, a Direct Mailer is created and
mailed using the postal service.
Media Advertising
•
Print
o
•
Print advertising is any form of printed communication; it is considered a form
of mass communication and includes newspapers, brochures, billboards, etc.
(See section 6.1 for details)
Broadcast
o
Broadcast media is paid television advertising. Companies buy airtime, up to
120 seconds in length, on television to communicate with their target
customers through advertising messages.
(See section 6.2 for details)
15
Execute, monitor and adjust social media marketing
strategy
•
Once a marketing strategy and social media platform have been determined, execute
the campaign.
•
Monitor the campaign by tracking meaningful metrics. What data you are tracking is
dependent on what your original goals are. Some common Social Media Metrics are;
Engagement
How much is the audience interacting with your message/ content?
o Likes
o Comments
o Shares
o Clicks
Awareness
How much awareness is generated by your message/content?

Impressions
How many times a post shows up in someone’s timeline

Reach
Potential unique users a post could have seen your message/ content
For example, if a message or content has a high impression and low engagement,
the message is not interesting enough for your target audience to take action.
However, if your message has a high impression and high engagement, your
message may have gone viral.
•
Analyse the data and examine your efforts.
•
Adjust the strategy accordingly.
16
An Introduction to Branding
Branding is an important aspect of a business or organisation. An effective brand strategy
gives you an advantage in your market/s. Your brand is your promise to your customer.
It informs them what they can expect from your products and service offerings, and it
differentiates your products and services from your competition.
Your brand describes who you are, whom you want to be and how people perceive you to
be.
A good brand represents itself to a customer, communicating a lifestyle, image, aspirations,
attitudes, and more.
How do you create a brand?
a. Create a logo to represent a brand.
A good logo is easy to remember, simple and conveys a brand personality.
b. Create a brand message.
Decide what key messages you want to communicate about your brand.
c. Develop a tagline.
Create a memorable, meaningful and concise statement that captures the essence of
your brand.
d. Integrate your brand.
Branding extends to every aspect of your business and organisation, including your
stationery, how phone calls are answered, what your staff wears and more. Select a
colour scheme, decide on where to place your log, create brand templates and be
consistent in its use.
e. Deliver your promise.
Customers will not return to you or recommend your brand to another person if you
do not deliver on your brand promise.
f.
Brand consistency.
Your brand must be consistent in the delivery of its promise every time.
For example, A McDonalds Big Mac may be purchased at
any McDonalds’ in any part of the world. The Big Mac will
taste the same no matter where you purchase the product,
anywhere in the world.
17
4. Describe the purpose and features of
distribution channels
4.1.
Business to Consumer
Traditional Channels
A Retail store is the most popular and prominent example of a Business to Consumer
Channel. For example, you produce apples at your apple juice factory and then set up a
store to sell the packaged juice directly to the customer.
Online Channel
B2C is now a phrase used to describe retailers using a digital store on the internet to sell
directly to their customers.
4.2.
Business to Business
Traditional Channel
The term business to business refers to the process of selling products and services
between companies. For example, Apple may purchase microchips from a supplier like
Samsung, glass from Corning, storage from Toshiba or Seagate and pay a factory like
Foxconn to assemble their Apple iPhones and MacBook.
Similarly, a company may also hire the services of an advertising agency to manage their
communications, hire a contractor to provide cleaning services at a food court, an architect
to design a series of new HDB flats or engage the services of a lawyer to assist them in legal
matters.
Online Channel
Due to the prevalence of the internet, Business to Business can find and compare services
faster and more conveniently. Platforms like Alibaba provide companies to find other
companies offering their products and services.
18
4.3.
Consumer to Consumer
Traditional Channel
A yard sale or an auction is an example of a consumer-to-consumer channel. Imagine
setting up a little store at your local community centre to sell unwanted things in your home
to other people. Sotheby’s, Bonham and Christies are examples of companies that facilitate
the selling of personal goods of value between people via an auction, where the organisation
takes a percentage of the final auction price. Traditionally these companies focused on
goods of high value as auctioneering low-value items is not profitable due to space and
logistical constraints.
Online Channel
Platforms like Carousell and eBay function similarly to auctioneers like Sotheby’s by
providing an online platform to facilitate consumer-to-consumer transactions. The major
difference is that online platforms provide a massive channel that allows consumers the
safety and luxury to sell their items or any value. The logistical and space constraints are no
longer a problem as the goods tend to be stored with the seller till it is sold, and delivery of
the item is simply a mail drop away by logistic carriers such as FedEx or your local, national
mail service like Singpost.
4.4.
Consumer to Business
Consumer-to-business (C2B) is a business model in which consumers (individuals) create
value, and businesses consume that value. Before the introduction of the internet, the most
common channel was the B2C model, where companies produce a product or service and sell
it to the consumer.
However, with the introduction of the internet, Consumers now create value that businesses
and organisations may purchase. A very good example of this new shift is content creators
such as Social Media influencers that create online content that is consumed by millions of
people daily. Due to their large following and viewership, companies are willing to pay and
associate with these consumers to communicate their products and services.
Famous examples include famous YouTube personality Pewdiepie, aged 29, who is worth an
estimated USD$30 million as of 2019, and Ryan Kaji of Ryan’s toy review fame, aged eight,
who earned an estimated USD$26 million in 2019. Toy companies will pay Ryan to include
paid reviews in his videos to target children.
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5. Outline the promotional mix
A promotional mix is a combination of marketing methods, including advertising, sales, public
relations and direct marketing, to achieve a specific marketing goal. The promotional mix is
typically only part of a larger marketing mix. These are tactics to achieve the overall marketing
strategic goal.
The following is an introduction to some key promotional mix;
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Advertising.
Sales Promotions
Direct Marketing
Personal Selling
Public Relations
5.1.
Advertising
Advertising is a means of communication, usually between an organisation and the
consumer of a product or service.
Advertisements are messages paid for by people, organisations and governments to inform
or influence people who receive the message.
Advertising is present in our daily lives many of us are not be aware of it. In our globalised
and technologically linked economies, advertisers communicate in every possible media to
deliver their message.









Television commercials
Newspapers
Magazines
Radio
Websites
Outdoor billboards
Taxis
Buses
Endorsements
• Celebrity
• Professional
• Influencers
The advertising industry is made up of companies that assist organisations in advertising
and creating advertisements.
20
5.2.
Sales Promotion
Sales are short-term tactics to persuade a potential customer to buy a product or service.


Usually used to boost sales.
Not very suitable for building long-term customer loyalty.
5.3.
Direct marketing
Direct marketing is a form of advertising that specifically targets a person or company to
generate new business, raise the profile of an organisation or product, or make a sale. Direct
mail, telemarketing and email marketing are all popular types of direct marketing.
This has given rise to small business owners, especially content creators. Some online
examples are;




The Etsy platform, where creators sell their creations via their websites or online
sales platforms.
The YouTube and Youku Tudou platforms allow anybody to create video content and
be paid for it.
Instagram and Meitu Xiuxiu allow anybody to create images and earn revenue.
The TikTok platform, or Douyin 抖音 as it is called in China, enables users to make
money through a combination of revenue streams that can include sponsorships,
fundraising drives, product sales, and working with brands and influencers.
Small business owners and content creators have also benefited from the ease of internet
payments, such as;







Paypal
Amazon Pay
Google Pay
Apple Pay
Paynow
Paylah!
GrabPay
Consumers can pay the creators directly through an online platform or just to the creator’s
cell phone-linked bank account.
21
5.4.
Personal Selling

Personal selling is where an organisation uses people to sell their product or services
with a face-to-face meeting with the customer.

The sellers promote the product through their attitude, appearance and specialist
product knowledge.

They aim to inform and encourage the customer to buy or at least try the product.

Common examples are;
• Insurance sales professionals
• Property sales professionals
• Car sales professionals
• Door to Door sales professionals
Ray Kroc, the founder of McDonalds used to be to a door to door sales professional, selling
Milkshake machines before founding McDonalds.
22
5.5.
Public Relations
Public relations is a strategic communication process that builds mutually beneficial
relationships between organizations and their publics.
It provides an organisation or an individual to maintain a favourable public image to the
public. Major corporations, celebrities and even world leaders use the services of Public
Relations Agencies to help maintain their public image to the public.
A public relations message in New Zealand for an anti-drink-driving campaign by Heineken.
23
6. Describe the types of traditional marketing
strategy (audience, marketing objectives,
media)
Traditional marketing refers to any type of promotion, advertising or campaign activity that
has been used by companies and organisations for a long time that has proven success.
Traditional methods of marketing include print advertisements, billboards, flyers or
pamphlets, TV, newspaper, radio, and more.
Traditional marketing strategies tended to be broader, using a mix of print and broadcast
media to reach as many people within the defined target audience.
6.1.
Print
Print includes all advertisements and communications that involve the printed medium. A
Print strategy may include the following;
Newspapers
A list of common newspaper dailies in
Singapore.
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
The Straits Times
The New Paper
Berita Harian
Lianhe Zaobao
Shin Min Daily News
Tamil Murasu
The Business Times
Newspapers have been the mainstay of marketing strategies and activities for many years.
Advertisers will purchase advertisement space from Newspapers and run advertisements
selling and promoting their products and services.
Currently, while newspapers are still a very strong and viable form of marketing strategy, it is
undergoing a major transitional shift to digital strategies as more people consume digital
communication rather than traditional forms.
A common strategy is to “drive-to-web”, where traditional newspaper media is used to move
their readership base to newer digital platforms.
24
Magazines
A periodical publication that is generally published on a regular schedule on a wide variety of
topics and typically financed through advertising, the purchase price of the magazine, a
prepaid subscription to the magazine or a combination of these three modes of financing.
Magazines are excellent print strategies for businesses depending on the subject matter of
the magazine. With a narrower readership profile, usually based on interests and hobbies,
companies can leverage the magazine’s readership profile to advertise their products or
services.
For example, Harley Davidson or the Yamaha motor sports company may advertise in a
Motorcycle magazine for enthusiasts since the readers of the magazine will all probably
have the same interest.
Flyers
A form of printed paper advertisements used for wide distribution, usually in a public space
and out to individuals. Flyers can also be sent by mail to individual homes. They can be
printed on a high-quality paper or a simple photocopy. Typically found in high foot traffic
areas, companies may adopt this low-cost strategy to advertise their products or services.
For example, a cell phone repair company may perform a flyer distribution in Shenton Way
to advertise their services during lunch time. (Peak traffic period in Shenton Way)
Direct Mailers
Direct mailers are a form of advertising mail, communicating an offer to a pre-selected
database of customers based on their demographic and psychographic profile. This form of
printed strategy is also known as direct response marketing. When used correctly, it is one
of the most effective strategies for businesses, but if used incorrectly, it becomes an
unwelcome form of communication.
Banks are businesses that still use Direct mailers as a primary strategy to reach their
potential customer base, especially for their credit card services.
Brochures/Pamphlet
Brochures are informative paper documents that are folded
into a template or pamphlet, or leaflet that is pocketable.
It is a simple print strategy to introduce a product or service
as well as introduce the business to prospective
customers.
25
Catalogues
A mail-order catalogue is a publication produced by a business or organisation containing a
list of products for sale. Customers will receive the publication in their mailbox and may
either place an order through a reply form in the publication or simply go to the web site to
place an order.
Alternatively, modern mail catalogues encourage the customer to visit the store. Traditional
print catalogues are fast becoming obsolete. Making way for online catalogue listings. In
December 2020, IKEA ended its annual print catalogue after 70 years.
26
Billboards
Billboards are usually called Out-of-Home (OOH) or Outdoor advertising.
