Lebanese TV Stations in the Age of Social Media & Vial Marketing

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1LEBANESE TV STATIONS IN THE AGE OF SOCIAL MEDIA

LEBANESE TV STATIONS IN THE

AGE OF SOCIAL MEDIA ANDVIRAL MARKETING

by

Raffi Panoyan

A thesis

submitted in partial

fulfillment of the requirements for the

Degree of Master of Business Administration

in

Marketing

Middle East University

Sabtieh, Lebanon

2013




ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

I would like to express my great appreciation to Dr. Hilda Bayramian, Dr. Patricia

Hongisto, and Dr. Johnny Issa for their valuable guidance and support throughout the period of

the project.

My genuine gratitude goes to my Mom and Dad -Daad and Steve- and to my best friend

and Sister Maria for their support and love. Thank you for supporting me, and I hope to always

make you proud. I know it has been hard for you at times when I have been away attending

classes and working on papers, but I promise to make it up for all of you.

I want to thank everyone associated with The Middle East University. The

administration, staff, instructors and students have been an inspiration.

Special thanks to all who have contributed in the realization of this project: Miss Marie-

Therese Kreidy from Tele Lumiere, Mr. Andrew Feghali from OTV, Mr. Patrick Richa from

MTV, Mr. Wael Karaki from Al-Manar TV, Mr. Elie Asmar from Al-Jadeed TV, and Mr.

Wissam Sabbagh from Dotcom Company which is the company responsible of managing NBN

TV’s online presence. I would also like to thank Miss Sandra Bassil (Human Resources officer at

OTV) and Mr. Ahmad Meselmani (Public Relations officer at Al-Manar TV), who put us in

contact with the online officials in their institutions.




ABSTRACT

The advent of the internet and technological developments has changed the way businesses

operate and has created new challenges and opportunities for televisions. TV stations started to

use online and digital media to interact with their audiences, attract new audiences, widen their

reach and achieve ubiquity. The purpose of this study is to explore the ways social media and

viral marketing are used by televisions and how they contribute in promoting the televisions and

their programs. The first part of the research takes the form of a literature review or secondary

research. The second part is the field work consisting of interviews with representatives of six

Lebanese TV stations. The adopted methodology is the qualitative research method.The findings

suggest that Lebanese televisions are aware of the importance of social media and digital media

in general. Creativity is an important factor in determining the degree of success. The content

displayed on the television is very important in driving online interactions. The three pillars of

online presence are: The marketed content, the technological infrastructure and the way the

content is marketed.




TABLE OF CONTENTS

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS ............................................................................................................................................ 2

ABSTRACT .......................................................................................................................................................... 3

TABLE OF CONTENTS ..................................................................................................................................... 4

LIST OF FIGURES .............................................................................................................................................. 8

LIST OF TABLES................................................................................................................................................ 9

ABBREVIATIONS ............................................................................................................................................ 10

INTRODUCTION .............................................................................................................................................. 12

1- COMMUNICATING CUSTOMER VALUE THROUGH INTEGRATED MARKETING

COMMUNICATIONS ....................................................................................................................................... 16

1.1- MODELS OF COMMUNICATION: ELEMENTS IN THE COMMUNICATION PROCESS ........................................................ 16

1.2- THE MARKETING COMMUNICATION MIX ............................................................................................................ 19

2.3- FROM MASS COMMUNICATION TO IMC ............................................................................................................ 26

2.4- HOLISTIC VIEW OF IMC .................................................................................................................................. 29

2.5- DEVELOPING EFFECTIVE MARKETING COMMUNICATIONS AND SETTING TOTAL COMMUNICATION BUDGET .................... 30

2.6- FACTORS TO CONSIDER WHEN DESIGNING THE COMMUNICATION MIX .................................................................... 31

2- SOCIAL MEDIA NETWORKS AS MARKETING COMMUNICATION TOOLS .................................... 35

2.1- THE ROAD TO CONTEMPORARY SOCIAL MEDIA .................................................................................................... 36

2.2- DEFINITION OF SOCIAL MEDIA .......................................................................................................................... 36

2.2.1- Web 2.0 ........................................................................................................................................ 36

2.2.2- User Generated Content ............................................................................................................. 37




2.2.3- Definition of social media ........................................................................................................... 38

2.3- CLASSIFICATION OF SOCIAL MEDIA APPLICATIONS ................................................................................................ 38

2.4- TYPES OF SOCIAL MEDIA ................................................................................................................................ 41

2.4.1- Collaborative projects ................................................................................................................. 41

2.4.2- Blogs ............................................................................................................................................ 42

2.4.3- Content communities .................................................................................................................. 43

2.4.4- Social networking sites ............................................................................................................... 44

2.4.5- Virtual game worlds .................................................................................................................... 45

2.4.6- The virtual social worlds ............................................................................................................. 46

2.5- THE RISE OF SOCIAL MEDIA NETWORKS .............................................................................................................. 48

2.5.1- From a way of social engagement to a marketing tool ............................................................. 48

2.5.2- Some challenges and opportunities from using social media networks ................................... 50

3- THE VIRAL MARKETING CONCEPT ...................................................................................................... 52

3.1- WORD OF MOUTH CONCEPT........................................................................................................................... 52

3.2- VIRAL MARKETING CONCEPT .......................................................................................................................... 54

3.3- THE SIX SIMPLE PRINCIPLES OF VIRAL MARKETING ............................................................................................. 56

3.3.1- Gives Away Valuable Products or Services ................................................................................. 57

3.3.2- Provides for Eff ortl ess Transfer to Others ................................................................................. 57

3.3.3- Scales Easil y fr om Small to Very Large ..................................................................................... 58

3.3.4- Exploits Common Motivations and Behaviors ........................................................................... 59

3.3.5- Uti li zes Exi sting Communi cation Networks ............................................................................... 59

3.3.6- Takes Advantage of Others’ Resources ...................................................................................... 60

3.4- VIRAL MARKETING TECHNIQUES ...................................................................................................................... 61

3.4.1- Advergaming ............................................................................................................................... 61

3.4.2- Blogging....................................................................................................................................... 62

3.4.3- Vlogging ...................................................................................................................................... 63




3.4.4- Moblogging ................................................................................................................................. 65

3.4.5- Mailing......................................................................................................................................... 66

3.4.6- Social Networking Sites ............................................................................................................... 68

3.4.7- Wikis ............................................................................................................................................ 69

3.4.8- Rate and Review Sites ................................................................................................................. 70

4- TV CHANNELS AND SOCIAL MEDIA NETWORKS ............................................................................... 72

4.1- USING SOCIAL MEDIA AS A PART OF THE TV EXPERIENCE ...................................................................................... 73

4.2- THE IDEAL FIT BETWEEN TV AND SOCIAL MEDIA NETWORKS .................................................................................. 75

4.3- THE RISE OF THE STATUS OF SOCIAL MEDIA AND VIRAL MARKETING AT TV STATIONS ................................................. 78

4.3.1- Social media as a TV application ................................................................................................ 78

4.3.2- Social Media as a foundation for TV programming ................................................................... 79

4.3.3- Social Media as Talent branding tool ......................................................................................... 81

4.3.4- Social media as a virtual water cooler ....................................................................................... 82

4.4- NIELSEN’S 2012 SOCIAL MEDIA REPORT ................................................................................................. 85

5- EMPIRICAL RESEARCH ............................................................................................................................ 90

5.1- THE TELEVISION INDUSTRY IN LEBANON ............................................................................................................ 90

