Participation on social networking sites will be executed by 94% of businesses in the coming year. “Despite risks associated with participating in online communities, the internal costs of community formation and management and the fact that we are in the midst of a profound recession, organizations’ continued and enhanced investment in online communities underscores the perceived potential for the value that they may provide to the enterprise,” says Ed Moran, director of product innovation at Deloitte Services LP. “Social media and communities are expected to continue to play a significant role in the way in which companies are interacting with employees, customers, partners and the larger business ecosystem, thereby redefining the very edge of the corporation.” Social media is just one area of online marketing to consider, but it’s certainly one of the fastest growing sections.

Sometimes looking at the strategies of others is a good place to begin thinking about online marketing. According to a recent survey, “Tough Times Call for Tough Measures,” conducted by the eMetrics Marketing Optimization Summit (eMOS), 84% of respondents planned to increase or maintain their spending on email; 77% will increase or maintain online advertisements; 76% will increase or maintain keyword search campaigns; 62% will increase or maintain their social networks campaigns; and 38% will increase or maintain video advertising budgets. The basic point is that, despite the recession, most managers know better than to make cuts to their marketing campaigns. Experts across the board agree that keeping brand awareness thriving is essential to coming out of the downturn strong.

The “2009 Tribalization of Business Survey” found that some of the top online marketing strategies during a recession include: increasing word-of-mouth (38%), improving customer loyalty (34%) and creating brand awareness (30%). Many executives feel this can be best done through the matrix of social networks. However, certain obstacles exist — like getting people to join, return and stay engaged. To gain the best results, market plans should include partnering up with other vendors, running exciting promotions and contests, offering special perks for participating and giving community members something of value for their time. In addition to these objectives, executives are also placing some emphasis on idea generation (29%) and customer support (23%).

As a business leader, you may be wondering whether to do your online marketing in-house or outsource to a smaller specialized firm. While this decision is entirely a personal one, nearly 40% of businesses are putting people on full-time to plan and implement their social networking strategies. Francois Gossieaux, a senior fellow with the Society of New Communications Research, says that there are still “plenty of companies who do not realize the power of communities, and others who have not yet figured out the proper approach for leveraging communities as part of their business.” He adds,”Businesses are truly becoming social again, and companies should look to leverage the collective wisdom of their employees, customers and partners in order to innovate faster, reduce costs, and bolster their bottom lines.”

Rene Lacape is a seasoned insurance agent. He has been dealing with both corporate and individual accounts for several years up to the present. If you need him, you can check his website and give him a call. Act now.

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