THE CRISIS OF MARKETING COMMUNICATION IN THE ERA OF SOCIAL MEDIA

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1 MSc Eng. Wioleta Kucharska THE CRISIS OF MARKETING COMMUNICATION IN THE ERA OF SOCIAL MEDIA Introduction This article examines the widely discussed in literature the problem of marketing communication crisis resulting from the changes of the environment. These changes generate both new problems and also new solutions, e.g. social media. The practitioners are pursuing both effective and efficient solutions, in relation to the difficulties encountered while achieving market objectives via traditional methods and channels. In accordance with the nowadays trends, they allocate the resources available in social media (Solis, 2012). The purpose of this paper is to answer the question to what extent social media marketing messages are a response to the crisis. The author uses logical reasoning based on of the subject literature as well as survey of marketing practitioners regarding the issue presented. 1. MARKETING COMMUNICATION CRISIS The crisis of marketing communication is a subject discussed more and more frequently both in the world of science and in the press as well as in the branch publications (Goławski, 2013, pp. 41; Solis, 2012; Halligan, Shah, 2010). The scientists diagnose the current situation as being the result of the information era, which came with the popularisation of the Internet, what fundamentally changed the market environment (Wilson, Gilligan, 2005, pp 119). According to scientists, the practitioners do not keep up with the pace of changes (Aaker, 2008, pp 148); they excessively focus on the promotion neglecting the sphere of strategy, and as a result their communication actions do not match the amended reality (McDonald, 2007, pp. 22). The practitioners, in the changed world dominated by information (often its excess) encounter difficulties in achieving market goals with the use of traditional tools, which until recently guaranteed the success (Brown, Hayes, 2008, pp. 1-11). On the other hand, the companies expect from marketing departments as the cost centres, the relevant return of

2 INTERNAL EXTERNAL Kucharska W. The crisis of marketing communication in the era of social media investments as well as building specific brands values on the basis of the market share, revenues and generated profits. The changes in market environment induce the changes in the field of marketing both in scientific and practical terms. The result of this is the continuously changes of the definition of marketing. American Marketing Association revises the term "marketing" every 5 years. This proves the specificity of marketing as a field characterised by a change. Marketing is closely related to the market so marketing goals and tools and definitions must adopt to the changes in market environment. In Author's opinion, the currently identified crisis is a stage, which enforces the conceptual change and the change of toos in relation to the changes of the environment. The causes of the decrease in efficiency of the marketing communication activities were analysed in order to find out to what extent social media may constitute a solution to the problem. Table 1. Causes of marketing communication crisis QUANTITATIVE QUALITATIVE The dispersion of media market and the reduction of media prices, and the related increase of access to the media as a cause for media noise, thus resulting in the decrease of efficiency and effectiveness in all communication channels (excess of marketing communication) The increase in supply of products, the effect of which is the increase in competitiveness The increase in customization and customer expectations, thus the difficulty with fragmentation and segmentation as well as the increase in the costs related to handling these segments The increase in the similarity of the products resulting from the transfer of technology, as a result of which it is difficult to differentiate oneself The change in weights of the existing distribution channels, configuration of players and their weights in specific channels (consolidations and acquisitions) lead to the costs associated with the adaptation to changes In the absence of differences between the competing products the marketeers creatively form concepts of competitive advantages at the level of emotions (abuse of social techniques), which lead to the crisis of confidence in communication of brands The increase in costs of promotion while reducing the return on investment (promotion) (devaluation of the tool) The lack of solid strategic grounds for carried out communication activities The decrease in efficiency of marketing activities as the cause of the crisis of confidence in marketing managers

