Heather Quinto's Blog
January 8, 2023
The Power of Digital and Social Media in Brazil: A Case Study on Orkut
In continuation to the last blog post, I wanted to discuss another popular social networking site called Orkut, and how it was able to gain such popularity in Brazil.
Orkut Case Study can be found by clicking hereIt was initially launched in 2004 and named after its creator, Orkut Büyükkökten, who was a Google employee. Google-owned and operated the social networking site, and with a powerful company like that backing up Orkut, it’s no wonder it gained popularity rather quickly. However, most of its notoriety was found in the Brazilian market where 90% of its page views were accessed by users in the country.
The original purpose of Orkut was to be a place where users could find online communities through a keyword search. Within just four months of its debut, the site had over 50,000 communities created, and in a year, that rose to over a million communities. The company was popular with tech workers and students, and the site peaked in 2012 with 30 million users worldwide. The social networking site was “clean, simple, and sophisticated.”
Despite its shutdown in 2014, Orkut left behind a huge impression on the Brazilian market. As a country, Brazil is a strong market for online retailers with the country ranking as the fifth largest online market in the world. The Brazilian culture has a natural affinity towards digital and social media where the number of cell phones outnumbers the total population. In fact, 77% of Brazilian social media users have a positive viewpoint toward online shopping. Four-fifths of Brazilians use social media sites to research products and trust the opinions of other consumers. It should also be noted that outdoor advertising is illegal in the country, so this has led to an enormous growth in online marketing. This is big for other social networking sites and brands to know if they wish to succeed in the country’s market.
Orkut was phased out in 2014 in favor of other social networking sites that had better functionality such as fewer blockages, unlimited friends lists, and fewer difficulties with uploading and sharing photos. This is why it’s important for brands to stay on top of marketing evaluation and consumer feedback.
Learn more about Brazilian culture here![image error]Pexels.com" data-medium-file="https://heatherquintocom.files.wordpr..." data-large-file="https://heatherquintocom.files.wordpr..." src="https://heatherquintocom.files.wordpr..." alt="" class="wp-image-128" width="512" height="342" srcset="https://heatherquintocom.files.wordpr... 1024w, https://heatherquintocom.files.wordpr... 512w, https://heatherquintocom.files.wordpr... 150w, https://heatherquintocom.files.wordpr... 300w, https://heatherquintocom.files.wordpr... 768w" sizes="(max-width: 512px) 100vw, 512px" />How does the Brazilian culture speak to the brand experience of organizations and communities on Orkut? In a culture where brands must engage their fans on various digital platforms, what advice might you lend businesses about their future social media strategy?As mentioned before, Brazil’s culture has a natural affinity towards the digital and social media landscape because the country values community. Brazilian families tend to be tight-knit and there is more emphasis on community rather than individualism, and Orkut provided the perfect site where Brazilians could engage with like-minded individuals in a set community as well as maintain important familial and friendly relationships. In order for a brand to be successful on various digital platforms, it’s important for there to be research on how that country/community interacts with one another. What do the consumers in that country expect out of their experience with interacting with a brand or company? That’s what marketing professionals should be asking themselves. Learn the communication style so nothing gets lost in translation.
December 15, 2022
Weixin App: WhatsApp’s Cousin
In China, there are different social media platforms than the ones used in the US. This is because the country has a strict firewall to the public in order to limit access to western media. For instance, Youku is the country’s version of YouTube while RenRen is seen as the country’s version of Facebook. One such social networking platform is one called Weixin (pronounced “way-shin”), which is similar to WhatsApp in the US or Line in Japan.
Check out the statsWeixin is a popular social networking app that allows users to send messages, share news, and pictures through their mobile phones. It was initially introduced in 2011 in China, and by 2014, Weixin already had more than 300 million active users in China, Southeast Asia, Europe, and America. In that same year, the app was worth $100 billion on the Hong Kong exchange. What makes the app so special is that it has everything users need in one place, so they do not have to leave the app. For instance, not only does it allow you to text and message friends and loved ones, but users can make purchases and even request a taxicab. Weixin set it up this way so that there is no need to use any other app. Everything is built all in one! I’m a nerd for self-efficacy, so anything that encourages that gets me excited. Weixin even claims: “one minute is all you need to open a Weixin shop.”
