Social Media Marketing

Hassan Farhat - CSULA Marketing Management Major - Blog Spot About Social Media Marketing

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A Change in Snapchat Can Be a Success!

Snapchat is usually known for its filters and posts that disappear within a day. With these features, it pushes users to post more content and spend more time on their platform. Usually, social media platforms need to keep launching new features that will keep users coming for more. Social media giants like Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Tumblr, and of course Snapchat compete with one another to gain more users on their platforms. They strive to have users spend as much time as they can on their platforms. This will help these companies gain information to see what users might like.

Snapchat has been staying within its range when it comes to new ideas. All I have noticed that Snapchat does is coming out with new filters. These new filters will soon get old where users might move on to another platform. There is plenty of ways that Snapchat can step up its game in terms of coming out with new features.

Now don’t get me wrong! Snapchat is successful and it continues to grow in gaining more users and recognition. Ways that Snapchat can be a stronger competitor is infinite! Snapchat can come out with allowing users to have followers and not just friends. This feature will allow users to follow anyone they want. Snapchat’s restriction to having users follow people they only know (by username or phone number) can prevent some possibilities for Snapchat. If Snapchat opens up an explore page, this will increase web traffic for the platform. This explore page will also make things a lot more interesting for Snapchat and it will generate more users for the platform.

Another feature that Snapchat should look into is to have their app integrated in the smartphone. Facebook and Twitter are integrated in most phones where people can share photos through their albums without launching the app. This saves time and increases convenience for users. If Snapchat was integrated in smartphones, this will increase more posts, content, and activity for the platform.

Overall, there is more potential features that Snapchat can come up with. We shouldn’t be surprised with what is next for Snapchat. Snapchat’s potential in change will more than likely lead to being a success for the platform.

Article: Snapchat

Photo Link: Snapchat’s Success

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TIDAL Brings in More Juice with Beyoncé’s Lemonade!!!

In April, Beyoncé’s Lemonade album dropped on TIDAL. The album has increased brand awareness and facilitated many purchases for the streaming service. TIDAL is ran by Aspiro followed by Jay Z. Beyoncé’s album Lemonade has opened the markets not only to the “bey hive” but for other listeners as well. With all the attention this streaming service has been receiving because of Lemonade, other listeners began subscribing to the service.

TIDAL also used Beyoncé’s new album to promote their brand by making it exclusively available to their streaming service. This tactic gave the TIDAL a competitive advantage to stream new content that has not yet premiered. TIDAL highly depended on social media to help all users see that there is exclusive music that is being streamed on their platform.

All of the shares, likes, and reposts on social media with Lemonade has attracted more users to subscribe to their streaming service. TIDAL having all these subscribers is not only because of Beyoncé’s album. It is because they can expect more exclusive content that is not out yet in the market. The greatest tactic was to use the one and only Beyoncé to attract so much juice that we call attention.  

It is crazy how Beyoncé’s album has generated so much popularity and sales for the streaming service. Beyoncé and TIDAL is now everywhere on social media with this album. Beyoncé is having fans wanting more of that Lemonade and TIDAL. With the increase in desire for Beyoncé’s album and the increase in popularity for TIDAL. We can see that TIDAL will be having more exclusive content that no other streaming service will have until later.

I have friends who literally began subscribing just because her album was only available on their platform. The exclusive content like Lemonade is generating more subscribers because they can expect more music from other musicians before its premiere date. TIDAL continues to increase in terms of brand recognition and subscribers. All this juice that TIDAL is generating from Beyoncé’s album has opened the doors to many possibilities for the streaming service.

Article: TIDAL Increasing Subscribers Base

Photo Link: Beyoncé

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Breaking News! Instagram’s Absurd Logo Goes Viral!!! -_-

This past week, Instagram has unveiled the new logo for their application on mobile devices. As this new logo was launched, users were not fond of its new design. Users are actually DEMANDING to have them go back to their old physical camera logo. This demand in going back to their old design has went viral and it has spread among all users on social media.

Instagram has not only updated their logo but they have also updated their interface for all mobile devices. The interface is a simple flat black and white theme that makes any content that has color stand out. The black and theme makes all photos and videos stand out without any other distracting colors on the interface. The interface looks pretty nice and simple to use. But most users did not really recognize the features that came along with it. All the users want is for Instagram to change back their logo!

It’s crazy how we entered a generation where a logo has been the most talked about “tragedy” that we are experiencing! Even celebrities are talking about this stupid logo! People are complaining as if we have no problems in the world!

