President Obama and Social Networking Websites

Last presidential campaign, as you heard a thousand times, was historic in many fronts. In terms of the use of technology was historic too. Internet was used as never before to reach volunteers, communicate with voters, launch political Ads, blogging, etc, etc.

I believe that the use of internet in this campaign will be compared in the future with the historic first TV debate between JFK and Nixon. In that debate, Nixon was recovering from illness and, wearing little makeup, looked wan and uncomfortable, in contrast to the composed Kennedy. Nixon’s performance in the debate was perceived to be mediocre in the visual medium of television. The polls changed after the debate launching Kennedy to the presidency. It would unfair to say that JFK won because he looks good on camera but in the same way it will be silly not to give him credit for understanding how a TV debate could benefit his candidacy and give him an edge over Nixon. In a similar way the same can be said about Obama and how he used internet to organize volunteers, raise funds, and communicate with voters to gain an edge in the campaign.

Cool Mojito – Social Media Marketing. More Likes, More Leads, More Sales

rSitez – Create your own Social Networking Website

The main factor to use internet so powerfully has been the growing possibilities of social networking technologies and their massive reception. The use of new social networking software gave so great results to President Obama and his advisers that they are going to continue to use them from the oval office.

Every morning, Obama will receive a briefing from the ideas and opinions submitted by the american people through the websites Change.Force.com  and Whitehouse.gov

We don’t know what the impact of this could be but it is definitely encouraging. Online communities and social networking tools encourage two-ways communication and these sites could become a place to have these conversations with the administration. It is clear that a lot of progress need to be made to assure that the government is listening, that this is not just a propaganda tool, etc…but once again, this is just the beginning. To me is encouraging to see that President Obama will use social networking technology as one more way to stay in touch with the people, especially important in this difficult economic crisis.

  

Social Networking Opportunities in a Recession

Almost a year ago, Josh Bernoff wrote the post “Why Social Applications Will Thrive in a recession”. You can check the original post here. Josh is co-author of the great book Groundswell, a must for anyone interested in social technology.

A year ago, we could argue if a recession was arriving or not, today we know a recession is here to stay.  Therefore, I think is worthy to revisit what Josh said about Social Apps then and what opportunities rSitez and other Social Networking Software providers have to offer in this tough economic times.

In a recession, advertising will plummet and experimental media will crater. (In the 2001 recession, US advertising dropped 9% and Internet advertising plummeted 27%, according to Veronis Suhler Stevenson.)

But do not panic. Things are different this time.

Cool Mojito – Social Media Marketing. More Likes, More Leads, More Sales

rSitez – Create your own Social Networking Website

Here’s what smart marketers should know:

• It’s not a tech bubble. The last recession was caused by the dot-com bubble and the terrorist attacks. There was a lot of ignorant money out there chasing illusory opportunity, and companies had overinvested in technology. This time, the precipitating event is a housing bubble, and technology spending is not irrational.

• Awareness ads will lose effectiveness. Advertising (or as we often call it, “shouting”) is mostly about generating awareness and reinforcing brands. In a recession, ordinary consumers like you and me aren’t as willing to spend. Sure, we’ll be aware of the product, but that doesn’t make so much difference when you’re worried about your future. Advertising is expensive and is a lot easier to cut than headcount. Many are predicting ad spending will hold up; I’m not so sure.

• But social applications are about consideration, not awareness. Blogs, word of mouth, social networks . . . they’re about people connecting with other people. You may resist advertising if your finances are tight, but if your bud tells you that new movie is really worth seeing or that the Gap has the cutest new tops, that’s more persuasive than advertising. Basically, in a recession, the consideration phase is more important than awareness — and that’s where advertising flops and social applications succeed.

• It’s cheap. Social applications can be cheap (think blogs, rsitez.com, facebook pages) and even more sophisticated communities are typically between $30K to $200K — a lot cheaper than a significant sized ad campaign. One interactive marketer from a highly cyclical company told us this:

“Budgets are tight in light of the economic conditions as you surmise, but [the budget for social applications] has not been impacted. We are still keen to move forward with our trial and have support….at this point anyway.  Interactive in general has been more protected than other comms areas and saw an increase.”

• It’s measurable. Marketers want to spend their budgets in effective channels. If you can generates leads, or conversions, or buzz, or something useful and your Social application offer measurable output. That won’t get cut in a recession.

These same arguments apply to some other forms of online marketing, including search ads and email marketing. As a conclusion, if you are smart and you are looking for opportunities to make money online, social networking applications are going to be good investments in a recession.

rSitez provides you with the technology to create your own Social Networking Site so you can focus in your audience. Find a good niche or audience, position yourself now, proof that your that social networking site is getting results and collect the fruits.  Because as the ad dollars get tight marketers will be looking for you.

Looking back…History of Internet

As my last post what’s about the future of technology, I thought that looking back is also appropriate. I found in  Jeremiah’s blog this really informative video about the past of technology. It explains how internet was born and what system across the globe where involved in its origins.

 

Cool Mojito – Social Media Marketing. More Likes, More Leads, More Sales

rSitez – Create your own Social Networking Website

 

Enjoy