Advertising with Facebook & Twitter

Facebook

As of September 2011, there were over 800 MILLION users on Facebook! That is a HUGE number of people that are exposed to advertising on one site.When a Facebook user “likes” a big brand, they are actually recommending the brand and or products to their friends.—The world’s largest companies use every tactic in the book to get people to click the “like” button on their page. Retailers, like Kohl’s and Burberry, offer special deals or free products. Restaurants, such as McDonald’s and Subway, run contests on their Facebook pages. Many companies have turned their wall feed into a kind of direct support line for customer complaints. 

 According to an article published in the Huffington Post on October  10th, 2011, 24/7 Wall St. used the All Facebook statistics site to identify the companies with the largest Facebook pages. (<http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/10/10/companies-with-the-most-facebook-fans_n_1003584.html?ncid=edlinkusaolp00000003>)
 

#10: Kohl's

#9: H&M

#8: Subway

#7: Burberry

#6: Walmart

#5: McDonald's

#4: RedBull

#3: Starbucks

#2: Disney

#1: Coca-cola

Twitter

Twitter is an online social networking and "microblogging" service that enables its users to send and read text-based posts of up to 140 characters, informally known as "tweets". Twitter was created in March 2006. As of 2011, Twitter has over 200 million users, worldwide. Twitter can be used in others ways than just writing absurd facts and thoughts about what you are currently doing or witnessing. Businesses and Brands can use twitter to spread quick advertisement tidbits to millions of audience members. Twitter is great for: Posting links to your business’ website, Announcing upcoming sales, Offering special discounts, Answering questions from consumers/fans, and offering tips about your business or brand. 

According to articles published with Social Media Today and Revolution Magazine, the following list is of brands on Twitter, who are doing well and who are doing badly. (<http://www.brandrepublic.com/news/904325/top-100-mentioned-brands-Twitter/?DCMP=EMC-Digital-Bulletin>)

Brands Doing Well: 
Starbucks, Google, Apple, McDonalds, BBC News, Huffington Post, ComCast, Toyota, Burger King. 

Brands Doing Badly: 
Nike, Apple, Coca-Cola, Adidas, Skittles, Subway, Budweiser/Budlight, Converse, Mountain Dew. 

I found a few things interesting after looking into advertising strategies that brands use with Facebook and Twitter and comparing the two social networking sites. One, it was interesting that some brands had a strong presents on Facebook and is ranked in the top 10 best, and some of those brands were listed as brands who are doing badly on Twitter. Two, some brands are listed as doing well through Facebook and Twitter, which shows to me that those brands are truly invested in the social media movement and are using it to their advantage, and it's working!