3 Source: Author's own study Significant changes that have taken place in marketing communication in relation to the change of environment were presented in Table 1, which shows that the key problem of marketing communication in the context of the form is: the excess of messages in traditional media as well as the lack of trust in the context of the message. 2. Socialmedia Socialmedia have their origins in the late nineties. They gained popularity in the first decade of this century. A.Kaplan and M.Haenlein define socialmedia as: "a group of applications based on web technology, which are founded on ideological and technological bases Web 2.0, and which allow the creation and exchange of content generated by users". This group includes: blogs, social network such as Facebook, Twitter, MySpace, collaborative projects such as Wikipedia, content communities such as Youtube, Demotywatory, Kwejk, virtual social worlds for example Second Life, virtual game worlds such as Warcraft, Internet forums. Table 1 shows the classification of Social Media adopted by A.KAPLAN and M.Haenlein. Table 2. Classification of Social Media SOCIAL PRESENCE/MEDIA RICHNESS LOW MEDIUM HIGH SELF- PRESENTATION/SELF- DISCLOSURE HIGH BLOGS SOCIAL NETWORKING SITES LOW COLLABORATIVE PROJECTS CONTENT COMMUNITIES VIRTUAL SOCIAL WORLDS VIRTUAL GAME WORLDS Source: Kaplan, Haenlein, 2010, pp.62 From the perspective of the problem of engagement, in accordance with the above classification, the most attractive form of Social Media are "social networks" and "virtual worlds". In the context of social capital (R. Putnam, 1993), which capital, similarly to the capital in economic context, perceives the social relations and network connections between individuals as a resource, thanks to which it is possible to achieve the intended benefits. Social Networks appear to be particularly attractive from the point of view of brand communication purposes and, hence, the business goals. The essence of the Social Media in the context of marketing goals is the possibility to influence entire communities (Brown, Hayes, 2008, pp. 165).

4 In October 2012 Facebook in Poland noted 8 million active users, of which 63% were using Facebook daily, 32% of the users were in the age group of years, 28 % were the users at the age of 25 34, and 10% were the users at the age of years [Kondratyuk, 2012]. The ranking of Polish websites by PBI/Gemius XII 2012 shows that 71% of the internet users in Poland use Facebook, which is the second website in Poland just before YouTube [PBI/Gemius, 2013]. These statistics are the reasons for the brands being present on Facebook where consumers are present. The possibility of precisely targeted communication is undoubtedly a huge advantage of Facebook over traditional media, which is highly important from the point of view of communication crisis. In addition, relatively low cost of the message delivery in comparison to traditional forms of communication affects in the growing popularity of socialmedia among marketing practitioners [Kaplan, Haenlein, 2010]. Social Networks are also a place where the idea of "prosumerism" [Toffler, 1980] is particularly visible, which means that the recipients of the content are also their creators. The interactivity characteristic to this tool is interpreted as a remedy to the difficulties associated with the lack of the engagement. [Kaplan, Haenlein, 2010]. How this engagement relates to the brand remains an open question. That is how the users perceive the presence of brands in social media. 3. Marketing Communication in Social Network Socialmedia, as a relatively new channel of communication which development occurred along with the appearance of Facebook in 2004, for brands, that were first to undertake their activity over there, constituted an attractive tool because of the communication noise in traditional media [Brown, Hayes, 2008]. Facebook, like the other forms of socialmedia, in the product context is subject to the lifecycles. In the initial phase of its development the tool itself as well as presented brands constituted a new attraction to Internet users. The author is doubts in persistence of this status quo for a long time due to the growing activity of a growing number of brands, which in accordance with the current trends are seeking new solutions and perspectives in socialmedia as a consequence of the decreasing effectiveness of their actions in the tradition channels, methods and tools of communication. The problem of trust to the brand generates the problem of engagement. As already mentioned, socialmedia as a tool characterised by engagement and interaction is commonly believed to be extremely powerful tool for brand engagement building. However according to the author, the lack of engagement in the brand remains a problem regardless of the communication channel, since the nature of the tool does solve the problem.