Weixin introduces new features and campaigns to keep its audience interested. For instance, during the Chinese New Year, Weixin launched the “Qiang Hongbao” campaign (i.e. Red Envelope campaign), where users who linked their bank account could send and/or receive red envelopes virtually. In Chinese culture, the Red Envelope is a tradition that includes a monetary gift that Chinese people give to family and friends during the holidays.
[image error]Pexels.com" data-medium-file="https://heatherquintocom.files.wordpr..." data-large-file="https://heatherquintocom.files.wordpr..." src="https://heatherquintocom.files.wordpr..." alt="" class="wp-image-117" width="512" height="341" srcset="https://heatherquintocom.files.wordpr... 1024w, https://heatherquintocom.files.wordpr... 512w, https://heatherquintocom.files.wordpr... 150w, https://heatherquintocom.files.wordpr... 300w, https://heatherquintocom.files.wordpr... 768w" sizes="(max-width: 512px) 100vw, 512px" />Photo by Ann H on Pexels.comKnowing your audience is the first step towards a successful social media campaign. What can you do as a practitioner to ensure that you know as much as you can about your audiences? How did Weixin achieve this goal?According to a blog post on HubSpot, some things a practitioner can do to ensure they know their audience is by reviewing any current data and analytics, looking at previous successes among their audience (i.e. past successful campaigns), create buyer personas, conduct surveys, keep an eye on competitors, monitor audience feedback and engagement (i.e. comments, shares, etc.), and experiment with content and updates about their products and services.
Weixin accomplished this through successful campaigns such as “Qiang Hongbao,” and knowing from the start that their audience wants a one-and-done type of app that is efficient and includes all the bells and whistles. This way they don’t have to venture outside the app for anything.
Check out the HubSpot blog How do Weixin’s features fit into their audience’s needs, tastes, and interests? Is it possible for audiences with different backgrounds to individualize the social media for their individual lives?Weixin played into the interests and needs of their audience by including features and campaigns that celebrated cultural norms and even offered convenience for rides in robust cities where it can often be difficult to get around in a crowd (i.e. Red Envelope campaign and taxi cab feature). When a social media platform incorporates what is important to consumers (in this case, Chinese New Year and the practice of sending monetary gifts via red envelopes) with a need (a convenient and quick way to celebrate and send/receive red envelopes), the social media network increases its chance of success.
Given the fact that Weixin is essentially an all-in-one app that includes messages, sharing, staying up-to-date on the news, and so on, the app can definitely be individualized by the user. If we were to look at Weixin’s cousin, WhatsApp, which is a success in the US with over 2.2 billion users, it wouldn’t be so hard of a stretch for Weixin to compete.
Info on Weixin Case Study WhatsApp StatsDecember 3, 2022
When Cyberactivism Fails to Mobilize: A Case Study on the Breast Cancer Meme
Cyberactivism is nothing new to the world of social media. People have their causes and charities they like to participate in, and they enjoy sharing their particular cause of charity with others online. Recently, I read a case study on breast cancer awareness month where organizations caused a stir with their social media marketing efforts to spread awareness. One of the popular breast cancer Facebook memes was a private message request sent where women were asked to put the color of the bra they were wearing as their status update. The point behind doing this was to get men who logged onto Facebook to wonder why all the women’s Facebook pictures were changed to a single color.
[image error]Pexels.com" data-medium-file="https://heatherquintocom.files.wordpr..." data-large-file="https://heatherquintocom.files.wordpr..." src="https://heatherquintocom.files.wordpr..." alt="" class="wp-image-88" width="512" height="342" srcset="https://heatherquintocom.files.wordpr... 1024w, https://heatherquintocom.files.wordpr... 512w, https://heatherquintocom.files.wordpr... 150w, https://heatherquintocom.files.wordpr... 300w, https://heatherquintocom.files.wordpr... 768w" sizes="(max-width: 512px) 100vw, 512px" />Photo by Leeloo Thefirst on Pexels.comMost of us have seen these types of cyberactivist activities online, and some of us even participated in them. However, there is a lingering question in the back of one’s mind when seeing these types of online charity causes: Does it even work? Sure, it brings awareness, which is one of the many hurdles for any cause to overcome, but does it lead to real-life action? According to the Centers for Disease Control, these online breast cancer awareness campaigns do very little to spread information about breast cancer. However, these online campaigns are not all in vain with them leading to self-check information and spreading prevention to the general public.
