Technology is playing a vital role in the contemporary organisations; the companies incorporate technological advancements in their specific organisational structures for the accomplishment of several functions such as marketing, research and development, production, hiring and many other. Social networking is developing and growing with a faster pace and offers a sound platform to the companies for having a direct communication with the audiences (Leonardi, Huysman and Steinfield, 2013). Social network marketing is the concept which is being used by maximum of the corporations to reach to a larger customer base. In present time, individuals spent their maximum time on the social media sites and therefore it is one of the most favoured ways of marketing for the big as well as small companies (Park, Kee and Valenzuela, 2009). There are several competitive benefits gained by the companies who use social networks in their businesses. On the other hand there are some issues or disadvantages also which are associated with the use of social networks in eth businesses. They report will highlight both the impact and the advantages and disadvantages of social networking in business in respect with the chosen organisation named ‘Starbucks Corporation’.
The key objective of the report is to evaluate the various social networking strategies used by Starbucks for comprehending the impact of social networks and also the advantages and disadvantages of social networking in business.
The paper will have its key emphasis upon the social networking business strategy of Starbucks and its impact on the business in respect with the demerits and the merits experienced by the company. The paper will also have a brief comparison with few other companies too so that there can be analysed which company have the best implementation of the social networking strategies for attaining higher competitive benefits (Celine, 2012). The paper will present sound literature review for understanding the in-depth impact of the social networks in business.
Social networks in context with the business can be explained as the interpersonal association among the individuals and the companies either in the form of general people or the potential customers. There are various reasons because of which the companies take use of social networking such as for the purpose of marketing, for hiring individuals, for transferring information to the target customers and for various other reasons. In taking use of social networks in the businesses, it is necessary for the marketing executives to first analyse and understand the various merits and demerits of social networking (Kadushin, 2012). In older times, media was one of the best sources of providing in for to the target market but in the past decade, there has been an increased use of the social networks for they purpose of sharing information, generating awareness, marketing and fetching the attention of the potential customers (Parveen, 2012). The key benefits gained by the companies of using social networks are the attainment of the higher involvement and engagement of the customers. There are several social networking sites which are used by the business corporations for performing several business functions. There are sites that offer information such as Wikis, YouTube, etc; sites for effective recruitments such as LinkedIn; sites for interacting with the customers such as Facebook, Twitter, etc. Thus, all such social networking sites are highly useful for the businesses in enhancing their visibility and customer base (Kadushin, 2012. (Parveen, 2012).
Starbucks one of the highly recognized global organisations operates in several overseas regions and take use of effective social networking strategies in order to achieve higher competitive befits. On social media sites such as Twitter, Instagram and Facebook, the company holds strong following i.e. approximately a total of 64 million. Starbucks effectively understand the significance of using social networks in business and thus embrace it for enhancing the customer engagement and marketing of the products. In terms of brand reliability or customer loyalty, the company had to face some issues because of the existence of various other competitors. But with the support of social networking, Starbucks enhanced its customer loyalty by having a sound customer engagement and offering continuous customer services on these social media sites. Starbucks runs robust customer engagement programs with the help of the social networking for interacting with the customers. Starbucks on a continuous basis provides info about the services and the products as well as also solve the issues and queries of the customers through the social media sites (Belicove, 2010). All such things help the company in achieving strong customer base, higher customer involvement and improved brand image. There are several other organisations also which take expensive use of these social media platforms for enhancing the visibility such as Uber, Oreo, Apple, P&G etc. all these sites have a strong customer base on these platform. The companies maintain the association through various offers, promotional activities, etc. Starbucks also communicate with other corporation as well as the potential; customer base for having effective social networks (Casson and Giusta, 2007).
(Source: Kash, 2013)
The researches have emphasized upon the merits of using social networks in business such as developing strong relationship with the customers through developing efficiency, trust, access and relevance. The businesses also attain higher level of sustainability through having social connections by accessing to an extensive customer segment through sound communication and marketing channel. One of the major benefit is the businesses can have two way communication where the feedbacks and the responses of the customers can also be collected through the social networks (Gronum, Verreynne and Kastelle, 2012). With the help of the two way communication the companies works upon the weaker sections and try to influence the customers through effective customers’ services. other benefits of use of social networks in businesses comprises of higher customer engagement, higher rates of conversion, extensive business opportunities, enhanced brand visibility, higher possibility of business modification, increased efficiency and access to competent employees (Leonardi, Huysman and Steinfield, 2013).