5 The commercial global range DDB study carried out in 2010 on 1642 Facebook fans shows that the presence of brands is perceived positively by the users mainly because of the expected benefits. Half of the survey participants in response to the question, why they have become brand fans, replied that they expected special treatment on part of the brand and they wanted to promote the brand openly (to present themselves as its user), and for almost each third examined person, the reason for joining the Fanpage are the conversations and interactions with the brand. The study of Polish users carried out in 2012 by the ARC Institute confirms that the main reason for the use of a Fanpage is the intent to express sympathy to the brand. Considering the research mentioned above as well as the concept of Toffler's "prosumerism" the author claims that there is a likelihood that brands in social media are primarily the tool of self-presentation for the users. Socialmedia are used for building the relationship between people, and thus for self-presentation and self-expression of the user as a group member. In the world of socialmedia where the recipients of the content are also its producers, the brands constitute only and also a tool for self-expression. Social media such as Linkedin or Goldenline are used as a tool for recruitment purposes. Facebook, on the other hand, is the source of information about lifestyle and personality of potential candidates. Socialmedia provide information on the person concerned, and therefore this person is creating their own image and therefore it is an important element for all users. The concept of "prosumerism", in the context of social media perceives as a tool for image creation of people and brands, and in order to achieve expected benefits, it is possible to suggest that the current definition of marketing by American Marketing Association can be supplemented with the fact of being an appropriate activity not only for institutions but also for individuals: Marketing is the activity, set of institutions and individuals, and processes for creating, communicating, delivering, and exchanging offerings that have value for customers, clients, partners, and society at large. [AMA, 2008] Commercial surveys of the socialmedia users YouGov of May 2007 showed that 49% of respondents are against advertising in social network. The mentioned study of ARC Institute proves that only 17% of respondents distribute content posted by the brands. Scientific research [Tucker 2012, Bakshy 2011] indicate that only non-commercial communications of the brands are likely to be forwarded to friends. Considering mentioned above researches, it can be concluded that social media do not solve communication problems of the brands. The problem to be solved by practitioners is how to differentiate the brand and achieve commercial goals with the use of non-commercial communication although the changing trends of communication. How to convince the companies' boards of directors to spectacular (in order to differentiate oneself), and thus costly pro-social activities and how to measure the return of the investments. These problems which marketing departments managers are facing require strategic approach. In the long-term these problems will not be solved neither by new communication tools nor by communication channels being the reflection of technological progress. The problem of communication refers to the methods of operation and the content

involve the lack of trust to the brands and the existing all media communication noise. Facebook (FB) indicates that only 1% of brands active on FB succeed in engagement [Kondratyuk, 2012].

6 Most commonly used channels of communication Kucharska W. The crisis of marketing communication in the era of social media of generated messages which is associated with the causes of marketing communication crisis indicated in Table 1, which largely involve the lack of trust to the brands and the existing all media communication noise. Facebook (FB) indicates that only 1% of brands active on FB succeed in engagement [Kondratyuk, 2012]. The scientists state that practitioners have problems with adaptation to changes [Aaker, 2008, pp. 148]. In order to investigate the problem, the practitioners have been surveyed on the role of social media in the contemporary marketing communication. 4. Practitioners about socialmedia In order to study the practitioners' opinions on the socialmedia and getting the answer to the question to what extent they constitute the answer to the crisis of marketing communication, the study was carried out in form of survey interviews in the period from 2 to 24 March 2013), with the use of the site ebadania.pl. The study was exploratory because of the small sample size. Nevertheless the value of the results of the study, in the opinion of the author is high, due to the fact that the group of practitioners is reluctant to participate in surveys. 57 marketing practitioners including 6 assistants, 19 specialists, 27 managers and 5 experts were interviewed. The respondents pointed to the Internet as the most commonly used channel of communication, followed by the press and outdoor. The detailed results are presented in Diagram 1. Diagram 1. Most commonly used channels of communication internet press outdoor TV radio direct communication other 0% 20% 40% 60% 80% Source: Author's own study

Social media: forms applied Kucharska W.

The responses of respondents to the question on the most frequently used by them forms of socialmedia are shown in Diagram 2.

7 Social media: forms applied Kucharska W. The crisis of marketing communication in the era of social media 55% of respondents declared, that they are using socialmedia as tools for marketing communication, 31 % do not use socialmedia, and 14% of respondents did not respond. These results demonstrate the popularity of socialmedia as a tool for marketing communication, and at the same time they prove that for 41% of people this is not the case. The responses of respondents to the question on the most frequently used by them forms of socialmedia are shown in Diagram 2. The responders who use socialmedia usually pointed to social network sites (such as Facebook) and the content communities (e.g., You Tube), what match to the popularity of the websites in Poland. Diagram 2. Social media: forms applied socialnetworking sites content communities blogs collaborative projects virual games wirtual social worlds 0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% Source: Author's study The respondents who use socialmedia positively evaluate their impact on the market position (84 %), especially the positively impact on the brand awareness and loyalty to the brand. Diagram 3 illustrates in detail the indications of the respondents. It is worth mentioning that the respondents assess the impact of the socialmedia activities on the volume of the turnover and market share relatively low, which indicates the image-building character of this tool in terms of achievement of communication goals. Diagram 3. Social media: assessment of areas