These Billboards are typically found in high-traffic areas as well as major highways and
motorways. The more densely populated the area, the more likely a media owner will
attempt to create a space for billboard advertising. If a billboard is a printed, the poster is
housed, usually in a waterproof shell and printed on high-quality fade-resistant paper.
Most Billboards have converted to digital boards which allow for rapid change of
advertisements compared to print which required the advertisements to be printed and
manually changed at each location.
Digital billboards and 3D digital billboards, as well as interactive billboards are now
commonplace in major cities globally.
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6.2.
Broadcast
The broadcast media medium includes anything that is transmitted via radio or television.
The three main broadcast methods are;
o
o
o
Television
Radio
Cinemas
The Broadcast medium is still considered a very strong traditional medium mainly because
most broadcast owners create content for their respective companies, such as HBO with
Game of Thrones, ABC with Grey’s Anatomy and NBC with Parks and Recreation.
A Television Station such as Mediacorp in Singapore creates television content and
broadcasts the content to homes via Television.
Similarly, a Radio station such as 98.7 or Class 95 broadcasts music to listeners via radio.
Movies are made by movie studios such as Disney and released to movie theatres where
audiences may consume the content in the comfort of a theatre. Movies and TV shows,
however, are undergoing a revolution.
Streaming
A digital revolution is underway for the broadcast medium, which is already having an impact
on the way customers consume entertainment. The traditional television network is
transforming as broadcast transforms to streaming.
While streaming and social media platforms like YouTube could be considered broadcast
media, they are categorised as new media by the industry.
Netflix, Disney+, HBO Max (HBO Go in Singapore), Hulu, Amazon Prime Video and Apple
TV+ sits in between the old and the new. Given these digital streaming platforms have
original content created for their platform, much of this original content may eventually end
up on traditional platforms like the cinema.
Traditional Media companies like Warner Brothers and Disney are experimenting with the
distribution of their original content, opting to release their movies on HBO and movie
theatres simultaneously due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Disney also opted for a hybrid
distribution, releasing their content in both theatres and their streaming service Disney+.
28
UNIT 2: Comply with Regulatory
Requirements for Content Creation
Define Intellectual Property
Intellectual property (IP) is a category of property that includes intangible creations of the
human mind. There are many types of intellectual property, and some countries recognize it
more than others. The most well-known types are:
•
•
•
•
copyrights
patents
trademarks
trade secrets
The main purpose of intellectual property
law is to encourage the creation of a wide
variety of intellectual goods.
To achieve this, the law gives people and
businesses property rights to the
information and intellectual goods they
create, usually for a limited period of time.
This gives economic incentives for their
creation because it allows people to profit
from the information and intellectual goods
they create.
Arthur Slain Noun Project from Wikimedia Commons
6
These economic incentives are expected
to stimulate innovation and contribute to
the technological progress of countries,
which depends on the extent of protection
granted to innovators. 6
(2019, August 31). Intellectual property. Retrieved from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intellectual_property
29
Describe Types of IP And Sources of
Information
2.1.
COPYRIGHTS7
Copyright protects works like
• Novels
• Computer Programmes
• Plays
• Music
• Film
• Photographs
• Paintings.
When you own the copyright to any of these works, you control the use and commercial
exploitation of these works. This means that you have the right to prevent others from
reproducing, publishing, performing, communicating to the public, or adapting your work.
Scope of Protection
Copyright protects the expression of ideas in tangible forms. Ideas alone cannot be
protected. Here are what may be protected under copyright law:
Literary works
• Written works, e.g., poems, lyrics, source codes
Dramatic works
• Scripts for films
• Scripts for stage plays
• Choreography
Musical works
• Melodies
Artistic works
• Drawings, paintings, sculptures, photographs, engravings*
• Buildings or models of buildings*
• Works of artistic craftsmanship
* regardless of artistic merit
Additionally, films, sound recordings, television and radio broadcasts, cable programmes
and performances are also protected by copyright.
7
Copyright. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.ipos.gov.sg/understanding-innovation-ip/copyright
30
2.1.1. The © Symbol
The copyright or © symbol is merely a notice by the owner that the copyright exists. The
presence of the symbol does not give the copyright owner any additional rights; the absence
of the symbol does not mean that the copyright owner has waived his rights.
In practice, the symbol is usually followed by the year when a copy of the work was first
made available and the name of the copyright owner.
For Example: © 2020 Jimmy Lin
2.1.2. Terms of Protection
The duration varies according to the type of copyright work you own.
Literary, dramatic, musical and artistic works
70 years from the end of the year in which the creator died. Specifically for photographs, or
if the work is published after the death of the author, it lasts for 70 years from the end of the
year in which the work was first published.
Published editions of literary, dramatic, musical and artistic works
25 years from the end of the year in which the edition was first published.
Sound recordings
70 years from the end of the year in which the sound recording is first published.
Broadcasts and cable programmes
50 years from the end of the year of making the broadcast or cable programme.
Performances
70 years from the end of the year of the performance.
2.1.3. Permission of use
Before using any copyrighted work that belongs to a third party, you should always get the
copyright owner’s permission. This way, you can avoid the risk of copyright infringement.
Infringement occurs when you have not obtained the consent of the copyright owner to do
something that only the copyright owner has the right to do. For example, making a
photocopy of a textbook without the consent of the publisher.
To obtain consent from copyright owners, you may: contact the copyright owner directly and
negotiate for a licence to use the copyrighted material; or obtain a licence through a
collective management organisation.
Alternatively, you may use the materials found on Creative Commons (CC) without the need
to further seek explicit permission from the owner, so long as the use conforms to the licence
attributes.
31
Using or copying materials from the internet
Do not assume that whatever is posted on the internet is fair game for copying.
Before you copy or use any material available on the internet, always check if the website
has terms and conditions governing the use of the content on the website. A link to the terms
and conditions can usually be found at the foot of the homepage. Else, try to identify the
website owner and write to them for permission.
The rights of a copyright owner 8.
When a person or persons create original content, they have exclusive rights to use and
control the use of their works for commercial exploitation. In other words, they can use their
creations to make money.
This includes;
1.
Artistic works
Artists enjoy the exclusive right to:
•
•
•
2.
reproduce the work
publish their work
communicate the work to the public
Cable programmes
The producer enjoys the exclusive rights to:
•
•
•
3.
make a recording of it
communicate it to the public
screen it to be seen by a paying audience
Films
The producer of a film enjoys the exclusive rights to:
•
•
•
4.
make a copy of it
screen it to the public
communicate it to the public
Literary, dramatic, and musical works
Authors of books, plays and music enjoy the exclusive rights to:
•
•
•
•
•
8
reproduce their work
publish their work
perform their work for the public
communicate the work to the public
make an adaptation of their work
Reproduced with permission from the Intellectual Property Office of Singapore
32
5.
Published editions of literary, dramatic, musical or artistic works
The publisher has the exclusive right to:
•
6.
Make a reproduction of the edition.
Performances
The performer has the right to authorise the performance for the following uses:
•
•
•
7.
allow it to be seen and/or heard live in public
make a direct or indirect sound recording
make it available to the public
Sound recordings
The producer of a sound recording enjoys the exclusive rights to:
•
•
•
•
8.
make a copy of it
rent it out
publish it
make it available to the public by means of as part of a digital audio transmission
Television and radio broadcasts
The broadcaster enjoys the exclusive right to:
•
•
•
•
make a recording of it
rebroadcast it
communicate it to the public
broadcast it to be seen or heard by a paying audience
33
2.1.4. Ownership
In general, the person who created the work (i.e. the author) owns the copyright in the work.
However, there are three situations where this general rule is not applied. i.e. where the
creator of the work, by default, is not the first owner of the copyright.
Employees
If you create the work during employment, your employer will automatically own the work.
This applies to all employees except for journalists.
Journalists
If you created the works while employed as a journalist by a newspaper, magazine or other
periodicals, and the work is created for publication in these mediums, your employer will
automatically have the right to publish and reproduce these works in publications.
However, you, as the journalist, still have the right to publish the work for other purposes,
such as collation into a book.
Some commissioned works
If you were paid under an agreement for the creation of a portrait, photograph or engraving,
the person who commissioned or paid for the creation of these works would automatically
own the copyright in those works. In short, the person who paid to create certain types of
work would be the copyright owner. For all other types of works, ownership belongs to the
commissioned party.
34
2.1.5. Commercialisation
Copyright, like real estate, can be sold or leased.
Selling your copyright means transferring/assigning your ownership of the copyright to a third
party.
Leasing your copyright means licensing a third party's specific uses of the copyrightprotected work. The transfer/assignment or licensing of copyright is usually carried out by a
written contract together with payment of fees.
Assignment and licensing of the copyright can generate revenue streams for the copyright
holder.
As a copyright owner, bear these in mind when choosing between an assignment and a
license:
Do I retain ownership of the
copyright?
Do I have full control over the
copyright?
Assignment
No
License
Ownership of the copyright
is completely transferred to
a new owner.
Yes
No
Yes
Yes
Is my permission still
required should third parties
request to use my copyright?
No
Can I charge third parties a
fee for using my copyright?
Yes
The third-party licensee will
only have the right to use the
copyright as set out in the
license.
Yes
35
2.2.
PATENTS
A patent is a right that is granted for an invention. It can take the form of a new product,
process or technical improvement to existing technology.
•
Benefits:
When you register a patent for your
invention, you hold the exclusive right
to use the patent. This means that no
other person can take advantage of
that patent unless your permission is
sought.
When your patent portfolio is properly
managed, it can present many
economic opportunities – whether as
a means to develop new and cuttingedge technologies, raise investment,
or extract value from third parties
through sale or licensing.
•
Eligibility
Sample patent from 1946 for a sewing machine.
For an invention to be patentable, it must, in general, satisfy three key criteria:
o
New – The invention should not be publicly known in any way, anywhere in
the world. Owners of inventions should be careful to keep the invention secret
until a patent application has been successfully made. If the idea has already
been talked about, commercially exploited, advertised or demonstrated, then
the novelty of the invention may be compromised.
o
Inventive step – The invention must be an improvement over any existing
product or process that is already available. The improvement must not be
obvious to someone with technical skills or knowledge in the field of the
invention.
o
Industrial application – The invention must be useful and have some form of
practical application. It should be capable of being made or used in some
form of industry.
Term of Protection
•
Once your patent is granted, it will be protected for 20 years from the Date of Filing.
Thereafter, the patent is to be maintained yearly, starting from the 5th year.
36
2.3.
TRADEMARKS
A trade mark is a sign that you can use to distinguish
your business's goods or services from those of other
traders.
It can be represented graphically in the form of your
company’s name or logo.
•
Benefits
A trade mark can add value to your business. Using
a trade mark can help customers easily identify and
remember your products and services, allowing you
to build customer loyalty and protect your market
share.
Mcdonald’s Trademark
Once you register your trade mark, you will enjoy a monopoly over its use. You may:
License it to third parties
Sell it for a sum
If you have successfully registered a trade mark, you can use the ® symbol next to your
mark.
If you use the ™ symbol, this tells others that you are using the logo or name as a trade
mark, but the mark may not be registered or protected under trade mark laws.
•
Eligibility
You can register your mark as a trade mark as long as it is distinctive and can distinguish
your goods or services from similar marks of other traders.
Trade marks can be in the form of letters, words, names, signatures, labels, devices,
tickets, shapes and colours, or any combination of these elements.
The following cannot be registered as a trade mark:
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Marks that are descriptive (e.g. super, best, cheap, one dozen)
Marks that are not distinctive or are common to your trade (ones that have become
well accepted in relation to your trade and do not distinguish the goods or services
you are offering)
Marks that could offend or promote immoral behaviour
Deceptive marks (ones that could misrepresent the nature, quality or geographical
origin of the goods or services)
Marks that are identical to earlier marks
Marks that could cause confusion, as there is a similar or identical mark filed earlier
in relation to similar or identical goods and/or services
Marks that are identical or similar to well-known marks
Terms of Protection
Once your trade mark is registered, it will be protected for ten years. You may renew
the registration upon its expiry.