5.2- THE SELECTED METHOD OF RESEARCH: THE Q UALITATIVE METHOD ........................................................................ 93

5.3- THE SAMPLE AND THE INTERVIEWS ................................................................................................................... 97

5.4- SUMMARY AND ANALYSIS OF THE FINDINGS ....................................................................................................... 98

5.5- RECOMMENDATIONS ................................................................................................................................... 120

CONCLUSION ................................................................................................................................................. 129

APPENDIX A ................................................................................................................................................... 134

APPENDIX B ................................................................................................................................................... 135

APPENDIX C ................................................................................................................................................... 141




APPENDIX D ................................................................................................................................................... 142

REFERENCES ................................................................................................................................................. 144




LIST OF FIGURES

Figure 1.1: A Basic Communication Model…………………………………………………......17

Figure 1.2: The Interactive Communication Model……………………………………………..18

Figure 2.1: Classification of social media by social presence/media richness

and self-presentation/self-disclosure……………………………………………………………..40

Figure 3.1: Replication of viral messages………………………………………………………..58

Figure 4.1: Distribution of respondents who started watching a TV program due to opinions

online, by site and age…………………………………………………………………………… 86

Figure 4.2: Distribution of the respondents in terms of when they typically talk about TV shows

either in person, on the phone or online…………………………………………………………89




LIST OF TABLES

Table 5.1: The distribution of the majority of TV stations’ online users in terms of age and

gender according to the information given by the different TV stations’ representatives……..105

Table 5.2: The digital presence of the studied TV stations…………………………………….107

Table 5.3: The online teams running the online presence of the interviewed Lebanese TVs…108

Table 5.4: The timings of the interaction on social media for all TV stations………………...111

Table 5.5: Types of programs that attract the highest levels of interactions on TVs’ online

pages…………………………………………………………………………………………....113

Table 5.6: One example of viral marketing success…………………………………………...114

Table 5.7: How each TV station describes itself………………………………………………115

Table 5.8: How the interviewees describe Lebanese social media users ……………………..117




Abbreviations

BBAC Bank of Beirut and Arab Countries

BCG Boston Consulting Group

CAGR Compound Annual Growth Rate

CD Consumer-direct

CEO Chief Executive Officer

CES Consumer Electronics Show

CNN Cable News Network

CTAM Cable & Telecommunications Association for Marketing

DTH Direct-To-Home television

DVRs Digital Video Recorders

FTA Free to Air

GCC Gulf Cooperation Council

IOS Iphone operating system

IMC Integrated Marketing Communications

IRIB Islamic Republic of Iran




ISPs Internet service providers

IT Internet Technology

LBC Lebanese Broadcasting Corporation

LBCI Lebanese Broadcasting Corporation International

MOT Ministry of Telecommunications

NBN National Broadcasting Network

NFC Near Field Communication

OTV Orange TV

PR Public Relations

SMS Short Message Service

TAM Technology Acceptance model

TV Television

UAE United Arab Emirates

UGC User Generated Content

WOM Word of mouth

WOMMA Word of Mouth Marketing Association




Introduction

Gone are the days when Television (TV) was the major source of entertainment with little

number of stations, and with limited options for viewers. As a matter of fact, the technological

developments that occurred, has been able to change the landscape completely, and ever since

we have witnessed a boom in entertainment sources and increase in their numbers. Subsequently,

large and specialized TV networks emerged, dazzling video games were introduced, and most

importantly we entered into the internet era, which led us to another era which is that of social

media networks.

Therefore, TV stations found themselves all of the sudden in a tricky situation, with high

competition from their peers, easy entry to the market, big risk of substitute entertainment

means, and with high consumer power who can easily switch and zap unwanted programs.

Accordingly, TV stations in the world and in Lebanon started to seek new and unconventional

ways to market themselves and their programs, and to try to make the best use of the integrated

marketing communications which include social media networks.

Social media constitute both a challenge and an opportunity for TV stations, because they are

increasingly gaining importance and grabbing the attention of more and more people. At the

same time, they have the power to transform people from passive recipients of TV content to

active participants in making the news and in spreading it through the internet like a virus.




This leads us to the concept of viral marketing which is a tool used by TV stations and

businesses alike. Viral marketing is defined as “creating informative and entertaining messages

to be passed among consumers in a virtual environment” (Kalpaklioglu & Toros, 2011, p. 4115).

It constitutes an effective and efficient marketing tool.

Therefore, and since the internet’s prominence is constantly on the rise, and since the new

portable devices and mobile phones are facilitating the process of connecting people into the

internet, and since marketing messages can be transmitted much more easily and rapidly on the

internet, the objective of this thesis is to explore the following:

Is it possible for the Lebanese TV stations to differentiate themselves by creating buzz on the

internet and transforming viewers into trustworthy sources of information and reference through

the use of social media and viral marketing?

How can the use of social media and viral marketing benefit televisions and help them to

promote their brand and programs?

More specifically, this research will try to answer the following questions:

a) Are Lebanese TV stations active or reactive in the face of these new changes (social

media revolution)? And what media if any they are using?

b) Can social media networks and TV stations coexist, or can there be a formula

permitting the two media to create a win- win situation for both of them?

c) How can TV stations that use social media in their communication mix differentiate

themselves and cut through the clutter?

d) Can their presence on the internet be a source of competitive advantage?

e) How can TV stations create viral messages? Is there a special recipe for it?




f) Can TV stations stick to the traditional methods and disregard social media

networking and viral marketing altogether and still expect to be successful?

This research is divided into five chapters.

In chapter 1, this study comes across an overview of marketing communications in general: the

models of communication, the marketing communication mix (the eight major promotion tools),

the evolution from mass communication to IMC, the holistic approach to IMC, the development

of effective Marketing Communications and the determination of total communications budget,

and the factors that need to be considered when designing the communication mix.

In chapter 2, the focus will be on explaining social media: its evolution, definition, classification,

the types of social media, the rise of social media, and its transformation from a way of social

engagement to a marketing tool, and the opportunities and challenges related to its use.

Chapter 3 discusses the use of the viral marketing concept. I will begin by discussing the

traditional word of mouth concept. Next, I will explain the viral marketing concept, the six

principles of viral marketing, and the viral marketing techniques.

Chapter 4 discusses the role of social media in the marketing strategies of TV stations, where I

will elaborate on the use of social media as a part of TV experience, the ideal fit between TV and

social media networks, the rise of the status of social media and viral marketing at TV stations

and Neilson’s 2012 social media report.




Chapter 5 deals with conducting the empirical research. I will introduce my empirical research

by having a general overview of the Lebanese television industry. Then, I will explain my

adopted methodology. Next, I will give a briefing about the interviewed sample and the

questionnaire used in conducting the study. Then, I will interpret and analyze my findings and

give my recommendations.

The advent of the internet and technological developments has changed the way businesses

operate and has created new challenges and opportunities for televisions. TV stations need to use

online and digital media to interact with their audiences, attract new audiences, widen their reach

and achieve ubiquity. The use of social media and viral marketing can be most important to

achieve these goals.




CHAPTER 1

Communicating customer value through Integrated

Marketing Communications

Building good customer relationships is not only about developing a good product, pricing it and

making it available to customers. Communicating value propositions to customers, the content of

the communication, and the promotion tools used are critical elements in building profitable

customer relationships.