8 Social media: assessment of areas brand awareness loyality knowledge of customers brand value sales competitiveness market share 0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% Source: Author's own study Diagram 4 illustrates the responses to the most important question asked by the author, which is to what extent socialmedia allow for solving the problem of the lack of engagement and communication noise accompanying the brand communication. 24% of respondents estimated that socialmedia are helpful, while 19% believe that this tool does not solve the problem. It is worth mentioning that 31% of respondents do not see the problem of communication out of 43% who can notice it. 26% did not respond. Therefore, it is reasonable to expect that it is likely that, in some respects it was not obvious to them (unambiguous). Diagram 4. Social media versus crisis Socialmedia is an antidotum to marketing communication crisis I do not notice the crisis yes no lack of response I do not know 0% 5% 10% 15% 20% 25% 30% 35% Source: Author's own study

9 The results of the research show that an unambiguous answer to the problem question is difficult. Perhaps the problem requires deeper research, as well as a longer time of use of socialmedia, which will provide more facts and data in order to asses the meaning and role of social media in the contemporary marketing communication. Conclusion On the basis of the literature and the presented study, the author concludes that socialmedia constitute a new tool of communication in the form appropriate to changes in the environment, technological progress and the changes of one's lifestyle; however, the problem related to the content, i.e. the qualitative aspect of communication, associated with the loss of engagement and communication noise both around the brands and in the whole market environment are up-to-date regardless of new forms of communication. The solution to the crisis of the marketing communication is therefore to be pursued in the field of the quality of messages whose context should comply with the actual consumers' demands for information. Literature 1. Aaker, D. Marketing in a Silo World. The new CMO challenge, California Management Review, Vol 51,no Bakshy, E., J. M. Hofman, W. A. Mason, and D. J. Watts Everyone s an influencer: quantifying influence on Twitter. In Proceedings of the fourth ACM international conference on Web search and data mining, WSDM 11, New York 2011., pp ACM. 3. Brown, D., Hayes N. Influencer Marketing, Butterworth-Heinemann Elsevier, Hungary Goławski, J. Nic się nie uda bez zaangażowania, Marketing w praktyce nr2, luty Halligan, B., Shah D., Inbound Marketing, Wiley &Son, Canada Haugtved, C., Machleit K., Yalch R. Online Consumer Psychology, Lawrence Erlbaum Associates Publishers, New Jersey Kaplan, Andreas M.; Haenlein M. Users of the world, unite! The challenges and opportunities of Social Media. Business Horizons (1) pp Kondratyuk, I, Client Partner Facebook, VII Konferencja MPG McDonald M., Smith B.,Ward K.; Marketing Due Dilligence, Elsevier Putnam, R., Tuning In, Tuning Out: The Strange Disapperance of Social Capital in America, Political Science&Politics, APSA Research carried out by YouGov for New Media Age and Brand Strategy, published May [ 12. Solis B. The end business as usual, Wiley&Sons, Canada Toffler, A., The third wave: The classic study of tomorrow. Bantam Books, New York 1980

10 14. Tucker C., Social Advertising, Massachutseths Institute of Technology (MIT) [ r. 15. Wilson R., Gilligan C., Strategic Marketing Management, Elsevier 2005, The changing business environment or the new marketing reality 16. Research carried out by PBI/Gemius, published January html, Research carried out by DDB, published October Research carried out by Instytut ARC Rynek i Opinia, published October 2012, _chetnie_sie_wypowiadamy_rzadko_rozpowszechniamy pl.html, American Marketing Association: Marketing Power published January Research carried out by YouGov for New Media Age and Brand Strategy, published May [ MARKETING COMMUNICATION CRISIS IN THE ERA OF SOCIAL MEDIA Abstract The author analyses the crisis in marketing communication in the age of modern communication technology. Next she considers social media as a new tool that can be helpful in solving the problem. The article presents the results of a survey addressed to marketing practitioners. According to the results the new tools are an important alternative to traditional channels of marketing communication tool, but according to the author the problem of media content as well as the problem of excess of messages, that lays in the core of the crisis in marketing communication, remains the same. Information about the author: MSc Eng. Wioleta Kucharska is a multi-year marketing practitioner with more than 12 years of experience, among other things, in the field of marketing communication, in the implementation of new brands and products; she is responsible for marketing processes and projects, market results of known Polish and foreign brands, as well as a doctoral student in the Department of Marketing, Faculty of Management and Economics at the Gdańsk University of Technology. wkucharska@zie.pg.gda.pl

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