37
2.4.
TRADE SECRETS
“Confidential Information” generally means
information which is not known to the public or in
the public domain but is private to the company or
individual who possesses that confidential
information.
From a commercial perspective, confidential
information can include details of a company’s
financial affairs, business operations or customer
engagements. A key type of confidential
information could be a company’s trade secret,
such as a method or technique of manufacture,
which gives the company an edge over other
competitors.
A person who has access to confidential
information is generally obliged under the law to
The Coca Cola formula is a trade
keep the information confidential and cannot
usually disclose the information to third parties. If he does disclose the information, he is said
to have breached the obligations of confidentiality and is liable to legal action.
a) Protection of confidential information
There are no registration processes for confidential information, and neither is there a time
limit within which the confidential information is protected.
If a person has breached his obligations of confidentiality to a company, the success of any
legal action taken against him will be determined based on these factors:
•
Whether the information was confidential to that company;
•
Whether the information was revealed in breach of a promise of confidence;
•
Whether the information was used improperly and caused financial damage to the
company.
b) How to safeguard confidential information: Some tips
•
Limit Access
Ensure that only certain categories of people (e.g. management) have access to
confidential information.
•
Keep Clear Records
Keep a clear record of all business transactions which may contain confidential
information. The information can also be marked "CONFIDENTIAL". Keep Clear
Records
•
Use NDAs
NDAs are "non-disclosure agreements" which can be used to ensure that a person is
contractually required to keep the information confidential. Employees, consultants
and vendors should sign NDAs.
38
c) Relationship between confidential information and other types of intellectual
property
Confidential Information, which comprises copyrighted material (e.g. instruction
manuals, computer software, databases), will be protected by both the law of
confidential information and copyright.
For example, a computer software developer can commercialise his software while
still keeping the underlying software architecture, algorithm and source code
confidential.
As a general rule, it is not possible to maintain a patent and ensure non-disclosure of
confidential information.
This is because, in return for obtaining a 20-year monopoly to exclude others from
making, using or selling the invention, the owner of the invention will have to make
full disclosure of the invention during the patent application process.
For Example:
Why does coke use a trade secret instead of a patent?
Coca-Cola made a choice to brand the recipe a trade secret instead of patenting it,
which would have led to the disclosure of the ingredients. Coca-Cola decided to
keep the recipe as confidential information.
39
Describe ways to acknowledge IP
Acknowledging Intellectual property is to recognise the rights of the Intellectual Property
Owners. Ideas are property and have value.
Collective Management Organisations
A collective management organisation (CMO) is appointed by copyright holders to manage
the rights in their copyright works. A CMO administers the licensing of rights, collection of
royalties and enforcement of rights on behalf of the copyright holders. A CMO will then
monitor the use of works and collect licence fees on the copyright owner's behalf.
If you intend to use a work protected by copyright, such as music or other sound recordings,
you will need to be authorised and may obtain licenses from either the copyright owners or
from CMOs administering the relevant rights governing your use of such works.
The Composers and Authors Society of Singapore (COMPASS)
A.
•
represents composers and lyricists
The rights that it administers include the following:
• Reproduction rights of musical works
• Reproduction rights of lyrics
• Public performance rights of musical works
• Public performance rights of lyrics
Website: www.compass.org.sg
represents authors and book publishers
The rights that it administers include the following:
•
Reproduction rights of literary works featured in
books, journals and periodicals
Contact details
Tel: (65) 6223 5521
Email: classy@singnet.com.sg
Website: www.classsingapore.com
Motion Picture Licensing Company (Singapore) Private Limited (MPLC)
C.
•
Email: licence@compass.org.sg
Copyright Licensing and Administration Society of Singapore Ltd (CLASS)
B.
•
Contact details
represents over 800 Hollywood studios, independent, special interest, and local
producers
The rights that it administers include the following:
•
Contact details
Tel: (65) 6392 0152
Public performance rights of motion pictures and other Email: info@mplc.com
audio-visual programs.
Website: www.mplc.sg
40
The Intellectual Property Office of Singapore (IPOS)
Registries of Patents, Designs & Plant Varieties
The Registries of Patents, Designs & Plant Varieties are responsible for
administering the Patents, Registered Designs and Plant Varieties Protection Act, as
well as the processing and granting of the corresponding rights in Singapore.
Registry of Trade Marks
The Registry of Trade Marks is responsible for administering the Trade Marks Act, as
well as the processing and granting of trademark rights in Singapore.
There is no need to register for copyright protection. Copyright is automatically granted
as soon as you create and express your original work in a tangible form, such as in a
recording or writing.
There are a few things you can do to protect yourself and your original work. Click here
to find out:
1. Include a copyright symbol © on your work, followed by your name and the
year the work was first created.
Example: © Amy Tan 202020
This symbol is a notice of your claim to the work. While it does not give you any
substantive right, the use of this symbol could come in useful if you are involved in
an infringement proceeding. If the infringement party claims that he did not know the
material was protected under copyright law, the use of the symbol would generally
stop him from successfully relying on this argument.
2. Maintain your proof of originality
There are a number of ways you can maintain proof that you are the original author
of the work:
1. Deposit a copy of your work with your lawyers or in a depositor
2. Send a copy of your work to yourself by post, leaving the envelope unopened so
that the date stamp and the unopened work can establish the date of the work's
existence
3. Make a declaration before a Commissioner of Oath stating the fact of ownership
and the date of creation.
However, these are by no means foolproof methods of proving authorship as they do
not prove that the work is original or created by the author. In a dispute, the Court
will decide whether there is sufficient evidence to prove the authorship.
41
Digital Rights Management
The rights management information includes information identifying the author of a work and
the terms and conditions relating to its use. It is used by authors of digital works to identify
their works or provide information about the copyrighted work.
An example of an RMI is a digital watermark that authenticates the source of a digital
photograph.
Where RMI in electronic form
•
•
is attached to or embodied in a copy of a work; or
appears in the communication or making available to the public a copy of a work,
an action may be brought against a person if, without the consent of the owner or
exclusive licensee of the copyright in the work, the person does any of the following
acts:
a. knowingly removes or alters the RMI;
b. distributes or imports for distribution the RMI that has been altered; or
c. distributes, imports for distribution communicates or makes available to the public
copies of a work in respect of which the RMI has been removed or altered.
The person performing any of the above acts must also know or ought reasonably to know
that the act will induce, enable, facilitate or conceal an infringement of the copyright in work.
Criminal liability for wilful infringement
Where a person…
… knowingly removes or alters the RMI
… distributes or imports for distribution the RMI that has been
altered
… distributes, imports for distribution, communicates or makes
available to the public copies of a work in respect of which the
RMI has been removed or altered.
Penalties
•
A fine not exceeding
$20,000;
•
A fine not exceeding
$20,000; and/or
imprisonment up to
two years
•
Civil remedies
The owner of the copyright may take civil action against a person who does any of the acts
described above. Civil remedies available include:
a. injunction;
b. damages (including an account of profits); or statutory damages in lieu of damages of
not more than $20,000;
c. order for delivery up of any articles used to carry out the prohibited act to the
copyright owner or exclusive licensee; or order for destruction.
42
Describe the Consequences of Infringement
of Intellectual Property
The copyright laws in Singapore provide severe penalties and are considered criminal
offences.
In Singapore, criminal offences under copyright law include the following:
•
•
•
•
•
The Manufacture of infringing copies for sale, such as copying music or movies to
flash drives and other forms of digital media devices to sell.
The selling of infringing copies such as pirated movies and music.
The ownership and possession of infringing copies or importation of infringing copies
for commercial purposes
Distribution of infringing copies for commercial purposes
In any of the instances above, it must be proved that the infringing party knows or
ought reasonably to know that the copies are infringing ones.
Penalties
Criminal liability for wilful infringement
Manufacture for sale;
Sale of infringing copies;
Penalties
•
A fine not exceeding a total of
$100,000 per charge; and/or
Possession or importation of infringing copies for
commercial purposes
Distribution of infringing copies for commercial
purposes
•
$10,000 per infringing copy,
•
imprisonment up to five years
A. A fine not exceeding $50,000;
and/or
B. imprisonment up to three years
Making or in possession of an article specifically
designed for making infringing copies (e.g.
machinery for manufacturing infringing copies)
•
a fine not exceeding $20,000 per
article; and/or
•
imprisonment up to two years.
43
Criminal liability for wilful infringement
It is also a criminal offence if a person wilfully infringes a copyright to obtain a commercial
advantage and/or to a significant extent.
Commercial advantage means any direct advantage, benefit or financial gain for a business
or trade. As to whether the infringement is to a significant extent, this is judged based on the
volume and value of infringing copies, whether the infringement has a substantial prejudicial
impact on the copyright owner and all other relevant matters.
Criminal liability for wilful infringement
1st offence
2nd or subsequent offence
Penalties
•
A fine not exceeding $20,000; and/or
•
imprisonment up to six months
•
A fine not exceeding $50,000; and/or
•
imprisonment up to three years
Examples of Copyright Infringements
44
Many third-world nations still have very poor Intellectual property laws and are some of the
worst copyright violators in the world, where many popular brands are copied for illegal
commercial gain.
Some examples of counterfeit brands around the world. (Click on the link)
Malaysia – Fake Panadol
Europe – Fake Cigarettes
Vietnam – Fake Beer
United States – Fake Nikes
Hong Kong – Fake Mooncakes
Global – Fake Graphic Cards
45
UNIT 3: Create Social Media Content
1. Describe the advantages and disadvantages
of social media marketing
1.1.
Advantages
1.1.1.
Global reach
The advantage of Social Media Networks, companies are now able to reach customers
globally easily. The algorithms available on platforms such as Facebook allow the
advertiser to deliver targeted advertising to potential customers who are already
grouped and segmented demographically.
The following are the most popular social networks worldwide as of January 2022,
ranked by the number of active users (in millions) 9:
9
Published by S. Dixon, & 26, J. (2022, July 26). Biggest social media platforms 2022. Statista. Retrieved November 30, 2022, from
https://www.statista.com/statistics/272014/global-social-networks-ranked-by-number-of-users/
46
1.1.2.
Lower Cost
Social Media Marketing can be quite expensive if done at a global level. However, because
it’s more targeted, and the target audience is better defined compared to traditional media,
it’s cheaper for small companies and entrepreneurs to enter their respective markets and
start selling and advertising.
1.1.3.
Trackable
Most Social Media platforms have robust tools to help advertisers track their advertising
campaigns on each platform. There are also external independent software tools that track
social media, like keyhole, hootsuite, and digimind.
1.1.4.
Measurable
Social Media is Measurable. For example, advertisers can calculate the click-through-rate
(CTR), which represents a ratio showing how often people who see the advertisement end
up clicking it. It can also measure how much an advertiser will have to pay with Cost-PerClick (CPC).
1.1.5.
Build customer loyalty
Companies can now communicate directly with their customers on Social Media Platforms,
helping to build customer loyalty with direct engagement.
47
1.2.
Disadvantages
1.2.1.
Media Fragmentation
Social Media platforms, while relatively new, are already heavily fragmented. There are
many platforms all vying for consumer and advertiser attention. Some have, like Facebook
and Whatsapp, while many have not succeeded, like Google +. Facebook may currently
have 2 billion users but is losing its customer base, especially with the younger generation.
Instagram is rapidly facing competition from the likes of Tiktok and Little Red Book 小红书
.
All this means that while there is more choice, it becomes subsequently harder to keep
track and target the right audience because the customer may migrate to other platforms
quickly and often.
