BBC Report on Social Media Sales

Are businesses using social media to their advantage?

First it was “E-commerce,” which meant selling things online. In 2011 the buzzword was “F-commerce” – the idea of companies selling things on social media sites like Facebook.

But are businesses really learning to use social media to their advantage? Two recent surveys suggest that companies in the developing world, in countries like Brazil, India and China, are much better at using the likes of Twitter and Facebook than their counterparts in Europe and the US.

Go here to watch the video of Brian Milligan reporting.

Another example of what Campbells’s Soup is doing to cross promote there products.

They have a website all about recipes using their soup. I found this amazing Brussels Sprouts recipe from their Facebook page. The primary focus of this page is to promote “Helping Hunger Disappear” in third world countries. With over 80,000 fans it is a big social marketing success and it is fielding questions and complaints about their soup products.

Here is the “screen shot” that led me to the recipe.

What I find interesting is that their main Facebook page has less than 2000 likes. This is probably because it has no “Social Juice” and uses a “traditional” stance based on old style marketing techniques and corporate positioning. This is a great example of why traditional communication and content does not work for social media and hammers home the point that the BBC reporter was making.