All information for this post can be found by clicking hereIn order to benefit from cyberactivism, an organization must ask itself if they need to focus on spreading awareness or mobilization (or maybe both). So far, from what I learned in my social media marketing course, for any business or organization, there needs to be a specific goal in mind when creating a social media campaign. What is it that the business is trying to achieve? Is it to inform, create engagement, develop relationships, or generate more website traffic? These are just a few things a company can use social media for.
[image error]Pexels.com" data-medium-file="https://heatherquintocom.files.wordpr..." data-large-file="https://heatherquintocom.files.wordpr..." src="https://heatherquintocom.files.wordpr..." alt="" class="wp-image-94" width="470" />Photo by Ann H on Pexels.com“Creating emotional real-life experiences for users is one of the biggest indicators of mobilization success. How do cyberactivism and other prosocial movements have a natural advantage to social media mobilization strategies? How can this be incorporated into a brand authenticity and mission statement?”Let’s look at human behavior for that one. Every person has their own cause that they feel strongly about whether it’s because of a personal experience or identity. Therefore, we naturally are eager to share our cyberactivism efforts with others within our community and even get others to join in. Humans love having themselves associated with something good, especially since we want to do the right thing (at least most of the time).
When a company chooses to engage in prosocial movements, often that is a direct reflection of the company’s mission statement and/or brand. When engaging online, a brand must stay true to its identity no matter if it’s with a humorous post or with a charity cause.
2. “How did the breast cancer social media meme fall short of user mobilization? What changes could be made to make more of a difference to breast cancer causes?”
Though the breast cancer social media meme spread awareness, it didn’t exactly lead to real-life mobilization such as volunteering, donating money, signing a petition, or writing a letter. Though effective in getting the public to participate in the meme, there was no link or call to action for a donation, website link to donate or learn more, or to sign a petition. Next time, perhaps a more effective idea would be to include a direct link to donate so that it’s an easy and quick process for the audience.
November 17, 2022
Social Media Marketing Builds Trust
Without my glasses, I’m as blind as a bat. Faces become obscure and everything is a blob of colors without shape. Some of you know this pain, and some of you even know how expensive it is to get prescription glasses. I’m currently surviving on one pair of glasses that have the prescription gloss eroding away at the corners. Being a grad student (or really any student) can be tough financially, and in my social media course, I read about a group of college students who found a solution to this dilemma that may help some of you.
The GistIn 2010, students at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, Neil Blumenthal, Andrew Hunt, David Gilboa, and Jeffrey Raider, launched a company that would revamp the way prescription eyeglasses were sold to consumers. The company was named Warby Parker. Their business model focused on online distribution and designing glasses in-house to cut out outside manufacturer costs. At first, consumers were hesitant because everyone was so used to going to showrooms to try on glasses. Through effective use of social media, these brilliant students were able to change the narratives and reduce dissonance. Today, Warby Parker has shipped more than 500,000 pairs of glasses.
Learn more about Warby Parker here[image error]Pexels.com" data-medium-file="https://heatherquintocom.files.wordpr..." data-large-file="https://heatherquintocom.files.wordpr..." class="wp-image-75" style="width:150px;" src="https://heatherquintocom.files.wordpr..." alt="">Warby Parker would use social media to communicate daily with potential consumers and ask any questions, concerns, or complaints anyone had. By doing this, the company enabled the ability for consumers to build trust and a personal relationship with the company, which is crucial in today’s marketing world. Relationship building leads to brand loyalty!
Another business strategy the company used was developing the “Home Try-On Campaign” which allowed consumers to have samples of up to 5 glasses shipped to their homes to test out. This option was free of charge, and the consumer only paid for what they would keep. This helped to minimize the reluctance of consumers who were used to going into physical showrooms to try on glasses. Without the help of social media and the digital landscape, Warby Parker may not have become as successful. With traditional media, the company may have had a harder time developing trust with the consumers and getting their narrative out there.
Home Try-On LinkConsumers were encouraged to share their positive experiences with friends online and post pictures of them wearing their cool shades. This allowed new customers to hear about the product through an already trusted source. Word-of-mouth (WOM) is such a powerful marketing tool that today’s online world allows for easily with user-generated content.
Social Media Perks I’ve learned thus farReaching a larger audienceBuilding relationships and trustDirect communication with the consumerBuilds brand loyaltyMonitors consumer feedback (think reviews and comments on posts)Faster business growthCheaper advertisingRead more about perks here!I read about Warby Parker in my textbook for my social marketing class (link is below!). Subscribe if you’re interested in learning along with me!
Textbook Resource