1.2.2.
Negative feedback
Once businesses get onto social media platforms, it is open to criticism. Customers from
different countries, cultures and opinions may be opposed to the content a business may
be selling, or their expectations differ from the country of origin. Managing customer
expectations and feedback becomes a major challenge, as negative feedback may tarnish
the brand.
1.2.3.
Time-consuming
Managing the many various social media platforms is time-consuming and maybe
ultimately costly as the need to hire experienced social media specialists and managers
may be too expensive for smaller businesses if they are not careful. Keeping track of
campaigns running on various platforms, as well as deciding what platform to use, may be
too difficult for inexperienced and smaller to medium-sized businesses.
1.2.4.
Privacy and Security issues
Social Media platforms tend to have less security than the typical website. Consumer data
can be compromised too easily. Moreover, customers may inadvertently release private
information on the platform. A rise in cyber stalking crimes can be seen in many countries.
Consider the case in Japan, where a man was charged when he used the reflection in the
eyes of the victim to guess which train station she frequented as well as the surrounding
landmarks from the victim's many selfies.
1.2.5.
A heavy need to constantly engage the
customer
Customers need to be constantly engaged, which requires companies to hire content
creators to create content to continuously engage the customer. Influencers see a major
drop off in engagement and awareness if they do not communicate with their followers
constantly. This could lead to burn-out for Instagram celebrities and Youtube personalities.
48
2. Describe the types of content marketing
strategy
What is a content marketing strategy?
Content marketing is a strategic marketing approach focused on creating and distributing
valuable, relevant, and consistent content to attract and retain a clearly-defined audience —
and, ultimately, to drive profitable customer action.
1. Authority Content
Authority Content is the act of consistently creating and distributing helpful information and
stories to gain attention, engagement and trust, for a clearly defined audience, with the
objective of identifying who will benefit from your products and services.
For example, the BBC (British Broadcasting Corporation) has been broadcasting the news
since 1922 on media such as Radio, Television and Digital Media. Wikipedia has been an
online encyclopaedia since 2001, providing information on almost everything. Both examples
have provided consistent, quality and helpful content to users. Over time, they become
authorities in their respective fields. BBC for quality news from around the news, and Wikipedia
as an authority content provider for information.
2. Influencer Outreach
An influencer is a person who is able to reach
and deliver a message to a large group of
people (followers). Influencers are relatively
new, and engaging the right audited influencer
is a powerful alternative to traditional
advertising and is very effective in developing
the credibility of a brand. Influencers are also
very good at promoting awareness of a brand
through social media.
Influencer outreach is a powerful alternative to
traditional advertising and a very effective
strategy for developing credibility and
promoting awareness of your brand.
Influencers work by creating specific content
for a target audience. They gain the
followership of people who consume the
content created by the influencer.
49
3. Viral Content
The word “viral” is a piece of content that is circulated rapidly and widely from one web user
to another. Viral content is material, usually, an article, an image or a video, that spreads
rapidly online through website links and social media platforms. Advertisers and content
creators are constantly looking to create the next piece of viral content. It spreads across
social networks rapidly, like a virus.
Some viral content:
Gangnam Style by Psy - Youtube
The Ice Bucket Challenge Youtube
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3. Describe ways to align different social media
platforms to marketing strategy
3 Steps to align your goals to the Social Media
platform
Step 1 – Always Determine Your Marketing Goal
What do you intend to do? This is very important as a goal must be set to optimise the use of
your budget. No matter how big an organisation is, it is nearly impossible to try to achieve
multiple goals at the same time with the same amount of money allocated to the campaign.
Common marketing goals
1.
2.
3.
4.
Increase engagement with customers
Increase the recruitment of new customers
Increase sales of your product
Build Brand Awareness
Step 2 – Choose The Right Social Media Platform
Once you determine what you want to do, decide which social media platform is the best.
Some Social Media platforms are more suitable for certain Industries. For example;
•
Instagram – has many younger users and is best used for products and services that
are very visual, mainly videos and images.
•
Facebook – has 2 Billion users and is suitable for any company. You can send
videos, audio, images, and short messages and attach files to individuals and
selected demographical groups according to your marketing requirements.
•
Whatsapp – is good for one-to-one interaction with customers. You can send videos,
audio, and images and attach files and short messages.
•
Youtube – is currently the best platform for Video advertising.
Step 3 – Track Your Campaign
Track the campaign to determine your Return on Investment.
Campaigns can be tracked depending on the platform chosen, as many current social media
platforms have built-in campaign trackers.
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Web Analytics
This tracker tracks the visitations to a website.
It shows the marketer
•
•
•
Who is visiting the website?
Where are they from?
How long do they stay on each page?
Conversion Tracking
This is used and built into most platforms like Facebook, Google Adwords and Instagram.
This shows the Marketer whether their paid campaigns are working by tracking such
information as;
•
•
•
New Sales
Number of times the app is downloaded
New sign-ups
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CRM Tracking
CRM software is widely used in companies worldwide. Popular software like Salesforce and
Deskera allows organisations to track potential and current customers with detailed
information about the individual or organisation, providing the marketing professional with
useful insights. The software allows detailed tracking of
•
•
•
Leads
Opportunities
Referral programs
4. Outline Types of Digital Marketing
Online Digital Marketing
The main characteristic of online digital marketing is the requirement of an internet
connection for advertising and promotion to happen. Following is a list of some key online
digital marketing channels:
A.
B.
C.
D.
Search Engine Optimisation (SEO)
Search Engine Marketing (SEM)
Pay-per-click advertising (PPC)
Influencer Marketing
A. Search Engine Optimisation (SEO)
SEO is the process of boosting one’s content to appear at a higher rank on the search
engines’ results pages (SERP) organically. One of the many common organic tactics used
for SEO to help the brand increase its search results on SERP is key-word optimisation
or keyword research. As one cannot purchase organic search ranking, SEO is an earned
media. Besides, good visibility online allows one’s content to be sourced easily, and this
drives more traffic to its webpage or landing page.
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B. Search Engine Marketing (SEM)
The difference between SEO and SEM is where SEO is an earned media SEM is a paid
media. With SEM, one purchases ad space with search engine companies such as
Google, Yahoo, Bing, etc., to position one’s content at a higher rank of their SERPs.
Essentially, the differences between SEO and SEM are summarised in the table below:
C. Pay-Per-Click Advertising (PPC)
PPC advertising gains visibility online by the method of bringing the brand or content in
front of its target audience via platforms such as Facebook ads, twitter ads, etc. An
example of a search engine like Google will display the brand or content on other websites
and is not limited to SERP alone. PPC is a model of digital marketing where advertisers
pay a fee each time a viewer clicks on the ad.
D. Influencer Marketing
Influencer marketing is a modern-day content-driven marketing campaign where brands
collaborate with influencers who have social influence in their respective fields. It takes on
the idea of celebrity endorsement, except that influencers are people with mass (hundreds
of thousands or even millions) followings on their social media, which makes them
influential in the buying decision of consumers.
Examples of influencers can be a popular architectural photographer on Instagram, a
knowledgeable food blogger who tweets, a travel enthusiast who curates travel video
reviews on YouTube, or a respected marketing executive on LinkedIn.
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Offline Digital Marketing
Offline digital marketing involves electronic devices such as electronic billboards and
electronic tablets, and the requirement of an internet connection is not necessary.
Following is a list of (but not limited to) offline digital marketing channels:
A.
B.
C.
D.
Electronic Billboard
Radio Advertising
Television Marketing
Mobile Marketing (SMS Marketing)
A. Electronic Billboard
The electronic billboard is another form of offline digital marketing that advertises either
static images or visual motion format with the help of an electronic conductor. Prime
locations where you can find these electronic billboards include malls, airports, streets,
highways, etc.
Billboard Expressway Ads in Singapore from JCDecaux
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A. Radio Marketing
Radio remains a relevant medium in Singapore, with three radio broadcasters and 19
radio stations in total. According to Nielsen Radio Diary Survey conducted in 2019,
MediaCorp continues to be Singapore’s number-one radio network. As such, radio
marketing presents a big opportunity to extend its reach to a large number of listeners.
Channels owned by MediaCorp Radio
Channels owned by SPH Radio
Channels owned by So Drama! Entertainment
B. Television Marketing
One of the oldest forms, yet still popular medium of advertising is television marketing. It
allows the display of advertisements to communicate with viewers in both audio and visual
motion formats. Using satellite to cover its reach, television shows and interactive
programs are arranged at scheduled timing.
C. Mobile Marketing (SMS Marketing)
Mobile marketing involves the use of offline marketing techniques focused on reaching an
audience via their smartphones, tablets, or any mobile devices through SMS, MMS, APP
or calls.
An example of mobile marketing is the usage of an electronic tablet used by service staff
at a restaurant for ordering, or you, as a customer, place your meal order using the
electronic tablet. It is an enhanced offline marketing experience with a digital device.
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5. Describe the Various Social Media Platforms
The rise of social media platforms has been around since the early 2000s. Based on
statistics, there are 8 billion people in the world (as of November 2022), with 4.2 billion of
whom are active social media users. In other words, one-in-two people in the world use
social media platforms.
Digital 2022 reports from Hootsuite and We Are Social
With thousands of social media platforms globally and more entering the market each
year, not all are popular in terms of the number of users and their usage. In this unit, we
are going to narrow down to four trending and commonly known social media platforms,
namely Facebook, YouTube, WhatsApp, Instagram and TikTok.
Digital 2022 reports from Hootsuite and We Are Social
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Facebook
With close to 2.85 billion active users to date, Facebook is the largest and leading
social media platform in the world. It is also the first to surpass the landmark of 1
billion active user accounts amongst other social media platforms.
Key attractions of Facebook that appeal to the masses is its free service and user-friendly
interface. Even people with no technical knowledge background can sign up for an account
and begin posting on Facebook, such as uploading and sharing photos/ videos, text messaging,
posting status, etc. As much as it serves as an entertaining site that appeals to users to gain
access regularly, Facebook provides a set of privacy control options to safeguard users’
information from getting to a third party.
Although Facebook started solely for networking purposes, as a way to connect or reconnect
with relatives and friends, it soon transits to become another means for businesses to market
their brand through paid Facebook ads, not to mention tapping on data analytics to drive
products and deliver ads to target users.
Variety of content for Facebook Marketing:
•
Graphics (photos, static images, GIFs)
•
Blog Posts
•
Press Releases
•
Videos
•
Advertisements
•
Polls and Questions
•
Contest
Features of Facebook
•
Facebook reels
Facebook Reels is a new video-sharing feature that allows users to upload short videos with text
annotations.
FB Reels from embedsocial
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•
New Messenger features (Meta Pay)
Meta Pay enables the user to send and receive money across Facebook, Messenger, Instagram,
and WhatsApp with its new payment system that streamlines payments to Facebook shops.
Facebook Pay from embedsocial
•
Facebook ads in Live Streaming
Creators may now place ads in their live videos on their own, allowing them to reach the very best
audience network. In-stream ads are available for Facebook live video streams through Live
Producer.
In-Stream Ads
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YouTube
YouTube is the second most popular social media platform used, with almost
2.3 billion users. With 500 hours of video uploaded to YouTube every minute,
users are watching over a billion hours of YouTube videos each day, more than
Netflix and Facebook videos combined. The world is made more connected as
YouTube offers videos in 80 different languages and is viewed by 95% of the global population
with an internet connection. In addition, millennials prefer YouTube to live television.
Findings from the Pew Research Center survey of U.S. adults showed that many are turning
to YouTube for more than entertainment.