In this Chapter, I will start by over viewing two models of communication that are applicable to

marketing communications, in addition to the marketing communications mix that consists of

eight major promotion tools. I will then explain the evolution from mass communication to IMC

and the holistic approach to IMC. Next, I will elaborate on the development of effective

marketing communications and the determination of the communication budget. Finally, I will

examine the factors that need to be considered when designing the communication mix.

1.1- Models of Communication: Elements in the communication process

There are several communication models that highlight the key elements of the communication

process in general, and that can be applicable to marketing communications. These include the

basic communication model and the interactive communication model (Moriarty, Mitchell, &

Wells, 2011).




The basic communication model (Refer to Figure 1.1) illustrates the process of sending an

encoded message through a channel of communication to a receiver that can decode this

message. This model also takes into consideration the noise or interference that distorts

understanding between the sender and the receiver. It also assumes that Feedback is obtained by

monitoring the response of the receiver to the message, such that the information source can

adapt his ulterior messages (Moriarty, et al., 2011).

Figure 1.1: A Basic Communication Model

Source: Moriarty, S., Mitchell, N., & Wells, W. (2011). Advertising and IMC: Principles

and Practice, 9th Edition (p. 100). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson.

This communication model applies to Mass communication, which is traditionally a one-way

process with the message moving from sender to receiver (Moriarty, et al., 2011).

But what about the new communication media that have changed the landscape of

communication and gave receivers the power of interacting and responding in real time to the

messages sent by the sources of information?




The model that illustrates this two-way communication process is the Interactive communication

Model (Refer to Figure 1.2). This Model shows that both the source and receiver can initiate

communication as well as receive it and that the messages can bounce back and forth between

them (Moriarty, et al., 2011).

Figure 1.2: The Interactive Communication Model

Source: Moriarty, S., Mitchell, N., & Wells, W. (2011). Advertising and IMC:

Principles and Practice, 9th Edition (p. 101). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson.

The advent of the internet has boosted this type of communication and has granted

everyone symmetrical creation and reception interfaces. “Anyone with Internet access

can create a web site and participate as an equal partner in e-mail, instant messaging, chat

rooms, computer conferences, collaborative composition sites, blogs, interactive games,

MUDs, MOOs, and other media” (Foulger, 2004).

As for Feedback, it is now occurring in real time through personal selling, customer service,

online marketing, toll-free numbers, E-mail … That’s why it is important for advertisers to

receive (listen) as well as send information (Moriarty, et al., 2011).

While Mass communication is a one-way process, interactive communication is a two-way

process -a dialogue- and is where marketing communication is heading (Moriarty, et al., 2011).




Nevertheless, organizations will always need to send tailored messages to their various target

markets to persuasively communicate the value of their products and services. In order to

achieve that, they need to use a mix of various promotion tools. The next paragraph will shed a

light on the eight major promotion tools of the marketing communications mix.

1.2- The marketing communication mix

The Marketing Communications environment has drastically changed in the last few years.

Advances in Technology and other factors “have profoundly changed the way consumers process

communications, and even whether they choose to process them at all” (Kotler & Keller, 2012,

p. 476).

Consumers are no longer passive recipients of commercial content. Not only are they able to turn

to a large array of Medias to choose from (hundreds of cable and satellite TV channels,

thousands of magazines and newspapers, and millions of Internet pages), they are also capable of

deciding whether they want to receive a certain content and how (Kotler & Keller, 2012).

In fact, consumers can choose to switch channels during commercial breaks, they can use ad-

skipping digital video recorders (DVRs) to avoid seeing the ads, they can turn to the internet to

get information about a certain product or service, they can choose to communicate to others

about the products or services they are using whether on the internet or through word of mouth…

(Kotler & Keller, 2012).

As consumers are exerting a more active role in the communication process, marketers are trying

to creatively employ multiple forms of communications to effectively reach and influence target

audiences. Also, the advances in technology have eroded the effectiveness of mass

communications and have compelled marketers to use new communication platforms such as the

Internet to convey their marketing message (Kotler & Keller, 2012).




Marketing communications are “the means by which firms attempt to inform, persuade, and

remind consumers — directly or indirectly —about the products and brands they sell” (Kotler &

Keller, 2012, p. 476).

The marketing communication mix consists of eight major modes of communication:

Adverising, Sales Promotion, Events and Experiences, Public relations and Publicity, Direct

Marketing, Interactive Marketing, Word of Mouth Marketing and Personal selling (Kotler &

Keller, 2012).

Advertising is “any paid form of non-personal presentation and promotion of ideas,

goods, or services by an identified sponsor via print media (newspapers and magazines),

broadcast media (radio and television), network media (telephone, cable, satellite,

wireless), electronic media (audiotape, videotape, videodisk, CD-ROM,Web page), and

display media (billboards, signs, posters)” (Kotler & Keller, 2012, p. 478).

More often, the space or time of an advertising message will be paid for by that sponsor.

However, one of the few exceptions to this rule can be public service announcements, where

advertising space or time is donated by the media for free (Kotler & Keller, 2012; Kotler, Wong,

Saunders & Armstrong, 2008; Belch & Belch, 2011).

Advertising involves mass media (TV, radio, magazines, newspapers) that is capable of sending

a message to large groups of people simultaneously. Consequently, advertising has a non

personal nature since except in direct-response advertising, the possibility of getting immediate

feedback is generally unattainable. Therefore, it’s up to the advertiser to anticipate in advance the

possible interpretation of the ad by the people who will be seeing it (Belch & Belch, 2011).




Advertising remains the most widely discussed and the best form of promotion likely because of

its pervasiveness (Belch & Belch, 2011). However, the changing communication environment

has relatively undermined its role. Advertising is usually not the only element- or even the most

important element- in the communication program aiming at generating sales and building brand

and customer equity. Marketers are increasingly cutting the percentage of marketing budget

spent on TV to invest more heavily in the Internet and experiential marketing (Kotler & Keller,

2012).

Advertising can be an integral part of marketers’ IMC programs due to the following reasons:

First, it is the most cost effective way to reach large audiences. Second, it helps in building

company or brand equity, provides consumers with valuable information, and shapes favorably

the perceptions of those customers. Third, advertising is substantial for companies seeking to be

differentiated on the basis of functional attributes and through producing favorable and unique

images and associations for their brands. Fourth, advertising is still recognized as one of the best

ways to build a brand. Fifth, advertising helps in stimulating demand for product categories and

also in reaching current or potential customers (Kotler et al., 2008; Belch & Belch, 2011).

Companies whose products and services are targeted at mass consumer markets, such as

automobile manufacturers, packaged goods, and drug companies, recognize the importance of

advertising and consider it an important part of their promotional strategy (Belch & Belch,

2011).

Sales promotions are “a variety of short-term incentives to encourage trial or purchase of a

product or service” (Kotler & Keller, 2012, p. 478).




Sales promotions are related to those marketing activities which are capable of providing

additional value or incentives to distributors, sales force and to end consumers, to stimulate and

accelerate sales. Sales promotions are divided into two major categories: consumer oriented and

trade oriented activities (Kotler et al., 2008: Belch & Belch, 2011).

Consumer oriented sales promotion includes: couponing, sampling, rebates, premiums,

sweepstakes, contests, and various point-of-purchase materials. The purpose from using these

types of promotional tools is to increase short-term sales and to encourage customers to buy

more goods and services (Kotler et al., 2008; Belch & Belch, 2011).

On the other hand, trade oriented sales promotion target intermediaries such as wholesalers,

distributors, and retailers. They include many promotional tools that encourage distributors to

stock and promote a company’s products. Some of these promotional tools are: price deals,

promotional and merchandising allowances, sales contests, and trade shows (Kotler et al., 2008;

Belch & Belch, 2011).

