Friday, 29, Feb 2008 10:41
Companies wishing to advertise through social networking will develop non-invasive techniques designed to enhance the user experience, an expert has asserted.
Rachel Hawkes, co-founder and editor of online resource the Social Media Portal, said that brand promotion through social media is important because the sites are so popular among younger consumers.
Furthermore, the technology available allows social network advertising to be more creative and directed at a highly-specified audience, she continued.
"Consumers are fickle, they don't like to be marketed to and are, in fact, advertising sensitive - unless the message is highly targeted and relevant," Ms Hawkes explained.
She added that this means that in order to be successful, campaigns should "enrich" consumers' social networking experience.
It will become important to encourage click-through without adversely affecting the "current consumer journey", Ms Hawkes concluded.
According to the 2007 Ofcom report into the communications market, social media destinations such as Bebo, MySpace and Facebook are among the top ten websites most visited by Britons.