A survey from the PEW Research Center
Hence, a variety of video content genres in YouTube marketing:
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
DIY
Gaming
Lifestyle
Tech
Travel
Unboxing
Design/Art
Documentary
Health and Fitness
Tutorial/ Learning (how to on different subjects)
Entertainment
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Features of YouTube
• YouTube Chapters
YouTube automatically puts chapters in videos instead of having the content creator place them
manually.
YouTube Chapters from codegena
•
YouTube Shorts
YouTube Shorts was introduced in 2020, similar to TikTok. It is a concise video that is up to 60
seconds long. It has creation tools that make video content creation seamless.
YouTube Shorts
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•
YouTube Homepage Filtering
A new sorting option on the YouTube homepage enables users to filter their content.
Homepage Filtering from Youtube.com
•
YouTube channel analytics
YouTube introduced new analysis data for a more detailed breakdown of your channel analytics.
Youtube.com
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WhatsApp
Acquired by Facebook in 2014, WhatsApp is an instant messaging platform that
provides free and multi-function messaging with end-to-end encryption, free voice
calling, video calling, international calling and WhatsApp Business function. It has
become the market leader in its sector.
The chart below illustrates how WhatsApp fare amongst other messenger apps in its sector:
Features of WhatsApp
•
•
•
•
•
•
Group video and voice calls
WhatsApp on the web and desktop
Share Live location (Real Time)
Assign different priority and sound to different notifications
Pin conversation or make a shortcut
Limit data used by WhatsApp - decide what media (Photos, videos, documents, audio) the
app can download when you are not connected to Wi-Fi
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Instagram
Instagram is ranked third most popular in the social network category. There are
more than 100 million photos and videos uploaded to Instagram each day, and to
date, 50 billion photos have been shared. It started as a social networking platform
based on the sharing of photos and videos. Functions are simple, and it
emphasizes visual sharing on a smart device. This photo-sharing social networking app
enables one to capture beautiful moments and convert these pictures into works of art with
the aid of filters.
Variety of content for Instagram marketing:
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Q&A
Sneak Peak
Behind the scenes
Product recommendations
Giveaway
Influencer Takeover
Introduce new products/ services
Features of Instagram
•
Stories
Stories are a quick, easy way to share moments and experiences.
•
Reels
Reels are entertaining, immersive videos where you can creatively express your story,
and get discovered by people. Reels can be created with multi-clip videos for up to 30
seconds.
•
Shopping
Discover and buy from brands and creators. There are many ways to shop on Instagram,
from tapping product tags and saving items on wish lists to buying directly with checkout.
•
Search & Explore
Search by keyword(s) to explore topics and find content and creators related to your
interests.
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TikTok
With over one billion active users on TikTok globally, this places the platform
just behind Instagram in terms of user volume. In recent years, TikTok has
levelled the playing field when it comes to achieving viral status and is becoming
a core player in the social media space.
The app’s content discovery feed, better known as the “For You” page or FYP,
focuses on optimizing the content you see and enjoy. TikTok has grown dominant because of
the prevalence of trends where the algorithm prioritizes content that fits certain online trends
that are presently popular, such as lip-syncing with the audio of a video.
Variety of trending content for TikTok marketing:
•
Dance trends
•
Viral trends
-
pranks
animals
lip syncs
challenges
camera hacks
comedy moments
fitness workouts and tips
fashion and beauty transitions
Types of advertising solution on TikTok:
•
In-Feed Ads
Tell your brand story like a TikTok creator by integrating video content into users' "For
You" feed.
•
TopView
A video first format that presents your brand on the best and unmissable placement of
TikTok, capturing full user attention with sight, sound and narrative.
•
Branded Hashtag Challenge
Invite the TikTok community to engage with your brand. This is a one-of-a-kind
engagement format that taps into user passion for creation and expression. Delivering
strong brand awareness with a level of engagement that goes far beyond a simple click.
•
Spark Ads
Spark Ads is a native ad format that allows advertisers to tap into authenticity by boosting
organic content. This ad format allows the same user interactions as organic videos:
users can comment, like and share; they can visit your brand's profile by swiping left, or
clicking the handle name or profile picture; they can even follow your brand's account by
clicking the + icon on the profile picture.
•
Branded Effect
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Effects are one of the TikTok community's favourite forms of expression. Branded Effects
comprise a robust suite of customizable filters, enabling users to interact with your brand
in all kinds of ways.
Promote
•
Promote helps businesses reach more people and grow their community with their
TikTok videos. With Promote, you can turn any organic TikTok video into an ad, directly
within the app. You can start reaching new audiences, build a following, and drive traffic
to your business website.
6. Describe Common Considerations in Social
Media Marketing Campaigns
Social media marketing campaign differs from everyday social media marketing efforts, as it
is more focus and specific in their business goal over a shorter period. These campaigns are
advertising initiatives seen on social media platforms or other media channels in the digital
space.
The implementation of a planned social media marketing campaign strategy aims to improve
brand awareness and business KPIs (key performance indicators). KPIs are measured through
digital analytics and sales revenue results.
In this unit, we will look at the common considerations in social media marketing campaigns:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Audience Profile on Platform
Budget
Type of Content
Usability
Timing
Privacy
1. Audience Profile on Platform
Campaigns are shaped by the message and its target customer according to their
demographics that links to their varying preferences for certain social media platforms. Thus,
it is important to select the right social media platform(s) suited for them.
Social media demographics infographic in a nutshell
Facebook
Estimated Monthly
Active User
2.91 billion
Instagram
2 billion
TikTok
YouTube
Twitter
1 billion
2+ billion
211 million
Platform
Largest Age Group
25-34 (31.5%)
25-34 (31.2%)
18-24 (31%)
10-19 (25%)
15-35
18-29 (42%)
Gender
Male
Female
57%
43%
51.8%
48.4%
39%
54%
61.6%
61%
46%
38.4%
Source: Sprout Social, retrieved Dec 2022
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2. Budget
Budgeting is funds that are important as part of the process of planning and executing a social
media marketing campaign. Without it, it is difficult to achieve business goals and calculate the
Return on Investment (ROI). (ROI will be further explained in Unit 5.)
What constitutes the overall budget for a campaign? The Social Media Budget Template
shown below classifies the costs into five expenditure categories. The in-house expense
column refers to work done by company employees, and outsourced expense refers to work
that is a subcontract to a private vendor.
Budget Template by Keith A. Quesenberry
2.1.
Content Creation
It is the cost of the time taken to write and design content, including the costs of the production
process. This area includes photography, videography, social media influencer, production
costs, translator, etc.
2.2.
Social Advertising
It is a paid outsourced cost to reach for every social media channel advertisement, such as
- Facebook ads, Facebook Messenger ads
- Instagram ads
- LinkedIn ads
- Twitter ads
- YouTube ads
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2.3.
Social Engagement
It is where both employees and/or external vendors interact with social media users. They
listen and engage in brand talk per social channels, which are important activities in social
media. Cost is based on an estimated duration of the current activity.
2.4.
Software/Tools
Software/tools are also a paid outsourced cost for social media insight analysis. It serves to
monitor, schedule, report, and analyse. Instances of software/tools are:
-
Search Engine Optimisation (SEO)
(E.g. SEO is the practice of orienting your website to rank higher on a search engine
results page (SERP) so that you receive more traffic.)
-
Editing Tools
(E.g. Adobe Creative Cloud for various editing needs - image resizing, etc.)
-
Marketing Automation
(E.g. Marketo and MailChimp to help with email marketing)
-
Analytics Tools
(E.g. Hootsuite Analytics to track social media campaigns with its display of
individual social channel metrics)
2.5.
Promotion/Contests
Apart from buying reach through social media ads, the audience base is building and engaging
through promotion, discounts and contests. Unique offer code promotions, contests,
sweepstakes, coupons and discounts are costs incurred during the period of the campaign.
Some best practices of promotion/contests in a social media campaign:
-
Action-gating
(E.g., invite users to take polls, provide reviews, join mailing lists, etc.)
-
Incentives
(E.g., offer discounts and exclusive content in exchange for user’s information)
-
Proactive Engagement
(E.g. quick to address negative reviews with personal attention)
-
Consistency in promotion/contests across all social media accounts
-
Consistency in the look and feel of the brand’s online presence to reinforce the
marketing campaign
(E.g. adapt campaign branding and message across social channels - landing and
home pages)
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3. Type of Content
Brands use different type of content to achieve their marketing and business goals. The
content type to use will depend on the platform and users’ preferences when using the
platform.
Example of the type of content for each social media platform as follow:
Type of Content from smartsimplemarketing.com
The type of content can also be broadly categorised by the PESO model – Paid, Earned, Shared
and Owned Media.
PESO Model by Gini Dietrich
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3.1.
Paid Media
Paid media is a way to gain a presence on social sites where most social users are, and paid
techniques are used to promote content and drive exposure:
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Advertising
Sponsored content
Display advertisements
Banner advertisements
Paid search results
Video ads
Paid influencers
3.2.
Earned Media
Earned media is media or content shared and published by a third party about your brand
without you having to pay for it.
•
•
•
•
•
Publicity/ Media coverage (Media, blogger, investor, influencer relations)
Mentions
Shares
Reposts
Reviews
3.3.
Shared Media
Shared media, often posted on social media, is user-generated content. It is a result of a shared
interaction amongst followers and fans via social sharing and social engagement on social
media platforms.
3.4.
Owned Media
Owned media is media, content and assets created and owned by the brand, with editorial inhouse employees to manage content creation.
•
•
•
•
Website
Blog
Newsletter
Social media channels
Each of the four channels of the PESO model has its benefits and pitfalls. Thus, to apply the
right type of content in a marketing campaign is to integrate multiple channels in order to
compensate for the weakness of one channel with the strength of another.
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4. Usability
As a subset of user experience, usability is a measure of a user’s ability to use the brand’s
social media marketing campaign interface easily. Good usability is defined by the ease of
access and/or use and the performance of the digital platforms.
The level of usability of a usable interface is determined by these outcomes:
1. The user is able to be familiar with and competent in using the user interface on the first
contact with the digital platform (website, mobile app, etc.).
Example:
To leave a product review on the social site in order to get a chance to win something,
the user should be able to navigate the social site easily through the course of
instructions provided.
2. The user is able to achieve their objective by using the digital platform.
Example:
If a user has the goal of leaving a product review, a good social site design will guide
the user through an easy process to do so.
3. The user is able to easily recall the user interface and know how to use it on
subsequent visits.
Example:
A good social site allows the user to quickly adapt from the first usage and repeat the
process of leaving a second product review easily.
The diagram below illustrates the role of usability in shaping the user/brand experience (UX):
User Experience from usabilitygeek.com
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5. Timing
Timing in social media marketing campaigns refers to the scheduling of posts on the various
social platforms – which day to post, what to post at what timing of the day in order to maximise
reach and response from the target audience in real-time during the campaign. Thus, a social
media content calendar helps to organise and provide an overview of the content schedule in
advance. It is industry best practice, and its aim of it helps to:
•
•
•
•
•
Log in key dates (public holiday, campaign launch date, etc.)
Be consistent in posting
Provide a good content mix
Schedule posts in advance
Avoid cross-platform errors (unique caption for each platform)
As a general guide base on users’ social behaviour, the preferred time to post for each platform:
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6. Privacy
A social media marketing campaign, like any digital marketing, involves the collection, use and
dissemination of personal information. The risk of misuse and abuse of consumer data,
together with numerous reported cases of privacy lapses, calls for enforcement actions. An
instance is Facebook - Cambridge Analytical data breach scandal that made headlines in early
2018.
Threats surrounding social networking privacy are inevitable, and an individual has to play a
part in safeguarding against them. Users are advised to be vigilant in providing personal
information online, to log out from the site after use, to read the terms and conditions of the
site before agreeing, as well as encrypt and protect personal devices with a complex password.
