Social Media: making mobile phones indispensable

Do you use your mobile phone often to access the social media sites like Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram, YouTube, etc?For most of people the answer is a resounding yes! While many of us still spend a lot of time on our laptops and desktops, we are hooked on to our mobile devices. Besides the basic function of calling, the reasons for frequent usage of mobile phones vary : online shopping, accessing information on the internet, checking emails, analyzing a company’s information, social networking, reviewing products, ordering food, paying bills, banking services, catching up with latest news, viewing pictures/videos, listening to music/songs, etc. In today’s fast paced world, nothing compares to having a device in your hand which multi-tasks, saves precious time and takes care of your worries.

We are deriving the maximum benefit of social media channels via our Smartphones and other mobile devices. Most of the social networking sites are available as Mobile Apps, which can be easily downloaded on the Smartphones for instant use. This is preferred by the users because loading a website can be a cumbersome process whereas apps are optimized for mobiles and once an app is downloaded, social media sites are just a click away. In fact, social media has played a big role in making mobiles indispensable and gain a dominant position in the market.

A rapid rise in the use of mobile devices to access social media sites is helping to drive the growth of m-commerce sector in India. Customers access websites on their mobile devices and Smartphones while they are on the move. They are constantly connected with the retailers and organizations through social media channels. Users are very much active and information about a particular brand, product or company is shared within fraction of seconds on social media. The online retailers and marketers are left with no choice but to create mobile savvy sites and also engage on social media apps to target the increasing population of mobile users.

Social media is used as a marketing tool by many companies today. Mobile E-commerce companies have developed strategies that encourage their customers to spread the word about a product or service through feedback and reviews on their individual social networks.  The increasing significance of Mobile devices is definitely making its way into the big conversations in marketing meetings.  Social media is poised at the forefront of a good marketing campaign and the mobile sites effectively make use of social media to reach their target audience and leverage their marketing efforts for e.g. m-commerce sites can push notifications about a flash sale, new offers, discounts or new features at an online store. A prudent business owner should blend the benefit of social media and mobile ready sites /apps to climb the success ladder.

Smartphones and tablets offer the ease of accessing a website, anywhere & anytime. Mobile sites are well optimized for ease of navigation and one can see detailed product images & scroll through the variety of site filters and options easily. Social media raises the awareness about various m-commerce sites and their offerings. The online medium helps the mobile commerce websites and applications to attract the users’ attention and persuade them to purchase a product or avail the service.

Social Media Apps continue to be the best way to take advantage of the most exciting features of a customer’s mobile device. The ability to not only direct shoppers toward a new product or an attractive deal, but to engage with them and create a sense of community, is incredibly useful. Customers trust the suggestions and reviews made by their friends and family on social media channels far more than the advertisements that they see. Thus, social media is the major marketing channel for the e-commerce sector.

The proper use of social media can increase the visibility of your mobile site and, at the same time, enhance customer involvement to a great extent; making social media is a powerful tool in the hands of the business owners. It is not easy to measure or validate the exact returns by using social media networks but certainly it leads to more customer engagement and brand visibility. The interactions at social media sites on mobile devices helps to retain customers, take their reviews and give honest feedback.

Since social media mobile apps are an effective medium to reach out to customers, social media has helped in the growth of mobile phones. Go where your customers are. It’s a marketing maxim, and it’s never been easier to accomplish than today with the help of social media tools available for use 24x7 on your mobile devices.

Conclusion

Social media is the driving force for the mobile commerce sector in general and mobile devices in particular. Social Media is widely used via Smartphones and mobile devices and it has revolutionized the way we access information, interact, discuss and network. The growth of social media is in tandem with the rising numbers of mobile devices and vice-versa. Social media has not only helped in creating awareness about mobile commerce, but has also helped it to grow and rise. At the same time, the new, powerful Smartphones have led to increase in use of social media sites.