Events and experiences are “company-sponsored activities and programs designed to create

daily or special brand-related interactions with consumers, including sports, arts, entertainment,

and cause events as well as less formal activities” (Kotler & Keller, 2012, p. 478).

Events and experiences “can broaden and deepen a company or brand’s relationship with the

target market” (Kotler & Keller, 2012, p. 524), create a stronger brand image, affect consumers’

brand attitudes and beliefs, make customers more receptive to other communication messages

from the company or the brand, incite the participants to talk favorably about the brand to others,

and generate consumer and media interest and involvement (Kotler & Keller, 2012).

Public relations can lead to a free and favorable form of publicity that companies get thanks to

the good relationship they build with their various publics (Kotler et al., 2008).




Public relations (PR) are defined as “the management function which evaluates public attitudes,

identifies the policies and procedures of an individual or organization with the public interest,

and executes a program of action to earn public understanding and acceptance” (Belch & Belch,

2011, p. 23).

Publicity is not equal to public relations but actually it is one of its important tools that help the

company to establish and preserve a favorable image of the company among its various publics

(Kotler & Keller, 2012).

In addition to publicity, the other PR tools used to reinforce an organization’s image include:

sponsorship of special events, special publications, news, fund-raising, lobbying, identification

media (the visual identity of a company carried by its logos, stationery, brochures, signs,

business forms, business cards, buildings, uniforms, and dress codes and that is immediately

recognized by the public), participation in community activities, and other various public affairs

activities (Belch & Belch, 2011; Kotler & Keller, 2012).

Direct marketing is “the use of consumer -direct (CD) channels to reach and deliver goods and

services to customers without using marketing middlemen” (Kotler & Keller, 2012, p. 535).

Direct marketing channels include: direct mail, catalog marketing, telemarketing, interactive TV,

kiosks, Web sites, and mobile devices. Direct marketers use direct-order marketing to get a

customer order. They use all the major media channels to reach customers and prospects

(Newspaper and magazine ads, radio ads, infomercials, at-home shopping channels). Direct

Marketing has been growing fast in the last few years, partly in response to the increasing costs

of reaching customers through a sales force (Kotler & Keller, 2012).




Interactive Marketing is the use of electronic channels to communicate and sell directly to

customers. It is one of the newest and fastest-growing marketing channels. This promotion tool

provides customers and marketers with opportunities for much greater interaction and

individualization (Companies can send tailored messages that take into consideration customers’

special interests) (Kotler & Keller, 2012).

There are many forms of interactive marketing. Each company chooses the form that will be

most cost-effective in achieving its communication and sales objectives (Kotler & Keller, 2012).

These forms include: Websites, Search ads (paid search or pay-per-click ads), Display ads or

Banner ads (rectangular boxes that contain text or a picture that companies pay to place on

relevant Web site), e-mails, and mobile marketing (Kotler & Keller, 2012).

Positive word of mouth (WOM) marketing is accepted to be one of the oldest known and most

powerful marketing communication tools (Kalpaklioglu & Toros, 2011).

In fact, people exchange ideas and comments about products and services every day, influencing

each other in the process nine times more than through a magazine, newspaper or television

advertisement (Kalpaklioglu & Toros, 2011).

WOM can generate earned media or free media (in opposition to paid media resulting from press

coverage of company generated promotional efforts). The development of social media has

promoted the flow of word of mouth by facilitating the exchange of different types of

information with consumers and with consumers and companies and vice versa (Kotler & Keller,

2012).

Some marketers emphasize two particular forms of word of mouth: buzz and viral marketing.




Buzz marketing “generates excitement, creates publicity, and conveys new relevant

brand-related information through unexpected or even outrageous means”. Viral

marketing is “another form of word of mouth, or “word of mouse” that encourages

consumers to pass along company-developed products and services or audio, video, or

written information to others online” (Kotler & Keller, 2012, p. 549).

Personal selling is implemented by the sales force of a company and concerns any form of

personal presentation for the purpose of making sales and building customer relationships

(Kotler et al., 2008).

Direct contact between buyers and sellers with constant interaction among them earns the

marketer more flexibility when it comes to communication. In other words, the seller will have

the opportunity to see or hear the reactions of potential buyer’s right on the spot, and accordingly

will become able to modify and tailor his messages depending on customer’s specific needs or

situation (Belch & Belch, 2011).

Although the marketing communication mix constitutes the company’s primary communication

activity, the entire marketing mix (promotion, product, price and place) should be coordinated

for greatest communication impact, since the product design, price, and the stores that sell it also

communicate something to the buyers (Kotler et al., 2008).

In parallel, marketing communications are facing today three major changes: the fragmentation

of mass markets, the proliferation of new types of media due to technological improvements, and

consumers’ growing sophistication. These have caused striking changes in the ways in which

organizations and customers communicate and have pushed marketers to embrace segmented

marketing strategies instead of mass marketing strategies that were previously adopted (Kotler et

al., 2008).




The shift from mass marketing to targeted marketing and the use of a larger number of media

and communication approaches have urged companies to adopt the concept of Integrated

Marketing Communications (IMC) (Kotler & Keller, 2012; Kotler et al., 2008). According to

the American Marketing Association, integrated marketing communications (IMC) is “a

planning process designed to assure that all brand contacts received by a customer or prospect

for a product, service, or organization are relevant to that per son and consistent over time”

(Kotler & Keller, 2012, p. 495).

Under this concept, “the company carefully integrates its many communication channels to

deliver a clear, consistent and compelling message about the organization and its brands” (Kotler

et al., 2008, p. 697).

The next paragraph will be dedicated to describe the shift from mass communications to IMC.

2.3- From mass communication to IMC

During the 1970s, companies relied mostly on their advertising agencies for guidance in nearly

all areas of marketing communication. Additional promotional and marketing communication

tools where used too, but direct-marketing agencies, sales promotion, and package design firms

were generally viewed as auxiliary services and were generally used on a per-project basis

(Kitchen, 2005; Belch & Belch, 2011).

An organization’s publicity, image, and affairs with relevant publics were managed by public

relations agencies but were not viewed as an integral part in the marketing communications

process. Many marketers isolated the various marketing and promotional functions, planned and

managed them as separate practices with different views of the market, different budgets, and

different goals and objectives (Kitchen, 2005; Belch & Belch, 2011).




And so on, this failure in coordination between the wide range of marketing and promotional

tools, created inconsistencies and blurred companies’ images in the minds of their target markets

(Kitchen, 2005; Belch & Belch, 2011).

In the 1980s, companies took a holistic view and decided to have a broader perspective of

marketing communication and a more strategic integration of their promotional tools (Kitchen,

2005; Belch & Belch, 2011).

The decade witnessed a rapid development in areas such as direct marketing, sales promotion,

and public relations, which began challenging advertising’s role as the dominant form of

marketing communication (Kitchen, 2005; Belch & Belch, 2011). This development led to the

creation of a new concept namely the integrated marketing communications (IMC). The IMC

concept involves coordinating the various promotional elements and other marketing activities

that communicate with a firm’s customers (Belch & Belch, 2011).

Ad agencies felt the pressure mounting as marketers embraced the concept of IMC and urged the

agencies to coordinate the use of the multiple promotional tools instead of relying solely on

media advertising. A number of companies were eager to try new things too, from using different

types of promotional specialists to developing and implementing various components of their

promotional plans (Belch & Belch, 2011).