In addition, governments have now played a part and stepped-up legislative effort in a big way:
The European Union General Data Protection Regulation (EU GDPR)
EU GDPR is a law that comes into force on 25 May 2018. It is a regulation on data protection
and privacy for citizens of the European Union (EU) and the European Economic Area (EEA).
Personal Data Protection Act (PDPA)
The Personal Data Protection Act 2012 sets out the law on data protection in Singapore. It
regulates telemarketing practices, covers individual personal data, and takes on a light-touch
technical approach.
Public Sector Governance Act (PSGA)
The Public Sector Governance Act (PSGA) was introduced in 2018 to provide additional
protection for personal data in the public sector and safeguard the misuse of data by public
servants. The data protection guidelines are also aligned with the PDPA.
Cybersecurity Act
It is a framework for the protection of critical information infrastructure (“CII”) against
cybersecurity threats. It covers both the private sector and the public sector. Measures taken
include prevention, management, and response to cybersecurity threats and incidents in
Singapore.
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7. Outline the Development of Social Media
Content
7.1.
Planning Production
7.1.1.
Planning Phase
In the planning phase, brands seek to align and present their social media content with
consumers' wants. Provide them with the elements of a good content mix as well as a story
with a different genre that contributes value to it.
Findings from Sproutsocial.com
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7.1.2.
Publishing Phase
Upon firming up the planning phase, the publishing phase is the drafting of the content base on
topics that interest consumers. Content will be drafted and published in an organised method
with the use of a Social Media Content Calendar, which aims to provide a visible plan for the
content mix as well as its scheduling process.
Common social media content calendar tools:
•
Trello – effective for team collaboration
Trello Board from trello.com
•
Microsoft Excel – customisable
Excel Content Calendar from hubspot.com
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•
Google Drive – Easy to track and share
Google Drive Editorial Calendar from hubspot.com
7.1.3.
Measuring Phase
The measuring phase is to analyse and optimise the performance outcome derived from the
planning and publishing phase using social media analytic tools. Metrics churn should
benchmark against the business goals. If not, fine-tune what works best and what is not. Key
performance indicators include impressions, engagements, ROI, reach, mentions, etc.
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7.2.
Script Writing
Video on social media has gained much attention and growth in recent years as a content
showcase in videos is concise and easy to digest; it captures the interest of viewers. The key
to writing a good script is to strike the right balance in the video duration, where it is long
enough to preserve viewers’ attention yet short enough to keep viewers wanting to watch
more. With good advantage, videos make great storytellers of any social media content.
Basic elements of script writing:
7.2.1.
Introduction
Select a topic that will engage your viewers with digestible content points. Keeping it brief
makes the video content more memorable and interesting. As a guideline, a single synopsis
to bring the point across will make a good starting point, for example – "Hi! I'm [name] from
[brand], and in the next [duration] minutes, I'm going to teach you how to get your blog ranking
on the Search Engine."
7.2.2.
Subsections and Transitions
The body of the script is a representation of several subsections, and each subsection needs
to be connected to build the viewership’s expectation to the next subsection, known as
transition. To retain viewership attention, each section of the script should be written for easy
comprehension, allowing an effortless and seamless thought process. One way is the use of
easy words with simplified meanings make the content easy to grasp in order for viewers to
get the crux of the content at a glance.
7.2.3.
Thorough Descriptions
A script has to be thorough enough to include every fine detail – dialogue, number of shots,
characters, scenes, description of the set, stage actions, wardrobe, etc. A script that includes
all the necessary information makes it easy to hand over to anyone to start shooting because
communication is clear enough to avoid miscommunication, resulting in re-dos.
7.2.4.
Conversational Tone
In script writing, understanding your audience demographic comes in handy as you are writing
it for them on the subject matter. Keeping the tone conversational by infusing humour and
inflexion accordingly is a way of connecting with them as well. Besides writing to cater to your
audience profile, the type of social media platform on which the video is going to be uploaded
has to be taken into consideration. For example, keeping the script choppy with sentence
fragments of key points for a short video for Facebook versus producing a long video for a
website, the script has to be more thorough with an explanation.
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7.3.
Storyboard Writing
A storyboard, similar to that of a comic strip, is a graphic tool for illustrating how a video will
unfold. It is displayed in sequence shot by shot (square by square). Each square represents a
scene, and it consists of the characters, dialogue, text, graphics, etc. (if any). A storyboard is
basically a pre-visualizing of a video.
The planning process of storyboarding a video is vital as it helps you to conceptualise and
visualise the order of the shots. The essential 4-step method of storyboard writing is as follows:
7.3.1.
Create a Storyboard Template
There are many variations of storyboard templates for different purposes. It is best to select
one that suits your needs and objectives. The following is a sample template for video
production.
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7.3.2.
Script Write-Up
With each square, input the scenario and the line of script as well as dialogue that corresponds
to the scene. An instance of a template shown below includes details for the particular scene,
such as the action required, audio and its duration to be played, and additional comments/
remarks where required, such as a special mention of characters or objects of the story.
7.3.3.
Sketch Out the Story
Sketch the scene of the story in each rectangle frame. There are several options for doing so,
and one method is the use of a traditional way of drawing each scene by hand as well as with
the use of cut-out images or photographs from a magazine. Alternatively, you may leverage
online storyboarding tools such as Boords, Storyboard That, and more, which helps with
generating the visuals you need – selection of characters, settings, speech bubbles, etc.
7.3.4.
Add Notes
The final step in storyboard writing is to add any notes required for each scene. As
communication is key, it is good practice to specify such as the description of camera angles
or movement, special filters or effects, music or sound effects, etc.
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7.4.
Video Creation
Step 1: Record
With the advancement of technology, it is no longer necessary to get costly video equipment
to shoot high-quality videos. Most smartphones today can record videos of high visual and
audio quality with just a few simple tools and tricks.
•
Use the tripod
o Stabilising the smartphone with a tripod makes a stable video looks more
professional.
•
Speak into a microphone
o Find a quiet location to record the video.
o Use a lavalier microphone to improve the sound quality by plugging it into
your phone and recording.
•
Find good lighting
o Natural light is the best light source in video creation.
o Artificial light works well too.
Note: Face the light source in order for the light to spread evenly across the
character’s face when recording the video.
•
Find/ create a video background
o A simple background encourages viewers to focus on the characters
without any distractions.
o Alternatively, create a suitable background with a large board or DIY a
lightbox for the filming of a small product.
Note: Before filming, know which social media platform(s) you will be using to upload the video
to, as this will determine the layout of the video recording process. Vertical video works best
for Instar-Stories, Facebook Stories, and Snapchat, while a horizontal video is a preferred
format on platforms like YouTube, Facebook, and Twitter.
Video Layout from Building Business
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Step 2: Edit
There are many mobile-friendly video-editing apps available, and most of them
incorporate audio into your video, which makes video editing seamless and easy. Also,
include the full set of closing credits or end credits at the end of the video, listing the cast
of crews involved in the making of the video production, music, editors, wardrobe, etc.
Some instances of video-editing tools:
Quik
Quik from play.google.com
Quik is a video editor app that allows one to edit on the go and syncs the shots (both
moving and still images) to the beat of the music with transitions and effects. Video is
customisable with text, music, theme, duration, video speed as well as filters.
iMovie (IOS)
iMovie Quik from apps.apple.com
iMovie is Apple’s very own free video editing app that comes with the iPhone. It provides
an easy-to-use interface for editing footage and adds titles, music, voiceovers, photos, and
many more features. In addition, it allows users to record videos straight from iMovie.
Step 3: Share
Having recorded and edited the video, it is now ready to be uploaded and shared directly
on the social media platform. Provide the video with a catchy title, appealing captions, and
trending hashtags to gain viewership. At this step, it is good to be mindful of the copyrights
and royalties of the video, graphics, and music used before sharing the video.
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7.5.
Video creation tips
A. Framing
Rule of Thirds
The Rule of Thirds proposes that an image be imagined as divided into nine equal parts by
two equally spaced horizontal lines and two equally spaced vertical lines, and those
important compositional elements are placed along these lines or their intersections.
Aligning a subject with these points assists in creating more tension, energy and interest in
the composition than simply centring the subject.
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Leading lines
Leading lines are lines that appear in a photograph or film frame that has been framed and
positioned to draw the viewer's eye towards a specific point of interest. These lines often
draw the viewer's eye in a specific direction or towards a designated portion of the
photograph.
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Symmetry
In photography and filmography, symmetry appears when parts of your composition mirror
other parts. It is created when two halves of your scene look the same and balance each
other out.
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Framing within the Frame
A frame within a frame occurs when you use a visual element in the image to frame the
primary subject. The purpose of using a frame within a frame is to help move the viewer's
eye toward that subject.
2018 - Vancouver - Canada Place (Tom Mcgrath)
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Single-Shot Framing
A single character or object is within the frame.
A Single Man (Ding Yuin Shan)
Two-Shot Framing
Two characters or objects are set within the frame.
By The White House from Washington, DC - P050912PS-0237Uploaded by January, Public Domain,
https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=19396203
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Over-the-Shoulder
An over-the-shoulder shot, often referred to as a third-person shot or an OTS,
is a shot where the camera is facing one character from a position that is just
behind another character.
An Over-The -Shoulder Look (Mark Robinson)
Over-the-shoulder shot - The Godfather (1972)
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Over-The-Hip Shot (OTH)
Essentially the same as the over-the-shoulder shot; however, the camera is now
placed at the character’s hip.
Over-the-shoulder shot – Minority Report (2002)
Point of View Shot (POV)
A point-of-view shot, also known as a POV shot, first-person shot or a subjective
camera, is a short film scene that shows what a character (the subject) is looking
at, represented through the POV of the camera.
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Insert Shot
An insert shot is any shot that's sole purpose is to focus the viewer's attention
on a specific detail within a scene, usually from the POV of the character.
Insert shot – Up (2009)
Insert shot – Sleepy Hollow (1999)
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B. Lighting
Key Lighting
The key light is the primary light source for your scene. The strength, colour, and angle of
your key light are determining factors in a cinematographer’s lighting design. The key light
is most often placed in front of your subject, at an angle, and thus illuminates one section
of your subject.
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Fill Lighting
A fill light is a second light source used to reduce the contrast of a scene. Working with the
Key light, the fill lighting helps to fill out dark areas and reduces the depth of shadows and
softens the appearance of facial features, amongst other traits.
Without a fill light, the details at the rear
are lost.
With a fill light, the details at the rear are
restored.
Back Lighting
Backlighting is the process of illuminating the subject from the back.
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C. Sound
In a video, there are three main types of sounds: human voices, music and sound effects.
These three types of sounds are crucial for a video to feel realistic for the audience.
Sounds and dialogue must perfectly synchronize with the actions in a video immediately
and must sound the way they look, or it will sound unusual and strange. (This section is
best viewed with the digital format of the notes with the corresponding hyperlinks)
o
Human Voices
o
o
Music
o
o
Human voices in a video allow the characters to speak and communicate in
the medium. Viewers can understand the situation the characters are in as they
speak and explain the circumstance of the scene. Human voices are essential
and common in videos with speaking roles to provide the character with a
personality through human speech. It can culminate in some of the most
memorable speeches and conversations in cinema history.
Music in movies can lend emotion and tension to the scene. Uplift or scare
audiences, lifting audiences with lighthearted tunes to build impending dread
and doom, as well as love and kindness, depending on the musical score.
Sound Effects
o
Sound effects are essential to any video, lending everyday sound we hear but
never really notice due to our familiarity with these sounds. Simple sounds
such as the crunching of leaves underfoot, the whisper of wind in the trees, the
crashing of waves at the beach or the sounds of a hawker centre lend
recognizable familiarity to the scene when we view it.