Wake up ya’ll!!! There are more important things to demand! We can demand more sustainable products, peace, and plenty of other things that are way more important than the logo of Instagram. What does it take to demand things that can benefit humanity and the world? I cannot believe how many users are making this logo a big deal. Who gives a crap about a stupid logo!!! We are dealing with a drought, war, violence, and global warming; yet we are demanding for a change in a stupid logo! A change in logo will not stop the violence, war, global warming, and drought that we have today!

Is this how humanity will be like in the future. Will we soon sacrifice the things around us for something absurd like a logo??? People need to understand it is just a logo! Whether the logo is absurd or not we shouldn’t waste our time and energy in arguing about it.

You know what is ABSURD??? Making a logo more important than the problems we are dealing with around the world!!!

Photo Link: Instagram’s New Logo

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Not Only Does Facebook Want MORE! They Are Offering MORE!

As I mentioned in my previous blog, Facebook has recently been wanting users to dedicate MORE time on their social platform. One of the ways that Facebook has been luring more users is by offering more services and/or features. Recently, Facebook has announced that they will be launching a morning talk show where users can spend more time on their platform. The morning talk show will be like any other talk show but it will be more accessible and its on a social media platform!

The idea of Facebook launching a morning talk show is a tactic that will bring in more users and generate more time spent from current users. Will this launch of a morning talk show bring more users? Will it attract more people to join Facebook?

We don’t know if this launch will be a success but we can say that the expectations are pretty high. Launching a morning talk show expands the market for Facebook and this will generate more time being spent on their platform. The more users spend time; the more data Facebook is able to gather. If Facebook has more data generated from users, they have more opportunities in offering features that users will find intriguing.

We can understand why Facebook is launching a morning talk show. Facebook has ENOUGH information to proceed in offering a talk show. Not only this will bring more users, but this can affect televised talk shows. Facebook has a competitive advantage in launching a morning talk show because their social media platform is accessible to everyone and everywhere. Most consumers have a Facebook account and this makes the morning talk show more accessible than a regular televised talk show app.

This launch will give more of what Facebook wants and desires. Which is MORE! Facebook has been coming out with innovative ways like the morning talk shows to have users spend more time on their social platform. Tactics like these can keep users coming for more and it will keep Facebook wanting MORE!

Isn’t it the best of both worlds for both users and Facebook?

Article: Facebook Coming Out with A Talk Show

Photo Link: MORE! MORE! MORE!

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MORE is What Facebook Wants!!!

It has been reported that Facebook’s net income has tripled over the year. Usually this satisfies any company and this will motivate them to come out with ways to make more profit.

Not only has their first quarter results made them happy with what they made but it has also made them more competitive and ambitious. According to New York Times, Facebook has found out that the average user spends about fifty minutes on either Instagram, Facebook, and other platforms. What Facebook wants is more! More what??

They want users to spend MORE time on their social media platform. Although they tripled their net income, fifty minutes is not enough for Facebook. They want users to spend more time on their platform. This will not only generate more activity but also more information from the user. This will bring in more data for Facebook to come out with ideas to update their platforms with new features and offers.

Reading this article reminded me of my previous blog post about more teens being addicted to their phones. It’s like Facebook wants that. Facebook want users to spend as much time as they can to use their platform. Facebook technically want users to exclude themselves from actual activities and experiences.

It has also been reported that the majority of active users are teens. Facebook actually wants teens and the other users to stop what they are doing in the real world and stay on Facebook. Of course, like any other company they want to generate more brand awareness and make more money. But, is that the only way to making money? Does it take users’ lifestyles to make more money?  As I mentioned in my previous blog post, you see everyone on their phones. No one is really spending quality time with family and no one is giving their undivided attention to a physical being.

Just by reading this article, that’s what Facebook wants. Facebook wants users to sacrifice most of their time to be on their platform. By the looks of it, that is what’s happening. Facebook is generating more data, money, and ideas because of more time being spent on their platform. We shouldn’t be surprised if other platforms want the same vision that Facebook has. Right?

Article: Facebook

Photo Link: Facebook

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Teens & Smartphones is a Call for Disaster!!!

Today, we see a lot of teens dedicate more of their time on their phones. What is it that keeps them so locked into that screen? What is it that makes them dedicate so many hours on their phones? Is it because it’s just a smartphone? A smartphone does come in handy because it is capable of doing a lot more than just a regular phone. A smartphone has a camera, navigation, and the internet!

Technology has grown so much over the decade and we can say that smartphones are now like a personal assistant wherever we go. Smartphones allow us to retrieve information, plan events, locate areas, remind ourselves, and more. The real question is that do most teens use smartphones for these features? We can all agree that about 50% of teens are addicted to their smartphones because of social media and text messaging.