To achieve synergy among the promotional tools, many agencies acquired PR, sales promotion,

and direct-marketing companies and aimed to promote themselves as one-stop shop IMC

agencies, where clients can get all their promotional needs (Belch & Belch, 2011).




Soon after, the advertising industry discovered that IMC was much more than a fad, and terms

such as new advertising, seamless communication, and orchestration were all used as synonyms

to the integration concept (Belch & Belch, 2011).

Thus, IMC evolved and developed over time from awareness level of integration, to image level

integration, to functional integration, to coordinated integration, to consumer based integration to

stakeholder based integration, to relationship management integration (Panda, 2010).

All these improvements allowed companies using IMC along with other marketing mix

components to obtain a competitive edge over their competitors. Technological advancements

facilitated interactions between companies and their customers which allowed organizations to

unearth valuable information, and to formulate and send the right messages through the right

channels (Panda, 2010).

Accordingly, the marketing communication landscape changed drastically and traditional ways

of communications, notably the mass advertising technique, became outdated. From then on,

good products and prices and distribution channels turned out to be insufficient by themselves to

create a winning product, and the communication’s r ole gained impetus (Kotler et al., 2008).

In sum, IMC became the voice of marketing creating brand awareness, delivering information,

educating the market and projecting a positive image of the companies (Panda, 2010).

In parallel, the need to integrate numerous communication channels and to deliver consistent

messages about the company made it necessary for IMC advocates to embrace a holistic view of

the communication process. The next paragraph will discuss the holistic view of IMC.




2.4- Holistic view of IMC

The bundles of messages sent by a company or by its various brands are the building blocks that

form the perceptions of customers about them (Belch & Belch, 2011).

IMC utilizes all forms of communication and all sources of company or brand contacts as

possible message delivery channels (Fitzpatrick, 2005).

The main target is to influence buying patterns and attitudes through directed convincing

communications sent to wide range of stakeholders (like employees, suppliers, channel members,

and the media) with the intention of influencing brand image and organizational reputation. In

the same context, stakeholders are increasingly playing a major role in defining brands and

reputations of organizations, which is giving IMC a prominent status as an important marketing

strategy (Fitzpatrick, 2005).

That’s why IMC advocates needed to consider all the sources of brand or company contact that a

prospect or a customer has with a service or product in order to tailor consistent messages to be

delivered via different types of communication channels (Belch & Belch, 2011; Kant, 2011).

Consequently, they maintained that the process of IMC required a holistic approach to planning

marketing, promoting programs, and to coordinating the various communication functions. They

emphasized on the importance of having a total marketing communications strategy, combining

firms’ all marketing activities to communicate successfully with their customers, and not just

focusing on promotion as it was the case before (Belch & Belch, 2011; Kant, 2011).

In conclusion, the IMC approach controls a company’s entire marketing and promotional

activities with the aim of projecting consistent and unified messages to the marketplace (Belch &

Belch, 2011).




Centralizing the messaging function through IMC facilitates the process of communicating a

common theme and better helps in companies’ positioning. Over and above, it allows companies

to speak with one voice and to have one look (Belch & Belch, 2011).

However, an effective integrated marketing communications process has to be well-planned and

has to follow a certain well-defined path. The next paragraph will be dedicated to overview the

steps in developing effective marketing communications and the most popular approaches in

setting communication budgets.

2.5-

Developing effective Marketing Communications and Setting total

communication budget

To prevent any chaotic results or confusion caused by the rich and fragmented media and

promotion mixes available, more companies are applying the concept of integrated marketing

communications (Kotler et al., 2008).

However, effective marketing communication follows a certain path. The communicator’s first

task is to identify the target audience. The next step is to determine the communication objective

and define the response sought (awareness, knowledge, liking, preference, conviction of

purchase). The third step is to construct a message with an effective content and structure and to

select the right media for both personal and non-personal communication. Thereafter, highly

credible sources should be found to deliver messages, and finally feedback should be collected

about market awareness, product usage, and customer satisfaction (Kotler et al., 2008).




The most popular approaches in setting the communication budgets for companies are: the

Affordable method (the budget is what the company can afford), the percentage-of-sales method

(the budget is a percentage of current or forecast sales), the competitive-parity method (the

budget is determined based on competitors’ expenditures), and the objective-and-task method

(the budget is determined based on what the company wants to accomplish with promotion)

(Kotler et al., 2008; Kotler & Keller, 2012).

The communication budget should be divided by the company among the eight major modes of

communication to create the promotion mix. Push or pull promotional strategies or a

combination of the two can be pursued according to the need of the company (Kotler et al., 2008;

Kotler & Keller, 2012).

The next section will be dedicated to discuss the factors influencing the choice of the

communication mix.

2.6- Factors to consider when designing the communication mix

There are eight major communication modes that companies can use to create the marketing

communication mix that is most suitable to achieving their sales and marketing objectives. Each

communication mode has its unique characteristics and costs that companies need to consider

when creating their communication mix (Kotler & Keller, 2012).

Even within the same industry, companies’ communication mixes widely vary. Some companies

might choose to focus on personal selling, while others might focus on advertising (Kotler &

Keller, 2012).




The factors that affect the choice of the communication mix include the type of the product

market, the buyer-readiness stage and the product life-cycle stage (Kotler & Keller, 2012).

The communication mix allocations vary between consumer markets and business markets.

Business-to-consumer companies usually spend more on sales promotion and advertising, while

business- to- business companies spend more on personal selling (Kotler & Keller, 2012).

Still, advertising can play an important role in business markets especially when introducing new

products, as it will increase the sales representatives’ chances to get a favorable first hearing and

will thus facilitate the adoption of the new product. On the other hand, personal selling can be

used by consumer marketers to collect weekly orders from dealers and to make sure there is

enough stock on the shelf (Kotler & Keller, 2012).

Also, the buyer readiness stage affects the choice of the communication mix, as the cost

effectiveness of the different communications modes vary according to each stage. For example,

advertising and publicity are most important in the awareness building stage. Advertising and

personal selling mostly affect customer comprehension. Personal selling is most influential in

gaining customer conviction. Personal selling and sales promotion affect closing the sale.

Reordering is mostly affected by personal selling and sales promotion, and at a lesser extent by

advertising which works as a reminder (Kotler & Keller, 2012).

The product life cycle (introduction, growth, maturity, and decline) also plays a role in the choice

of the modes of communication. Advertising, events and experiences, and publicity have the

highest cost-effectiveness when the product is at the introduction stage. Personal selling can also

be useful in gaining distribution coverage, while sales promotion and direct marketing can play a

role in inducing trial (Kotler & Keller, 2012).




Word of mouth and interactive marketing are most important in the growth stage, where demand

has gained its own momentum. Advertising, events and experiences, and personal selling gain

additional importance in the maturity stage. The decline stage necessitates strong sales

promotion. Other communication tools are reduced and the product is given minimal attention by

the sales force (Kotler & Keller, 2012).

Also, the proliferation of media has made it necessary for marketers to coordinate their use and

to combine personal and non-personal communication channels in order to achieve maximum

impact and increase marketing messages’ reach. For example, marketers can combine

advertising with promotions or with direct sales to maximize the marketing messages’ impact.

Online display advertising or search engine marketing can benefit from the brand positioning

created by advertising. Online and offline communications can also be coordinated to maximize

the impact of marketing messages. In fact, we increasingly remark the inclusion of web

addresses in ads (especially print ads) and on packages to encourage customers to explore

companies’ products, find store locations, and get more product or service information (Kotler &

Keller, 2012).