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UNIT 4: Manage Social Media Communities
1. Describe the Possible Issues that Arise from
Organisation’s Social Media Platforms
The emerging trend of social media in this century offers businesses tremendous upside and
returns, but at the same time, exposes the organisation to potential risks and issues if it is not
managed properly. It is, thus, necessary to address possible issues that arise from the use of
social media platforms:
•
•
•
•
•
•
Technical failure
Negative user response
Poor engagement of the user
Unable to control the content
Digression to non-related topics
Errors in communication going viral
1.1 Technical Failure
Dependence on technology is inevitable as more are using their smart phones and digital
devices to stay connected. As a result, when there is a technical failure,
• the impact on stakeholders can be disastrous as businesses suffer a loss of sales
due to downtime,
• not to mention the cost incurred to resolve technical glitches.
In the year 2019, there were several reported technical failure cases against Facebook
services, and many users took to twitter to vent their frustrations. Of the cases, the worst being
in March when Facebook suffered extended downtime of more than 24 hours due to a server
configuration change.
Headlines from various occasions as shown:
CNA Headlines from channelnewsasia.com
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1.2 Negative User Response
Social media is a powerful tool for businesses to engage and establish trust with their present
and prospective customers, which leads to improving brand awareness as well as website
traffic. However, it does not deter users from posting negative comments or reviews on the
brand’s social media platforms. Thus, companies have to pay attention to addressing and
resolving negative responses with timeliness and professionalism.
While most customer support modes of communication via phone and email are not expected
to be available for response 24/7. Consumers do expect otherwise for customer support on
social media, and that includes responding promptly to any inquiries, reviews, and complaints.
Poor response time or, worst, lack of any response in social media customer service often
leads to escalated negative user experience.
Poor Customer Experience from freshsparks.com
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The following is extracted from Facebook of a business lack of customer support on social
media that resulted in multiple negative user responses:
Reviews from Cathay Cineplexes FB
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1.3 Poor Engagement of User
The number of times businesses invest in social media impacts users’ engagement. Poor
engagement of users often results from brands which
•
•
•
planned posts way ahead of time
adopted a ‘set and forget’ style,
failing to schedule ‘real-time’ budgets.
The diagram below shows worrisome statistics on the social media engagement challenges
many organisations face. Only an average of 4% of promotional posts posted were responded
to.
User Engagement Index from Sprout Social 2016
1.4 Unable to Control Content
The use of social media platforms allows users to voice their comments and share their
experiences directly with brands. Contents such as posts, reviews, pictures and more; that are
created and shared by any users via social media networks are known as User-Generated
Content (UGC). With the increasing popularity of UGC, businesses run the risk of not being
able to control content and clock supervision is required to prevent any issues from arising.
Reliability and Accuracy of Content
With UGC, users are given the control of writing, posting and tagging the content to the
business social media platforms and oftentimes, this content may not be positive or
appropriately reflect the brand, which potentially causes the brand's reputational risks and
tamper the brand image.
Liability and Legal Issues
As UGC essentially belongs to the user who creates and shares it, it is therefore important to
understand the relevant legal issues attached to UGC content. Hence, in order to share
users’ content on the business social media sites, permission from the user must be
obtained. Also, provide acknowledgement and credit to the user by tagging and mentioning
them, stating it clearly that the content belongs to the original creator.
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Confronting Fake/Spam Sources
It is inevitable to have spam, fake, ‘ghost’ profiles sneaking through digital platforms. These
profiles are a challenge to the organisation as these unreliable sources have a tendency to
leave inaccurate comments and information, which makes it hard for an organisation to
confront or rectify.
With the growing popularity of businesses tapping on UGC contests and campaigns, genuine
consumers may be doubtful of the authenticity of participants leaving reviews and submitting
the content. As such, an organisation may consider inviting consumers within the business
database to provide a “verified review”.
1.5 Digression to Non-Related Topics
While social media marketing is an influential marketing means to reach out to the masses,
businesses have to be weary of the potential in which messages shared may digress into nonrelated topics. Social media being one of the key sources of news and information for most,
misinformation can cause major untruths, which are sometimes taken out of context and taken
as headlines.
These untruths of information are categorised as mis-information, dis-information and malinformation.
Fake News from medium.com
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1.6 Errors in Communication Going Viral
Social media in marketing is one of the key communication tools for most businesses. It gives
marketers a voice and a way to communicate with present and potential customers. However,
when there is an error in the communication chain, leading to a communication breakdown,
these errors may be widespread, like wildfire. As such, businesses will make a loss. Errors in
communication will have a negative impact on customers’ perception of the brand.
An instance of errors in communication that made headlines in Singapore is shown below:
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2. Describe the Process to Respond to the
Possible Issues Arising from the Use of
Social Media Platforms
Earlier in this unit, we identified and went through 6 possible issues arising from the
organisation’s social media platforms. In order to prevent issues from escalating, we have to
first identify the potential issues as they surface and manage them before it turns into a fullblown crisis. With that, it is good practice for any organisation to have a process in place to
respond to the possible issues arising from the use of social media platforms.
2.1.
Create a Social Media Policy
Every business should document a set of social media policies for the organisation. This
provides clear guidelines and expectations on the appropriate use of its social media accounts.
Policy guidelines include:
•
Copyright
• Use and credit of third-party content
•
Privacy
• Specify how to interact with customers on social media and when to take the
conversation offline
•
Confidentiality
• Define types of business information employees are allowed or not allowed to
share
•
Brand Voice guidelines
• Formal tone verses conversation, relaxed tone
2.2.
Secure Social Media Accounts
Business social media accounts should
•
•
•
Be secured with strong passwords
Limit the number of employees knowing the passwords to the accounts.
Use a centralised access control system to control permissions and grant the
appropriate level of access to employees who needs it.
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2.3. Use Social Listening to Identify Potential
Issues
Social listening includes monitoring brand mentions and social sentiment.
A surge of brand mentions in social activity is an advanced warning that needs some
investigation.
Social sentiment should be monitored as it captures how people feel about the brand. An
unexpected change in social sentiment is usually a clue to start listening to what people are
talking about the brand.
2.4.
Establish a Crisis Communication Plan
A crisis communication plan includes:
•
•
•
•
Guidelines to identify the type and magnitude of a crisis.
Roles and responsibilities of each department.
Pre-approved external messages or information.
A link to social media policy.
2.5.
Pause Scheduled Posts
In the event of a social media crisis, a crisis communication plan is to be activated,
•
•
2.6.
All communication has to be planned and consistent in tone.
All pre-scheduled posts ought to be paused until the issues are resolved and
under control.
Acknowledge and Engage
The last step of the process is to acknowledge and engage with users. Some key
considerations for the distribution of responses:
•
Twitter
- Effective for quick responses
•
Business websites
- Most formal for a response
•
YouTube, video on Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook
- Provide the organisation’s spokesperson to respond directly
•
Facebook or LinkedIn posts
- A longer form of responses
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3. Information Required from Social Media by
the Organization
Social media marketing is a long-term commitment. The use of online services for
relationship selling is based on developing rapport with customers. Social media services
make innovative use of new online technologies to accomplish the familiar communication
and marketing goals of this form of selling.
Your business will require information from social media to find out:
•
•
•
•
•
•
the degree of customer engagement
the nature of customer sentiment
brand reputation on a social network
quality of relationships with your target market
the extent of participation in online conversations
positioning in your industry vs your competitors
3.1 Degree of customer engagement
Key benefits of having customer engagement
•
•
•
•
Ability to build your customer base and audience:
Being able to boost your reputation:
A speedy, cost-effective means of marketing:
Saves you time and money on communications:
3.2 Nature of customer sentiment
Customer sentiment doesn't just look at how many people are talking about your
business. It adds context by measuring the tone of those conversations, comments, and
mentions.
Without sentiment, data can be misleading. If your company receives a large number of
mentions on social media while launching a new product, you might assume the launch has
been successful. However, if the majority of posts are negative, then the opposite is true.
The presence of negative sentiment does not mean that a product or brand is a failure. The
ratio of positive to negative is also essential. Not every consumer will love your business.
Even those who are loyal customers will sometimes discover products they do not like or
have a negative experience. As long as the majority of customers have neutral to positive
feelings toward your company, your overall social sentiment will be positive.
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3.3 Brand reputation on a social network
•
•
•
A good online reputation also impacts sales and profit in the long run.
90 percent of survey respondents claimed that positive online reviews influenced
buying decisions.
In comparison, 86 percent said buying decisions were influenced by negative
online reviews.
3.4 Quality of relationships with your target
market
•
A company will also be judged by how it responds to online customer feedback,
especially negative comments or complaints.
•
To develop and maintain not just a brand but an online personality which is likeable
and well-respected and with which individuals can develop a real sense of familiarity
and emotional connection.
3.5 Extent of participation in online
conversations
Social media was created around the idea of virtual communication. For businesses, social
media is an opportunity to create ways for potential customers and existing followers to
talk about the products or services an organization offers.
With this in mind, each piece of content created and posted should have a common goal:
maximizing the amount of participation it prompts among followers.
Participation can be simple. Just asking followers to comment with a question can generate
online participation.
3.6
Positioning in your industry vs your
competitors
How to increase market share using social media intelligence?
A. Understand your target audience through customer profiling:
Example: We can use social listening to create and maintain consumer profiles. To
adopt new positioning, the brand must identify consumer profiles and understand
their interests. By listening to consumer reviews and conversations on social media,
the marketing team can define several different key profiles.
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B.
Detect your competitors' strategies:
• Track your competitors’ events
• Stay up-to-date on trends and innovations in the sector
• Understand how competitors adapt their regional strategies
Example: Using geographic targeting, a group of 800 supermarkets was able to
identify its competitors’ strategies in different regions, ranging from large cities to rural
areas.
C.
Identify key trends and issues to tailor your strategy:
Example: A company from the banking sector uses social listening to capture
the main trends of FinTech, the economy, and the banking sector as a whole.
It also monitors the evolution of the various sectors corresponding to its
sponsorship initiatives in arts and sports. Finally, it captures insights about its
competitors in order to differentiate itself in terms of content. The company is
then able to demonstrate industry expertise, build customer loyalty, and
increase awareness.
D. Analyze user-generated content to understand your customer: User-generated
content (UGC) is a powerful lever for brands in earned and owned media:
Example: A marketing agency, during a campaign to reposition a biscuit brand,
used social listening to collect and relay all UGC, including relevant tweets and
posts produced by social media users, often with images, jokes, and memes. With
a reach of 4 million users on social networks, negative messages about the brand
were completely replaced by the mass of UGC, which was then reported and
analyzed by the agency.
E.
Identify the right influencer to increase your authenticity and reach:
Example: A group of cosmetic brands, using social listening to detect new
influencers, discovered that a singer mentioned one of the brands in her songs.
The group decided to sponsor the singer’s events and create dedicated content
to reach the specific audience of this personality, which included previously
unexplored demographics. This resulted in increased sales and awareness from
the singer’s core audience.
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4. Types of User Response in Social Media
Platforms
Social media platforms allow users to interact with other users of varied backgrounds
and knowledge bases. Both consumers and marketers can use these insights to gain
access to consumer behaviour within a specific space.
Types of user response in social media platforms
A.
B.
C.
D.
E.
F.
Query
Complaint
Compliment
Comment
Feedback
Review
4.1 Query
•
•
•
A query is a question or inquiry.
Social media platforms where users ask questions and have their answers from
these interactions.
Users place their queries in the online platforms, as they find themselves truly
learning about topics that they are interested in.
4.2 Complaint
•
•
•
Customers complain when a company fails to provide a positive customer
experience.
Most companies respond to any negative comments and complaints posted on
social media channels.
The goals of these companies are to respond quickly, decipher the problem and
propose a solution.