Wherever I go I see younger teens on Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, and Twitter. If we were to capture data on where most of their battery goes, it will mainly be dedicating its energy to social media and texting. If a smartphone only had texting and calling, people would focus more on what is around them, then just on their phones.

It is quite scary to see people walking with their head down looking at their smartphone. It’s also sad to see more teens becoming addicted to their phones. Yeah, its fine to take pictures, go on social media, and text here and there. But is it fine for teens to exclude themselves from the actual world and dedicate most of their time on their smartphones? Teens are so young where they have a lot of energy and opportunities to experience something new. Teens are not going to have memorable experiences just by staying on their smartphones.

It is a disappointment to see younger teens catching similar habits of spending too much time on smartphones. When I pass by neighborhoods, there is not much teens (as there was when I was younger) playing out on the streets. Most are on the curb or in their homes looking at their smartphones. Isn’t it scary as to how most neighborhoods are now empty because of smartphones? Isn’t it a call for disaster for the next generation if more teens are becoming addicted to their smartphones?

Photo Link: Smartphones

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Bow Down to Snapchat Ya’ll

 This month we found out that Snapchat is now the most popular social media platform for teens. It has been reported that Snapchat is in the lead by just one percent followed by Instagram. Just reading this article makes me wonder how history tends to repeat itself.

We all remember Myspace being the most popular social media platform for teens. Teens would constantly be on their Myspace updating their own page and connecting with other users. As time passed, Facebook came along and led the path as being the most user friendly social media platform that there is. We now see Facebook slowly maturing with Instagram and Snapchat on the rise. After two years of Instagram being praised to be one of the best that there is, Snapchat is now considered to be the leading platform for teens.

This all makes me wonder how we went from posting blogs and updating our webpage on Myspace, to updating our timeline on Facebook, to using images that preach our message on Instagram, and to now using snaps of our “stories” that we call Snapchat.

This also makes me think about what will be next for social media. I was just thinking of live videos but that is something similar to what Snapchat does. It’s hard for us to think of something that people are going to love because it hasn’t happened yet. What can be next for social media? What can we expect from social media? Just looking to the past, will it be something similar to Instagram, Facebook, and Myspace?

What is it out there that people will love? The only thing we can say is that there are many things out there that we don’t know about and there are many things we will find interesting. Reading this article will help us understand that Snapchat will soon be surpassed by some other social media platform. The potential for social media is infinite and we shouldn’t be surprised on what’s going to come next.

As of now teens are loving Snapchat and it is the one hit wonder that we are bowing down to. Soon we will see some other platform that we will praise and utilize in the future.                  

Article: Snapchat Continues to Rise

Photo Link: Social Media

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Speed Filter or Death Filter

Some people already use their phones as they are driving. We see them every day with one hand on the steering wheel and the other hand on this device that we call a cell phone. Snapchat has this ‘speed filter’ that shows how many miles they are going when driving their vehicle. Snapchat’s ‘speed filter’ influences more people to use their phones while driving. This filter also requires the majority of your attention which is not a good thing when operating a vehicle.  The reason users practice this filter is because of the achievements or points they earn. Snapchat rewards users when they use any of their filters especially their speed tracker.

Today, I came across an article that showed a severe car accident that occurred in Georgia. After reading the article, this accident happened because one irresponsible driver wanted to go fast while using the speed filter on Snapchat. This article has left me disappointed because today we see more people making bad decisions. It is disappointing to see or hear people putting worthless points first than other’s lives.

They must have that train of thought that no such thing would happen to them. It might not happen to them because they might be the cause of the damage! People need to look into this and reconsider their priorities because one snap, one tweet, and/or one post can change someone’s life drastically. They know who they are and they know what they are doing is wrong. How many accidents do we need to understand the significance of not using phones while driving?

Personally, it scares me when I see people driving and using their phones. What comes in their minds to do that! What is more important!! What’s so urgent to see a text, a post, or a stupid snap!!! If a call or text is important then pull to the side and view your phone as your vehicle is on park. IT’S THAT SIMPLE EVERYONE!

Tip of advice to those who believe they can operate a vehicle and use their mobile devices. DON’T USE YOUR MOBILE DEVICES!!! Stop thinking about the stupid posts, texts, or calls that come in. Be considerate and think of others first.

Article: Snapchat 'Speed Filter' Led to Georgia Car Crash, Lawsuit Alleges

Photo Link: Snapchat

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“I’M GOIN’ OFF THE RAILS ON A CRAZY TRAIN!!!”

In this generation technology is moving really fast. We see new phones, laptops, and tablets every year. As before, it used to be new phones and laptops (no tablets at the time) every two years or so (maybe even more).