The type of product/market, the buyer’s readiness stage, and the product life cycle stage all

determine the best specific blend of promotion tools. Still, companies need to recognize the

importance of behaving in an honest and ethical way with their customers and resellers to protect

the company’s image and to boost their marketing communications (Kotler et al., 2008).

Digital technologies have revolutionized the way people and businesses communicate. The

advent of the internet and the advances in information and communications technologies had

participated in the development of IMC and had created threats and opportunities for companies

worldwide.




The use of social media networks and viral marketing to spread marketing messages are in fact

the main concerns of the current study. The next chapter will elaborate on the role of social

media as a marketing communication tool, whereas viral marketing will be discussed in chapter

III.




CHAPTER 2

Social media networks as marketing communication tools

At the 6th of August 1991, links to the fledgling computer code for the www were put on the

alt.hypertext discussion group so others could download it and play with it. In other words, on

that day and thanks to Mr. Tim Berners-Lee the web went worldwide (Ward, 2006).

The internet was a blockbuster and a major achievement that managed to change people’s lives,

the ways they communicate and do business, and became a medium that people both read and

contribute to. Later modern tools such as photo sharing sites, social networks, blogs, wikis and

others were all building on that earlier achievement known as the internet (Ward, 2006).

The growing number of internet and social media users had made it imperative for companies

who want to reach their target customers wherever they are- especially young people who spend

a lot of time on the internet- to actively use this medium to communicate their message.

In this chapter, I will be focusing on explaining social media: its evolution, definition,

classification, types of social media, and the opportunities and challenges they present for

companies. Finally, I will tackle the topic of the rise of social media, its transformation from a

way of social engagement to a marketing tool, and the opportunities and challenges related to its

use.




2.1- The road to contemporary social media

The era of social media as we know it today started two decades ago with the inception of an

early social networking site the ‘‘Open Diary’’ that attempted to assemble online diary writers

together in one community. In the same period, the weblog expression appeared for the first

time, and a year later the noun was transformed into blog (Kaplan & Haenlein, 2010).

Yet, this concept gained further steam thanks to the expansion and availability of high-speed

Internet access. That, in turn, led to the creation of social networking sites such as MySpace (in

2003) and Facebook (in 2004), and consequently contributed in the prominence of Social Media

today. Recently, ‘‘virtual worlds’’ has been added to this glamorous grouping (Kaplan &

Haenlein, 2010). Virtual worlds are computer based simulated environments containing three

dimensional avatars. One famous example can surely be Linden Lab’s Second Life virtual world

(Kaplan & Haenlein, 2010).

2.2- Definition of social media

We are demanded to understand two related concepts that are frequently mentioned in

conjunction with Social Media, to come up with a suitable and formal definition about it. These

two related concepts are: Web 2.0 and User Generated Content.

2.2.1- Web 2.0

Web 2.0 is a platform whereby content and applications are continuously modified by all users in

a participatory and collaborative fashion, and no longer created and published by individuals





Blogs, wikis, and collaborative projects in Web 2.0 have been replacing applications such as

personal web pages, Encyclopedia Britannica Online, and the idea of content publishing that

belong to the era of Web 1.0 (Kaplan & Haenlein, 2010).

There is a set of basic functionalities that are needed for the functioning of Web 2.0 such as:

Adobe Flash (a popular method for adding animation, interactivity, and audio/video streams to

web pages), RSS (Really Simple Syndication, a family of web feed formats used to publish

frequently updated content, such as blog entries or news headlines, in a standardized format), and

AJAX (Asynchronous Java Script, a technique to retrieve data from web servers asynchronously,

permitting the update of web content without interfering with the display and behavior of the

whole page) (Kaplan & Haenlein, 2010).

2.2.2- User Generated Content

Web 2.0 became the ideological and technological foundation to the User Generated Content

(UGC). UGC, which is the term depicting the diverse forms of media content that are publicly

available and created by end-users, achieved broad popularity starting 2005. Though, to be

considered as User Generated Content (UGC), three basic requirements should be realized. First,

it should be published on a publicly accessible website or on a social networking site open to a

selected group of people. Second, it has to display a certain degree of creative effort, and third, it

should be made outside of professional routines and practices (Kaplan & Haenlein, 2010).

The first situation eliminates content reciprocated in e-mails or instant messages; the second

excludes mere repetitions of already existing content (e.g., posting a copy of an existing

newspaper article on a personal blog without any modifications or commenting); and the third

excludes all content that has been posted for a commercial purpose (Kaplan & Haenlein, 2010).




Also, and regardless of the availability of UGC prior to Web 2.0, the mix of technological

drivers (for example, increased broadband availability and hardware capacity), economic drivers

(for example, increased availability of tools for the creation of UGC), and social drivers (for

example, the rise of a generation of ‘‘digital natives’’ and ‘‘screenagers’’) make UGC today

completely different from what it was in the early 1980s (Kaplan & Haenlein, 2010).

2.2.3- Definition of social media

Based on the above mentioned about Web 2.0 and UGC, I came across with the following more

detailed definition about Social Media: “Social Media is a group of Internet-based applications

that build on the ideological and technological foundations of Web 2.0, and that allow the

creation and exchange of User Generated Content” (Kaplan & Haenlein, 2010, p. 61).

Now that I have defined social media, it will be beneficial to explore the classification of social

media applications as a prelude to discuss the different types of social media individually.

2.3-

Classification of social media applications

There is no systematic way in which different Social Media applications can be categorized,

even though most people consider Wikipedia, YouTube, Facebook, and Second Life are all part

of this large group. In addition, any classification scheme has to take into account applications

which may be forthcoming especially that every day new sites do appear in cyberspace (Kaplan

& Haenlein, 2010).




To produce a suitable and a systematic classification scheme, I depend on a group of theories in

the field of media research (social presence, media richness) and social processes (self-

presentation, self-disclosure), which are the two key elements of Social Media (Kaplan &

Haenlein, 2010).

Concerning the media-related component of Social Media, it is known that media has different

degrees of ‘‘social presence’’ (vocal, optical, and physical contact) that they allow to emerge

between two communication partners. Intimacy (interpersonal vs. mediated) and immediacy

(asynchronous vs. synchronous) of the medium, both influence the social presence (Kaplan &

Haenlein, 2010).

For example, social presence can be anticipated to be lower for mediated (e.g., telephone

conversation) than interpersonal (e.g., face-to-face discussion) and for asynchronous (e.g., e-

mail) than synchronous (e.g., live chat) communications. Of course, the social influence that the

communication partners have on each other’s behavior will be larger when the social presence is

higher (Kaplan & Haenlein, 2010).

Tightly attached to the idea of social presence is the notion of media richness. Usually, the goal

of any communication is to resolve ambiguities and to reduce uncertainty. Based on that, media

vary in the degree of richness they possess, and in the flow of information that can be transmitted

in a given time interval, making some media more effective than others in resolving ambiguity

and uncertainty. Hence, it is assumed that a first classification to the context of Social Media can

be made based on the richness of the medium and the degree of social presence it allows (Kaplan

& Haenlein, 2010).




Regarding the social dimension of Social Media, in any kind of social interaction people usually

seek to control the impressions other people form of them. This might be done with the purpose

of affecting others to win rewards (e.g., make a positive impression on certain people); and can

also be driven by a desire to come out with a relevant image to one’s personal identity (e.g.,

wearing elegant and stylish cloths to be seen as young and trendy) (Kaplan & Haenlein, 2010).

