The term “social media” has caught the online market , news media and other various networks by storm over the past several years . What exactly is it? Social media began as a way for people to connect with their friends, family and other people on the Internet in one central area . Websites such as Facebook, MySpace and Twitter give people the opportunity to share info, photos, news and other things with the people that they know and meet online . After only a short period of time, businesses realized that they could use social media as well to advertise products, services, websites or other relevant information . Now days, you can find just about any large company , small business, news outlet and other media companies using social media and social networking to market their company, products or services. One of these such companies is General Mills and how they use it really goes to show how important it can be.
Recently, General Mills rolled out a line of cookie, brownie and cake mixes that are gluten free . Food products that are gluten free are said to be healthier because some people have food allergies or sensitivities to products that contain gluten . Gluten is derived from different grains and some people cannot tolerate them. Since General Mills had this product that they wanted to market to people who were looking for gluten free cookie, cake and brownie mixes, they were looking for a way to get the word out fast . In order to spread the work quickly and effectively, they turned to social networking .
One of the ways that General Mills has marketed to people is by sending out samples of their gluten free products to popular bloggers in the online community . In turn, the bloggers compose reviews or make posts about the products on their websites and that generates sales leads for General Mills. Here are several different reasons why this method of advertising is smart and effective:
- The Internet is present in just about every area of the world, which makes it very simple to connect to . By marketing online, companies are reaching more people than ever before .
- Using social networking websites can easily produce a fan base and following, especially for companies like General Mills that have been in business for several years and already have a well established brand
- Having a Facebook, Myspace or Twitter page is completely free. Even if free samples are provided to bloggers, it is very cheap compared to expensive television, radio and billboard ads.
- It reaches more markets than traditional advertising.
Gluten free products are more expensive than the products that contain the grain combination, but for people who cannot tolerate it, it is money that they seem willing to pay. Social media is a market niche that seems to continuously flourishing and it is not letting up.