On the other side the companies also face a number of issues and challenges at the time of using social networks in businesses such as it is a highly time exhausting activity and there is also required to manage the social networks on a continuous and daily basis. Another demerit or challenge faced by the business corporations and also Starbucks is that there is high risk of damaging the brand image (Hensel and Deis, 2010). With just few negative comments or feedbacks by the people, the image of the brand can be ruined which is one of the major drawback of using social networks. There is a need that the businesses must first analyse the various social networks and then afterwards take use of the most appropriate and potential one (Vásquez and Escamilla, 2014). Thus, the use of social networks is both opportunistic as well as risky. Therefore, it is essential to have proper analysis and evaluation of the social networks and have a match with the needs of the business operations (Gronum, Verreynne and Kastelle, 2012).
Numerous methods will be adopted for the purpose of execution of the data collection process. These methods have been selected after analysis of the different methods available. Social networkshave gained much importance in the dynamic business environment. There are various benefits and disadvantages attached to the use of social networking platforms. Data regarding the social networks, benefits,and disadvantages of social networks will be gathered with the help of these methods.
Research Design:qualitative research method will be adopted for the collection of data. Qualitative research method helps is providing insight of the aspect in a better manner by exploring different factors attached to the aspect (Kielmann, et. al., 2012). The trend of thesocial network can be analyzed in a better manner with the help of qualitative research method.
Data Collection: primary and secondary data will be accumulated for the purpose of assembling of the data related to the research program. Primary data is less reliable when it is compared with the secondary data (Thomas, 2015).
Sampling Method:data analysis process is a time-consuming process as the data is available in large quantity. Random sampling technique will be adopted for the selection of the samples in an unbiased manner. Random sampling technique helps in the selection of the samples by providing equal opportunity of getting selected (Nishad&Sankar, 2016).
Research Strategy:execution of the research program will be done by following a sequential strategy. According to this strategy, every activity will be conducted in an order so as to cover every aspect properly.
Targeted market: it is crucial to identify the market from where information or data will be assembled. These markets are considered as atargeted market (ACAPS, 2012). Data collection process will be initiated with the use of primary and secondary sources. Primary data will be gathered by constructing a questionnaire based on the research topic. This questionnaire will be presented to 20 employees of the organizations who are using social networks. Secondary data will be assembled from the different internet sources. These internet sources will help in maintaining the reliability and authenticity of the research (Johnston, 2014).
Timeframe: for the completion of the research within the time period allocated, an action plan has been prepared. This action plan will help in completing the research well on time without affecting the quality of the research.
Ethical Considerations: ethical aspects act as a line bifurcating between the right and wrong. Ethical considerations need to be followed for the execution of the research without affecting the interest of others. Ethical considerations considered for this research program include confidentiality, honesty,and unbiasedness.
Limitations can be explained as the hurdles or challenges which are being faced by the researcher while conducting the research program. These challenges can affect the quality of the data presented in the research and successful completion of the research program. Research challenges affect the process of research execution and these need to be overcome by applying techniques or approaches. Research limitations identified during the execution process of this research program are theavailability of short span of time, lack of permission to access the data, shortage of resources required for the execution of the research and availability of data is alarge quantity.
|
Serial no. |
Activities |
Initiation date |
Duration (days) |
Completion date |
|
A) |
Selection of the topic |
24 January 2018 |
1 |
24 January 2018 |
|
B) |
Outlining the plans for the research program |
25 January 2018 |
4 |
28 January 2018 |
|
C) |
Execution of the plans outlined |
29 January 2018 |
6 |
03 February 2018 |
|
D) |
Choosing appropriate methods for data collection |
04 February 2018 |
1 |
04 February 2018 |
|
E) |
Assembling of the required data for the research |
05 February 2018 |
9 |
13 February 2018 |
|
F) |
Analysis and evaluation of the assembled data |
14 February 2018 |
3 |
16 February 2018 |
|
G) |
Conclusion and recommendations |
17 February 2018 |
1 |
17 February 2018 |
Conclusion
Key points have been extracted from the above discussion on the topic of social networks in business so as to provide an overview of the research program. Social networking platforms are being used by the businesses for the purpose of gaining acompetitive advantage over the others in the industry. With the enhancement of the technology, there has been arise in the use of social networking platforms. Starbucks has used social networks for the marketing of the products or services offered. Another main motive behind the use of social networks is to enhance the communication process for improving the flow of information between the company and customers.