A classification of Social Media can be done by combining the above mentioned two dimensions

(Refer to figure 2.1) (Kaplan & Haenlein, 2010).

Regarding social presence and media richness, applications like collaborative projects (e.g.,

Wikipedia) and blogs seem inferior to other applications, since they are predominantly text-

based and only permit for a relatively modest exchange. Content communities (e.g., YouTube)

and social networking sites (e.g., Facebook) enable users to share pictures, videos, and other

forms of media (Kaplan & Haenlein, 2010).

Figure 2.1: Classification of social media by social presence/media richness and self-

presentation/self-disclosure

Source: Kaplan, A.M., & Haenlein, M. (2010). Users of the world, unite! The challenges and

opportunities of Social Media. Business Horizons, 53, p. 62. Kelley school of Business, Indiana

University. Retrieved from http://openmediart.com/log/pics/sdarticle.pdf

http://openmediart.com/log/pics/sdarticle.pdf







The best of content communities are virtual games and social worlds (e.g., World of Warcraft,

Second Life), which try to reproduce all the aspects of face-to-face interactions in a virtual

environment (Kaplan & Haenlein, 2010).

Concerning self-disclosure and self-presentation, collaborative projects usually score less than

blogs since they tend to be focused on specific content domains. Social networking sites permit a

higher level of self-disclosure than content communities. At last, a higher level of self-disclosure

is required in virtual social world than in virtual game world, since the latter oblige users to act

in a certain way (e.g., as warriors in an imaginary fantasy land) (Kaplan & Haenlein, 2010).

Whatever is our classification of the different types of social media, the sure thing is that they

have invaded our daily lives where they are increasingly playing an important role. Next, I will

elaborate on six different types of Social Media and the challenges and opportunities they offer

to companies.

2.4- Types of Social Media

According to Kaplan and Haenlein (2010), there are six different types of social media

applications: collaborative projects (for example, Wikipedia), blogs and microblogs (for

example,twitter), content communities (for example, YouTube and Daily Motion), social

networking sites (for example, Facebook), virtual game worlds (for example, World of

Warcraft), and virtual social worlds (for example, Second Life).

2.4.1- Collaborative projects

Collaborative projects are probably the most democratic manifestation of UGC, providing end-

users the opportunity of content creation jointly and simultaneously (Kaplan & Haenlein, 2010).




In collaborative projects, there is a difference between wikis (websites allowing users to add,

remove, and change text-based content), and social bookmarking applications (allowing group-

based collection and rating of Internet links or media content) (Kaplan & Haenlein, 2010).

One of the most famous applications within this class contain the online encyclopedia Wikipedia,

a wiki available in more than 230 various parlance, and the social bookmarking web service

Delicious, which enable people to store and share web bookmarks (Kaplan & Haenlein, 2010).

Collaborative projects help in achieving better outcomes, thanks to the joint efforts of the people,

surpassing in the process any individual attempt. However, corporations have to be aware that

these collaborative projects are increasingly becoming a main information source for consumers.

This might constitute a challenge for corporations, for despite the inaccuracy of some of the

information contained in Wikipedia, more and more Internet users believe it is true. This can

sometimes negatively affect the reputation of corporations and cause corporate crises. For

example, “when online book retailer Amazon started to test the idea of dynamic pricing,

comments declaring such a practice as unfair showed up instantaneously under the Wikipedia

entry on (time-based pricing) (Kaplan & Haenlein, 2010, p. 63). Yet, collaborative projects also

offer wonderful opportunities for firms. For example, Nokia the Finnish handset manufacturer

utilizes internal wikis, to update employees on project status and to exchange ideas (Kaplan &

Haenlein, 2010).

2.4.2- Blogs

The earliest forms of social media are Blogs. These are unique websites generally displaying

date-stamped entries in inverse chronological order (Kaplan & Haenlein, 2010).

From personal diaries, to summaries of all relevant information in one specific content area, they

come in a multitude of different variations (Kaplan & Haenlein, 2010).




Blogs, who are run in general by only one person, allow people to interact and participate

through sending their own comments (Kaplan & Haenlein, 2010).

Despite text- based blogs’ relative dominance, other formats are also becoming popular. For

instance, San Francisco-based Justin.tv authorizes people to create personal TV channels through

which images can be broadcasted in real time from their webcam to other users (Kaplan &

Haenlein, 2010).

Additionally, blogs are being used by companies to update their employees, customers, and

shareholders about important developments and upcoming events. Yet, blogs have two negative

sides for companies: First, dissatisfied customers can engage in virtual complaints in the form of

protest websites or blogs, spreading damaging information online in the process. Second,

employees that are active on blogs, can for some reason turn against their employers and start

sending negative messages against them. For example, Microsoft’s former ‘‘technical

evangelist’’ Robert Scoble, was accustomed to fiercely criticize the firm’s products and kept

doing that until he eventually left the software company in 2006 (Kaplan & Haenlein, 2010).

2.4.3- Content communities

The major target of content communities is the sharing of media content among users. Book

Crossing, via which more than 750,000 people from over 130 countries share books, photos (e.g.,

Flickr), videos (e.g., YouTube), and PowerPoint presentations (e.g., Slideshare), are all examples

of content communities (Kaplan & Haenlein, 2010).

In this form of social media, users are not obliged to create personal profile pages; unless they

wish to give some basic information about them, such as the date they joined the community and

the number of videos shared (Kaplan & Haenlein, 2010).




However, companies fear that content communities might be used as platforms for sharing

copyright-protected materials. In fact, despite the strict rules imposed by major content

communities to prohibit and remove any illegal content, popular TV shows are being uploaded

on YouTube directly after being broadcasted (Kaplan & Haenlein, 2010).

On the other hand, YouTube serves over 100 million videos per day. With such a huge

proliferation and popularity, content communities are becoming a very attractive liaison channel

for many firms. For instance, Blendtec the manufacturer of kitchen appliances became very

popular and famous thanks to its creative and inexpensive ‘‘Will it blend?’’ videos, which caught

the attention of tens of millions of people. Companies, such as Cisco and Google, use content

communities to share recruiting videos, as well as keynote speeches and press announcements,

with their employees and investors (Kaplan & Haenlein, 2010).

2.4.4- Social networking sites

“Social networking sites are applications that enable users to connect by creating personal

information profiles, inviting friends and colleagues to have access to those profiles, and sending

e-mails and instant messages between each other” (Kaplan & Haenlein, 2010, p. 63). These

personal profiles can contain photos, video, audio files, blogs, and many other things (Kaplan &

Haenlein, 2010).

The largest social networking sites are: U.S.-based Facebook (at first founded by Mark

Zuckerberg to stay in touch with his fellow students from Harvard University) and MySpace

(with 1,500 employees and more than 250 million registered users). Social networking sites’

popularity is enormous specifically among younger internet users, to the point that the term

‘‘Facebook addict’’ has been included in the slang dictionary for the English language known as

the Urban Dictionary (Kaplan & Haenlein, 2010).




Social networking sites are being used progressively by many companies to help create brand

communities and for marketing research in the context of netnography (conducting ethnographic

studies on the Internet). In that context, Warner Brothers created a Facebook profile in 2007 to

promote the movie ‘‘Fred Claus,’’ allowing visitors to watch trailers, download graphics, and

play games. On MySpace, the Adidas custom soccer community authorized visitors to link

themselves with one of two brands of elite soccer cleats created by the company. It also provided

the visitors the chance to check product reviews and to get information on international football

players that are using Adidas shoes (Kaplan & Haenlein, 2010).