4.3 Compliment
A Compliment is remark that expresses approval, admiration or respect. If a brand
exceeds expectations, customers are happy and are more willing to share their experience
on social media.
A company may use the following ways to respond to compliments:
•
Express gratitude
Use a short, simple yet powerful phrase, e.g. Thank you.
•
Share credit
Try to acknowledge the contributions of everyone in the team, as success is
usually the result of team work.
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•
Choose positivity
Express gratitude for the compliment and do not downplay the compliment, as
it would come across as rejecting the compliment.
4.4 Comment
Research shows that 3 out of every four consumers rely on social networks to guide
purchase decisions, while nearly 85% of them read up to 10 online reviews before they can
trust a brand. Going by these statistics, it is important for a company or a brand to pay
close attention to mentions, comments and reviews on social media and deal with them
effectively.
How to manage comments on social media?
•
Do not ignore/delete
If we delete a genuine negative comment, it straightaway raises questions about
the brand’s integrity. It may also perpetuate the customer’s anger and frustration,
resulting in a flurry of negative comments posted on various platforms. In some
cases, there is the possibility that the comment may have already been seen and
possibly even saved as a screenshot by other customers. This may also eventually
boil over into an uncontrollable situation. Therefore, it is never a good thing to
ignore/delete comments on social media.
•
Respond as soon as possible
It is best to respond as quickly as possible to negative comments. Irate customers
generally lack patience and expect quick resolution of issues. Undue delays could
only make matters worse.
•
Apologise first and acknowledge the error
In reacting to negative comments, we should always begin the comment with a
polite and courteous apology. This gives the brand a human face and shows other
readers that the brand does not shy away from accepting errors.
•
Ask for more information where required
Sometimes, frustrated customers may not give all the information that may be
required to help sort out the issue. In such cases, it is best to request politely from
them for the information. It would also be better to tell them why this information
is required to help quickly resolve the issue.
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4.5 Feedback
Feedback comprises information or statements of opinion about something, such as a
new product, that can tell you if it is successful or liked. Online customer feedback is nearly
synonymous with free publicity, especially on social media. If we listen to our customer
feedback and catch it early on, we can still benefit from it.
Customer feedback may not always be perfectly positive or negative, but it is definitely
important for publicity. If the feedback mentions names of staff the customer is
particularly impressed with, the company should relay the feedback to the staff member
concerned.
4.6 Review
People write an opinion when they use or encounter a product/service. An increasing
number of consumers are using the internet to find local businesses and see online reviews
almost every time they go online to do a local search.
Many local businesses have realized the importance of optimizing their online presence for
the local market. Consumers have easy access to a variety of devices to perform searches
on mobile gadgets, such as smartphones and tablets. This makes it easy for them to jump
online wherever they are and search for reviews about a business, product or service.
5. Types of Data to Collect
Social data is information that is collected from social media platforms. It shows how
users view, share and engage with your content. On Facebook, social media data
includes the number of likes, increases in followers, or the number of shares. On Twitter,
results include the number of impressions or retweets.
Data to collect:
A.
B.
C.
D.
Shares
Likes
Mentions
Followers
5.1 Shares
Social sharing describes when social media users broadcast web content on a social
network to their connections, groups, or specific individuals. One of the primary aims of
corporate social media marketing strategies to generate brand awareness by leveraging
their existing audience to share content.
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5.2 Likes
Instead of writing a comment or sharing a post, a user can click the Like button as a quick
way to show approval.
Attracting social media followers and increasing their exposure to a brand will ultimately
increase sales.
Many brands have discovered that customers who interact with them on social
media do spend more money than other customers.
5.3 Mentions
Whenever someone name-drops a person or brand online, that is a social mention. It can
be positive or negative. Every single one is an opportunity to engage with your audience
and shape public perception of your brand.
Social mentions represent actions and the amount of attention being paid to a topic
and are also a forecast of potential campaign success.
Responding to customers on social mentions increases the likelihood that they will
spend money on your products. It also increases how much they are willing to spend,
from anywhere between three to 20 percent.
When a customer receives a response from a brand, they are also much more likely to:
 Share that experience with their network
 Recommend the brand
 Be more generous with their scores on customer satisfaction surveys
5.4 Followers
In a social media setting, a follower refers to a person who subscribes to your account
in order to receive your updates.
In social media, a follow represents a user who chooses to see all of another user's posts
in their content feed. Getting users to follow their accounts is a primary objective for online
businesses with a social media presence.
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UNIT 5: Evaluate Social Media Marketing
Strategy
1. Ways to Evaluate Social Media Marketing
Strategy
Your business is actively tweeting, updating Facebook and posting how-to videos. Now, you
want to keep track of how well you’re doing. Without this information, it is hard to know which
efforts are paying off and how to optimize your resources. The simplest way to measure your
efforts is by watching the number of fans you get on your social media pages, but that is not
always a good indicator.
We will consider different ways to measure the effectiveness of a social media campaign, ROI
measurement and KPI.
Consider the use cases of KPI metrics vs. ROI measurement in terms of reading a book. KPIs
tell you what happens after each chapter, whereas ROI tells you what happened after the
conclusion of the entire story. KPIs are a forward-looking predictor of end performance,
whereas ROI is used as a backward-looking informer of future budget allocation decisions.
2. Social Media Return On Investment (ROI)
Social media ROI is a metric showing the amount of value generated by your investments
in social media. ROI is typically measured in terms of monetary value. However, in cases
where the direct impact on revenue is difficult to attribute, ROI can first be quantified by nonmonetary metrics.
For example, if the goal of a paid campaign on social is to increase brand awareness and
influence, ROI could be measured by growth in follower count or post-impressions.
The metrics used to quantify social media ROI for your own business should depend entirely
on your objectives.
3. Basic ROI Calculation
When we measure our social media ROI (Return on Investment), it is to figure out if our efforts
devoted to social media marketing are paying off. Spending on social media marketing is on
the rise, and companies are investing in social media and online advertising.
Social media ROI is what you get back from all the time, effort, and resources you commit to
social. And it’s best calculated with dollar amounts.
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How to compute social media ROI%?
•
•
Profit = Revenue – Investment  the money we earned from our social media
marketing efforts
Investment – the total cost of our social media marketing efforts
Example:
If we made $1,000 in revenue from social media on a $200 investment,
our profit is ($1000 - $200 = $800)
Remember: Profit = Revenue – Investment
Our social media ROI % would be
$800 profit
$200 investment
X 100 = 400% return on our investment
4. Basic Measures of Campaign Effectiveness
1) Likes
Social likes are the hearts you get on Instagram posts, the likes you get from your TikTok
followers, the thumbs-ups you get on Facebook, and other similar formats across popular
social networks and social media platforms.
This metric is a strong indicator of your post’s rankings and performance in the algorithm, and
it can let you know if the type of content you are posting on your Facebook page or Instagram
account is connecting with your viewers in the right way.
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2) Followers
A follower is a user on social media who have subscribed to see your posts in their feed. Both
personal and business accounts can have followers. Your number of followers, or follower
count, is a key metric for seeing how your audience on social media is growing or shrinking
over time.
The number of followers on your social media profile reflects our company or brand's
popularity. A gain in the number of followers is a clear sign of whether the social media
campaign is successful.
Follows are distinct from likes and shares. Likes, retweets and shares indicate that people find
value in an individual post. A follow expresses interest in receiving constant updates. As such,
a follow indicates a higher level of engagement with the audience, giving it more value than
other engagement metrics. Engagement strategies and social media campaigns frequently
target follows as a primary measurement for success (after sales and revenue).
5. Types of Key Performance Indicators (KPI)
The most important items to measure are the ones that reflect our business goals and
objectives. These are termed key performance indicators (KPIs). They may vary by type of
business, but after they are established, they should remain consistent over time.
Companies establish their own KPIs. Then we combine these KPIs with other information
about how our various marketing efforts contribute to sales and leads, our bottom line, and
our return on investment (ROI). Together with this information, we will then be in a position to
make strategic business decisions about our marketing mix, regardless of the size of the
company.
Common types of Key Performance Indicators:
1) Total Reach
2) Referral Traffic
3) Click Through Rate
1) Total Reach
The reach of our social media campaigns determines the total number of people we have
reached both within and outside of our audience. The more our audience reacts and engages
with our post, the better the online visibility.
Having a good reach and traffic to our business posts on social media is a clear indication that
our marketing campaign was on point. Google Analytics allows us to compare the reach and
traffic from different social media channels.
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2) Referral Traffic
Referral traffic is a method of reporting visits that came to your site from external sources.
Referral traffic is important for your website because it sends possible buyers to your website
from other sites that might have the same target group and people trust their recommendations
already.
Therefore, by checking the list of referrals you can better identify the interests of the customers
coming from those sites and what they are usually reading, optimize your content for them
and convert those visitors into customers!
3) Click-Through Rate
Click-through rate (CTR)
is the number of clickthroughs to our site from
a
particular
source
divided by the number of
visitors
(traffic)
that
arrived at that source.
CTR is an important
factor, as it is closely
associated with direct
conversions. This helps
us determine whether our
marketing campaign is on
point.
Example: If 40 people view our Facebook stream in one day, and 4 of them click-through to
our primary site, the CTR is (4÷ 40×100) = 10 per cent.
Generally, a higher CTR means our marketing campaign is effective. Because the more clicks
we get, the more visitors are drawn to our website. CTR is considered one of the KPIs by a
majority of businesses. It is generally used in pay-per-click (PPC) advertising campaigns, a
link on a landing page etc.
6. Effectiveness of Social Media Platforms
6.1 Sales and marketing objectives
Marketing objectives are a brand’s defined goals. They outline the intentions of the marketing
team, provide clear direction for team members to follow, and offer information for executives
to review and support.
Marketing objectives are a pivotal part of a marketing strategy. Without defined goals, a brand
will struggle with achieving its plans because it would not be clear on what it wants to do. A
straightforward plan is required to know what we hope to do and how we plan on doing it.
We will be far more likely to reach our goals when they are defined, outlined, and compiled
into a clear list of measurable marketing objectives.
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6.1a Sales Revenue
The primary way social media companies like Facebook and Twitter make money is through
selling advertising. But, social media platforms also make money off their users, too.
The average revenue per user (ARPU) is one of the most important metrics for large social
media companies like Facebook, Twitter, and TikTok. The ARPU is how much revenue a
company makes per user and is an important evaluation of how successful a business is,
especially with how much movement there is when it comes to the top social media sites.
6.1b Sales Transaction
Social media is comprised of different platforms, and when choosing the right social media
platform for their business, companies should start by learning the preferences of their client
base. Social media can be used intelligently only if the business is active on the same online
platform as its customers. It is a waste of time to engage on one social media platforms if your
clients are spending the majority of their time on another.
The sales transactions made on different platforms by different users can give companies a
good indication of which platforms their companies should be engaged in.
6.1c Return on Investment
It is important to ensure your brand interacts on whichever platforms are most popular with
your audience, but it's equally critical you take the time to determine which platforms provide
the best ROI for your business. This information can help you determine where to invest in
paid advertising, as well as which channels you should use for lead generation.
However, social media usage can shift overnight. The platforms that provided marketers with
the highest ROI five years ago likely do not deliver the same results anymore. Conducting
research to find out where marketers saw the highest ROI on an annual basis is important.
6.2 Social Media Branding on Social Media
Platforms
When social media branding is done correctly, it can and will help you optimally connect to
your target market. Social media branding forms a natural but essential part of your overall
marketing efforts on major social platforms such as Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn.
Social media branding is about consistently using the right methods to engage with your target
audience on social media platforms. The aim or purpose is to boost brand awareness. By
leveraging the power of social media branding, you can build a robust network of fans who
are not only loyal to your brand but are also eager to buy from you.
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