Today, the youth are keeping up with technology by constantly being involved with all the new features and trends. The majority understand how technology works and to us it is easy. As for the elders, they used to deal with technology that were bulky, big, and heavy. Something we find inconvenient today. In their time, this was innovative and everyone wanted to have it. For instance, when the Commodore 64 came out in the 80’s, everyone wanted to have this product. It was the hottest thing out there. Today, we will see this product as something to not waste our time on. The evolution of technology has grown so quickly where digital immigrants have seen vast change. One drastic change to digital immigrants is the realization of how there is another virtual world that we call social media. They find it surprising as to how we can still connect with people virtually instead of face to face.

Digital immigrants see an enormous change in technology and they will continue to see more of it. Some jumped on board and joined the rest in being part of the train. Others continue to blind themselves from all this mumbo jumbo that we call technology. Along with technology growing, we can also see things like social media developing. Maybe in the near future, social media will be an actual virtual world that we can access to connect with others “in person”.  

As long as we remain on this crazy train we call technology, we shouldn’t be surprised if this does happen,

Photo Link: Crazy Train

Quote Credit (for Title): Ozzy Osbourne

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Killing the Homepage One Snap at a Time!

Today, new companies are not depending on selling their product off an ordinary website. Today we find that too traditional! To attract more consumers, companies are moving toward the social media. Instagram, Snapchat, Facebook, and other social media platforms are good tools to market a company. The great thing about marketing on a social media platform is that there is not much risk or cost involved.

The market on social media is vast. Companies can generate a lot of sales and popularity just from a simple post. Companies do not only look at social media as a marketing tool but also as a publishing platform. The homepage platforms are slowly dying and soon we might not see them anymore. Some companies are trying too hard to keep their homepage interesting. We can say that no one would want to go to a company website and see their news feed. People would rather just follow them on social media.

Personally, I have never followed a company’s news feed through their homepage. With Instagram, Snapchat, Twitter, and Facebook I would follow their account to stay up to date with their timeline. I am pretty sure most people do the same and companies should be aware of that. Companies need to put more focus on marketing and publishing their content on social media.

Using the social media as a marketing tool can help increase brand awareness for the company. Brand awareness can capture more attention and popularity. Using social media as a publishing platform can help increase brand loyalty for the company. An increase in brand loyalty will only benefit the company in many ways. Now, can a homepage do that? Yes, they can do that but the real question is who will visit a homepage?

Photo Link: Social Media Icons

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EXTRA, EXTRA, READ ALL ABOUT IT???

When I’m scrolling down the news tab, I usually just keep scrolling down until maybe I just get bored. There are moments where I find posts and articles that seem interesting. What makes them interesting before reading? Their headlines! Headlines that are catchy, creative, exciting, and attention getting is what stops me and makes me look into that post for more information.

Headlines are important to catch the audience’s attention. This is what attracts them to your work and possibly have them coming back for more. Headlines is what interests me and pushes me to read more. Some titles are exaggerated where the title seems more interesting than the article itself! Honestly, when that happens to me, it makes me not want to come back to that author’s work.

Headlines should catch people’s attention but should also be supported with a good post. To me, a good post is something that is creative, mysterious, and clever in its own words. Now others might have different views on what a good post might be but that is just my preference. Interesting headlines are very important because it brings more readers and popularity. As a reader, it is essential to have an effective and creative title. This will attract consumers wanting to know more information from your post.

The more effective the title will be; the more attention you will attract. When I see a basic headline, I just continue to scroll down until I find something bold and exciting. Basic headlines do not push me nor does it interest me to know more about it. I’m pretty sure most people nowadays will not waste their time in reading posts that does not have a catchy title. Catchy titles are more intriguing to read about than just a boring basic title.

Note to self… What matters the most about a successful post/article is a great headline!

Photo Link: Extra Extra

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#PissOffAdvertisements!!!

Today, advertisements are everywhere. They are found on Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, and now Snapchat. Every time we want to see posts, vlogs, and stories, we also see advertisements.

Advertisements do help companies become more known at what they sell but the majority of the consumers get pissed off when they see advertisements. YouTube is a good example. Every time I see vlogs I have to watch 30 seconds of advertisements and this time it doesn’t let me skip the ad after the five second mark -_-. Personally, advertisements that constantly pop up (especially when it’s the same one over and over) makes me not want to buy their product. It pisses me off to see them when there is too many. I’m pretty sure there are others who agree with me. I have friends who bought the premium version of YouTube just to avoid ads and I won’t be surprised if Instagram, Snapchat, and Facebook use that same strategy.