References
ACAPS, 2012, “Qualitative and Quantitative Research Techniques for Humanitarian Needs Assessment”, ACAPS.
Belicove, M., 2010.How Starbucks builds meaningful customer engagement via social media. . Accessed on: 24 January 2018. Available at: https://www.americanexpress.com/us/small-business/openforum/articles/how-starbucks-builds-meaningful-customer-engagement-via-social-media-1/
Casson, M. and Giusta, M.D., 2007. Entrepreneurship and social capital: Analysing the impact of social networks on entrepreneurial activity from a rational action perspective. International Small Business Journal, 25(3), pp.220-244.
Celine, A.R.C.A., 2012. Social Media Marketing benefits for businesses. Master of International Marketing
Gronum, S., Verreynne, M.L. and Kastelle, T., 2012. The role of networks in small and medium?sized enterprise innovation and firm performance. Journal of Small Business Management, 50(2), pp.257-282.
Hensel, K. and Deis, M.H., 2010. Using social media to increase advertising and improve marketing. The Entrepreneurial Executive, 15, p.87.
Johnston, M. P., 2014, “Secondary Data Analysis: A Method of which the Time Has Come”, Qualitative and Quantitative Methods in Libraries (QQML), 3:619 –626.
Kadushin, C., 2012. Understanding social networks: Theories, concepts, and findings. OUP USA
Kash, W., 2013. Why Social Media Networks Are Gaining A Greater Role In IT Decisions. . Accessed on: 24 January 2018. Available at: https://breakinggov.com/2013/01/08/social-media-networks-gain-greater-role-in-it-decisions/
Kielmann, K., Cataldo, F. & Seeley, J., 2012, “Introduction to Qualitative Research Methodology: A Training Manual”, DFID. Accessed on: 24 January 2018. Available at: https://www.rbfhealth.org/sites/rbf/files/Introduction%20to%20Qualitative%20Research%20Methodology%20-%20A%20Training%20Manual.pdf
Lee, K., 2014, “How to Choose the Right Social Network for Your Business”, Buffer Social. Accessed on: 24 January 2018. Available at: https://blog.bufferapp.com/how-to-choose-a-social-network
Leonardi, P.M., Huysman, M. and Steinfield, C., 2013. Enterprise social media: Definition, history, and prospects for the study of social technologies in organizations. Journal of Computer?Mediated Communication, 19(1), pp.1-19.
Leonardi, P.M., Huysman, M. and Steinfield, C., 2013. Enterprise social media: Definition, history, and prospects for the study of social technologies in organizations. Journal of Computer?Mediated Communication, 19(1), pp.1-19.
Nishad, P.M. &Sankar, S., 2016, “Efficient random sampling statistical method to improve big data compression ratio and pattern matching techniques for compressed data”, International Journal of Computer Science and Information Security, vol. 14, no. 6, pp. 179.
Park, N., Kee, K.F. and Valenzuela, S., 2009. Being immersed in social networking environment: Facebook groups, uses and gratifications, and social outcomes. CyberPsychology & Behavior, 12(6), pp.729-733.
Parveen, F., 2012, July. Impact Of Social Media Usage On Organizations. In PACIS (p. 192).
Thomas, J. A., 2015, “Using unstructured diaries for primary data collection”, Nurse researcher, vol. 22, no. 5, pp. 25.
Vásquez, G.A.N. and Escamilla, E.M., 2014. Best practice in the use of social networks marketing strategy as in SMEs. Procedia-Social and Behavioral Sciences, 148, pp.533-542.
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