In 2012, 92% of internet users between the ages of 18-29 visited social networking sites. Compare that figure to 73% for internet users between the ages of 30-49 and 57% for internet users between the ages of 50-64, and it’s clear that the big drop off in social media usage that used to exist as age increases no longer exists. Even 38% of internet users over the age of 64 use social networking sites.
Naturally, brands want to connect with those consumers through social media, and 2012 was filled with more social media marketing initiatives than ever. Some of those initiatives performed very well and brought the brands that launched them positive buzz and sales. On the flip side, many brands experienced huge failures in social media marketing during 2012.
Marketers can learn a lot from both the social media marketing successes and failures of 2012 to improve their own campaigns in 2013. The infographic below highlights some of the biggest social media marketing wins and failures from the past year that can help you with your brand marketing creative thinking and help you identify measures to ensure things don’t go terribly wrong.
Some of the positive social media marketing stories include:
- Nike: A campaign tied to the London Olympics honored everyday athletes with both offline and online components. Positive feedback was higher for Nike than it was for the official sponsor of the Olympic Games, Adidas. The social media aspect of the campaign targeted Facebook and Twitter and delivered over 16,000 tweets and a 77% increase in Facebook Page interaction during the Olympic Games.
- Honda: A campaign to promote its new CRV model offered $500 to the most active pinners on Pinterest to take a 24-hour break from the site, which they branded as a Pintermission. Winners created pinboards about everything they did during their day away from Pinterest. As a result, Honda reached in excess of 5.5 million followers of those very active pinners.
- Sephora: The “15 Days of Beauty” campaign on Facebook also included a mobile element. Both iPads and iPod touches were placed in brick-and-mortar Sephora stores in an effort to drive mobile traffic. As a result, there were over 2 million downloads of the Sephora mobile app.
You can see the complete infographic below, which includes additional social media marketing wins and several failures.
Image compliments of MBA in Marketing Degree Guide
Image: Justin Tung
Susan Gunelius is the author of 10 marketing, social media, branding, copywriting, and technology books, and she is President & CEO of KeySplash Creative, Inc., a marketing communications company. She also owns Women on Business, an award-wining blog for business women. She is a featured columnist for Entrepreneur.com and Forbes.com, and her marketing-related articles have appeared on websites such as MSNBC.com, BusinessWeek.com, TodayShow.com, and more.
She has over 20 years of experience in the marketing field having spent the first decade of her career directing marketing programs for some of the largest companies in the world, including divisions of AT&T and HSBC. Today, her clients include large and small companies around the world and household brands like Citigroup, Cox Communications, Intuit, and more. Susan is frequently interviewed about marketing and branding by television, radio, print, and online media organizations, and she speaks about these topics at events around the world. You can connect with her on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, or Google+.