One advertisement, fine… two ads, ok… three ads, it’s getting annoying. Advertisements remind me of certain users who post like four selfies of themselves in one day. If I have the chance to unfollow these advertisements, I would in a heartbeat. Half of the people now a days are using ad blockers just to enjoy their apps.

If I ever owned a company, I would put more focus on coming out with innovative products that capture consumer’s attention. I would have some advertisements of course but not so much where it gets annoying. Moderate advertisements on social networks will help the company gain consumers but having excessive ads will make the consumer uninterested in purchasing their product. Do us a favor and don’t get too excited with advertising and get more excited in coming out with products that can sell themselves.

Photo Link: Stop Advertising

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Social Media + Marketing = $uce$$

It’s crazy how people are offered big deals just by one post. Justin Bieber is one great example. His first post of him singing changed his life drastically. Today, he is considered as one of the youngest successful celebrities. Again, it’s crazy how one post can lead to many opportunities in the future. Posting videos of oneself and their talents is known as self-marketing. Utilizing the social media as a marketing tool is a great way for someone to gain opportunities. Instagram and YouTube are the top two social networks where more opportunities are offered.

Social media is an innovative tool that opens up the door for everyone. We need to understand that it will only get bigger and better. We can see that social media will only bring more attention to companies and this will shed more light on potential candidates that fit their company criteria.

I love how the social media works because it brings hope to any person out there. Yeah, people do use social media to connect with others but the possibilities are infinite. Anyone can become successful in just utilizing these tools. People need to understand that they have the potential in becoming successful just by simply posting information about themselves.

A good friend of mine posts selfies here and there, until one day she was offered to model for an agency. She accepted the offer and now she models for clothing lines, eye-wear, etc. That one post allowed her to enter a whole other field that she never seen herself in. This helped me understand how vital social media can be. As I mentioned, one post can change someone’s life drastically it all just matters on how we market ourselves.

Photo Link: Instagram

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#OscarsSoWhite

Users were raving about recent nominations for the 2016 Academy Awards (even though it past already people continue to talk about it). Users claim that the Academy is not as diverse as it should be. Not only users have raved about it but actors, musicians and other celebrities were in on it as well. An organization or company being the most talked about on social media can lead to a backlash on the organization or bring in more consumers/viewers. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences were negatively affected because users were raving about the lack of diversity the Academy had. The social media’s #OscarsSoWhite resulted in the Academy’s lowest rating in history since 2008. According to CNN, the 2016 Academy Awards “brought the third-lowest viewership in the show’s history”

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences does need to diversify its organization. We should not only rave about the Academy and its lack of diversity. The members of the Academy vote for films that are currently in theaters. There is a higher likelihood of most nominees being white given that most characters are played by white actors/actresses. We should rave about the film industry being so white. We can complain about the Academy lacking diversity but we need to remember that the casting directors, producers, and writers play a big role on who should be on the big screen. If they were to hire more colored actors and actresses, this would give the Academy the opportunity to nominate more colored actors. Like I mentioned, the Academy does need to diversify its organization but the focus should not only be on them, we also need to focus on other variables like the casting directors, producers, and writers. Diversifying the Academy should not be our main focus. Our main focus should be on diversifying the whole film industry.

 #FilmIndustrySoWhite

Link: Oscars Brings in Third-Lowest Viewership in History

Photo Link: Telegraph

-Hassan Farhat

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#AprilFoolsWentWrong!

April fools is usually taken as a humorous prank where people laugh and enjoy the moment. Today, Instagram’s prank wasn’t taken with humor. Instagram’s prank was to go unresponsive this morning on both their website and mobile app. According to Mashable’s article “Instagram was Down for a While, and Everyone Thought it was the Worst April Fools' Prank Ever”, Stan Schroeder expresses how people would constantly see a “5xx Server Error” on their website and “Couldn’t Load News” message on their mobile app. Users did not find this amusing and immediately went to other networks like Facebook, Snapchat, and Twitter complaining about the prank. Some also made fun of Instagram’s prank by posting it on other social networks.

It’s funny how people get upset over an unresponsive network and there are more important things to worry about. It’s understandable for someone to get upset on a prank that results to losing something important. For instance, a car, a precious gift, and maybe even someone they love. These are good reasons for one to find a prank not funny. Instagram’s prank was not something to laugh about but it was also something to not get annoyed of. Maybe Instagram going unresponsive for the morning is something good for the users. It could have helped the users enjoy things like quality time with family and friends. Maybe we can view this not as a prank that went wrong but as a prank that serves as a reminder on what is important.

#AprilFoolsReminder

Link: Instagram was Down for a While, and Everyone Thought it was the Worst April Fools' Prank Ever

-Hassan Farhat