What Difference Does Social Media Make in Creating Brand Image for Businesses?

Various businesses – small or large – use social media to promote their goods/services and keep their customers updated. Using social media for brand image assessment has become an important tool for businesses to interact with customers and gain feedback. Updates on the availability of goods and other queries can be resolved through social media. 

Especially for small businesses, it is where customers refer to for analysing the product quality and often for placing deliveries. Hence, we can say that it is a perfect tool for developing brand loyalty. Another reason for people referring to social media is the easy availability of the internet. 

Did you know that out of all social media platforms, Youtube generates the most engagements, with an engagement rate of 1.7%? 

Online shopping has gained immense popularity, and social media has become a huge platform for companies to showcase their products. But is social media really effective? How useful is social media for brand awareness? Let’s find the answers to such questions together through this blog.

How does brand image affect consumers?

Almost every business expert advises business owners to maintain a brand image. Despite reservations, the suggestion is reasonable. Users' purchasing choices are affected by brand image. Here’s why how brand image affects the business’ sales and user’s perspective:

Brand Image

First, talking brand image encapsulates consumer views of a firm‘s persona. Such an image incorporates critical, albeit not always intentional, assessments of a brand's advantages and disadvantages. The public image is shaped and refined by the advertising material and promotional activities of the company behind the product and the user awareness of the brand throughout a period.

Perceived Quality and Benefits

Brand image is influenced by consumer quality perception and advantages. It is strengthened when people believe a good or service is superior. As a result of a better brand image, quality, satisfaction, and advantages improve. Despite contrary evidence, buyers' impression of a good or service damages a brand's image. Hence, In today’s digital era use of social media for brand image development has become a trend despite the brand’s existing popularity. 

Over 52 per cent of b2b markets reported generating leads from social media after investing money.- WebFX

Perceived Risk

Consumers' uncertainty levels regarding the form and degree of damages they might suffer after acquiring goods are referred to as perceived risk. Whenever a consumer buys a snickers bar, for example, the perceived risk is minimal due to its low price and restricted scope of the damage. However, it increases manifolds for an expensive good like a car or home appliances.

Price Evaluation

When deciding whether or not to acquire a good or service, a strong brand name might help alleviate the list price assessments that many buyers make. The perceived brand image determines the perceived price. Customers' perceptions of retail value can be influenced by Mercedes-favorable Benz's corporate image, whereas buyers would differently perceive a comparable vehicle built by a new manufacturer.

Purchase Intention

Purchase intention refers to whether or not a consumer intends to order anything from a company soon. Powerful brand images boost reliability and benefits ideas, lower risk perception, and ease the buyer's interest in judging solely on the terms of cost. All such elements collectively change customer purchasing intent. 

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What are some Social Media Strategies for Brand Awareness?

Based on a forecast by Statista, out of the seven billion people globally, over four billion are social media users. Due to these astounding numbers, brands are competing for tooth and nail to get their brand to be the most influential. So here's how social media comes into play for empowering the brand's image:

Choosing the Right Social Media

There are various social media platforms that businesses use for various purposes. But choosing the right social media platform that meets the brand's needs. A clothing brand will most benefit from a video/photo media platform. At the same time, products like an appliance are benefited more from a review platform.

Creating Authentic Content

Creating content that focuses exclusively on the product and company’s image is important. But, it’s just important to keep up with the social media trends. No one wants to watch outdated content. Another effective social media strategy for the brand image is introducing newer trends. 

Over 3.78 billion people use social media out of the seven billion people in the world, which makes it 48% of the total population. - Statista

Regular Interactions

Updating social media frequently/regularly is the key. Users follow social media for updates and interactive posts that keep them interested in a brand or product. Since the engagements in social media are quite high nowadays, it’s very important to keep the audiences intrigued.

Brand Persona

Developing a brand persona is important in building a brand image. Visualising the brand’s voice is important as it depicts how the user will perceive it. A common example of this is the methods of promoting children’s toys and clothing brands for adults is different from one another. It helps brands focus on the target audience.

Influencer Marketing

Instagram spent over 300 million USD in social media marketing in 2020. It is an influential marketing medium. Featuring an influencer in the marketing campaign can help the brand image and increase the reach to a wider audience.

Audience Interaction

Keeping the account interactive by holding giveaways or providing exclusive offers via social media are common methods brands use to promote their products. Audiences stumble upon social media to get exclusive information or offers that many might not know. Such social media strategies for brand awareness are important to keep audiences engaged.

What are some Social Media Trends Useful for Enhancing the Brand Image in 2022?

The top social media advertising trends of 2022 are:

Social Inclusivity

Gone are the days when you’d only witness only a slim model in clothing advertisements. Social inclusivity is on the rise - plus size models, LGBTQ+ representations, and racial inclusivity - especially via social media campaigns.

Wise Social Media Ads

There are many ways to promote a product other than just telling people the features. Now creators on social media are using wiser ways to promote their products. A good example of this is Samsung’s Samantha. The AI that went viral all over the internet in 2021 increased the company’s sales. Wise usage is important to hold the audience's social media attention for brand image.

Social Media for a Cause

Adidas' End Plastic Waste and L’Oreal’s Anti-harassment campaign are a few examples of big brands using their voice to their benefit and the benefit of the masses. It helps create a positive brand image, and such practices are becoming more and more common.

Post Pandemic Strategy

In this post-pandemic world, we’re almost addicted to shopping online; we can't help but check our social media every few minutes. That gives brands more leeway to promote their products easily, and more often than not, people buy things they see on social media. Social media shopping is on the rise, and various small businesses benefit from this despite the losses during the pandemic. 

DataPortal statistics in 2021 showed that an average spends about 2.5 hours a day on social media. 

Trends come and go, but sometimes jumping on the bandwagon can be quite beneficial. When it comes to social media strategy for brand awareness, following the trends is the key. A brand is empowered with enough effective marketing. Social media usage isn't going away for decades or maybe even centuries to come. 

The fact that brands hire a whole team for social media marketing proves the power of social media marketing. Developing a brand's image is very important as gaining followers is important but acquiring loyal customers is the key target. 

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