Moreover, several companies such as the U.S.-based florist 1-800-Flowers.com use Facebook as

a distribution channel. For example, 1-800-Flowers.com offers a widget on Facebook called

‘‘Gimme Love’’, where users can forward ‘‘virtual bouquets’’ to anyone they want, or even

transmit real orders to the company’s website for real flowers (Kaplan & Haenlein, 2010; Burg,

2012).

2.4.5-

Virtual game worlds

“Virtual worlds are platforms that replicate a three dimensional environment in which users can

appear in the form of personalized avatars and interact with each other as they would in real life ”

(Kaplan & Haenlein, 2010, p. 64).

In this sense, virtual worlds offer the highest level of social presence and media richness of all

applications examined earlier, and probably are the ultimate manifestation of Social Media





There are two forms of virtual worlds. The first one requires from the users abiding to strict

rules, in the course of a concentrated multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG), and it is

known as the virtual game worlds. Lately, the standard game consoles of Microsoft’s X-Box

and Sony’s Play-Station, both using virtual game worlds’ applications, gained huge popularity,

and permitted users from around the world to challenge each other simultaneously (Kaplan &

Haenlein, 2010).

Following are some examples of virtual game worlds: The cod-medieval ‘‘World of Warcraft,’’

with around 8.5 million subscribers exploring the virtual planet of Azeroth in the form of

humans, orcs, dwarves, or night elves, to fight beasts or to search for treasure; and Sony’s Ever

Quest, in which 16 different races of players (e.g., wizards, clerics) travel the fantasy world of

Norrath (Kaplan & Haenlein, 2010).

In all these games, the level of self-presentation and self-disclosure are usually limited, although

that veteran players, succeed eventually somehow to liken these games’ personas (be it warriors,

wizards, or dragon hunters) to their own personalities (Kaplan & Haenlein, 2010).

Virtual game worlds use advertising in the same way used in blockbuster movies, where

products are placed throughout the context of the games. It is also possible to benefit from the

popularity of virtual game worlds in the more traditional communication campaigns. For

instance, the Japanese automotive giant Toyota has used pictures and mechanics from the World

of Warcraft in its latest Tundra commercial and has managed to reach 2.5 million players in the

U.S. alone (Kaplan & Haenlein, 2010).

2.4.6- The virtual social worlds

The second group of virtual worlds, known as virtual social worlds, grants more freedom for

inhabitants to live a virtual life that matches their personalities and according to their discretion.




Virtual social world users interact in a three-dimensional virtual environment, and manifest in

the shape of avatars in the same way as in virtual game worlds. Still, except for basic physical

laws such as gravity rules, any restrictions on users’ interaction in this virtual form are

nonexistent (Kaplan & Haenlein, 2010).

Moreover, with growing usage strength and consumption experience, virtual social worlds’

residents increasingly tend to show a behavior that is similar to their real life conduct (Kaplan &

Haenlein, 2010).

A good example of virtual social worlds can be that of Second Life application of Linden

Research Inc. based in San Francisco. Second Life allows users to speak to other avatars, take a

walk, enjoy the virtual sunshine, create content (e.g., to design virtual clothing or furniture items)

and sell this content to others in exchange for a virtual currency traded against the U.S. Dollar on

the Second Life Exchange. Actually, many users benefited from this opportunity and made good

financial gains from this kind of business (Kaplan & Haenlein, 2010).

Virtual social worlds present plenty of chances for firms in marketing (advertising/

communication, virtual product sales/v-Commerce, marketing research), human resource, and

internal process management (Kaplan & Haenlein, 2010).

Based on all the above, I can say that social media has invaded the lives of millions of people

and is likely to have increasingly growing influence on both personal and corporate levels.

The next paragraph will be dedicated to discuss the rise of social media, its transformation from

a way of social engagement to a marketing tool, and the challenges and opportunities that result

from using social media networks.




2.5- The rise of social media networks

In 2008, 75% of Internet surfers joined social networks, read blogs, or contributed reviews to

shopping sites. One year later, Facebook the online social networking application had more than

175 million active users (Kaplan & Haenlein, 2010).

In other words, Facebook users were twice the population of Germany and slightly less than the

population of Brazil. At the same time, the video sharing platform YouTube was receiving 10

hours content upload every minute, and Flickr the image hosting site allowed people to access

about three billion images (Kaplan & Haenlein, 2010).

Moreover, not only teenagers, but also people aged between 35 and 44, increasingly joined the

action and became strong participants in this revolutionary new trend known as the Social Media


But how exactly did this social trend transform into a marketing tool and what are the challenges

and opportunities related to its use?

2.5.1-

From a way of social engagement to a marketing tool

At first, Social Media was merely seen as a way of social engagement, but soon after its

commercial value became evident to everyone, and ever after it was considered as the marketer’s

new best friend (Bacon, 2011; Goble, 2012).

In fact, the use of social media surpassed all traffic, circulation, and audience reach for all

traditional media channels, compelling marketers to take this serious shift in the media landscape

into consideration (Bacon, 2011; Goble, 2012).




Thus, marketers had no choice but to change their strategies in order to remain in business and to

stay strong and competitive. Accordingly, conventional strategies and the basic structure of

marketing campaigns changed drastically (Bacon, 2011; Goble, 2012).

Indeed, adopting new media and technologies like smart phones by a growing number of people

presented a golden opportunity for marketers to reach consumers 24/7. For that purpose, a

variety of media were used to reach the largest possible number of customers and to increase the

level of exposure to marketing messages (Bacon, 2011; Goble, 2012).

Surpassing all the limitations of traditional advertisement, social media guaranteed active

engagement, constant communication, and the expectation of direct access to anyone and

anything (Bacon, 2011; Goble, 2012).

Facebook pages, Twitter feeds and social mobile/location activities directly addressed the new

increasingly demanding expectations of consumers. They also gave customers the ability to

further explore things about companies and interact with them rather than just being exposed to

commercials for a quick moment (Bacon, 2011; Goble, 2012).

Nowadays, TV adverts are constantly bearing appealing messages at their end inviting

consumers to visit and enjoy exciting experiences on companies’ Facebook or Twitter pages.

Ultimately, consumers are using Facebook and other social media for fun and at the same time

are developing a sense of loyalty to the hosting brands (Bacon, 2011; Goble, 2012).

One good example of a campaign that took advantage of the medium and was able to effectively

propel a brand to the media spotlight is that of Old Spice’s YouTube campaign ‘The Man Your

Man Could Smell Like’ (Bacon, 2011).




This campaign went viral, received 350,030,581 views on YouTube, and became one of the most

successful brand campaigns ever. Moreover, it managed in transforming the image of the brand,

from an old fashioned and out of place in the contemporary market, into something trendy and

cool. Currently, Old Spice has a Facebook page, displaying videos, spin off games, challenges,

and naturally links to their retails pages. The site entices thousands of people and customers, all

keen to take part and play along with this clever marketing game (Bacon, 2011).

However, the use of social media by marketers is not only a source of unlimited opportunities

and global exposure. It also presents new challenges for marketers. The next paragraph will be

dedicated to explore these challenges and opportunities in a more detailed manner.

2.5.2- Some challenges and opportunities from using social media networks

Social platforms not only create appealing consumer experiences, but also offer customers a

direct line to the brand. Subsequently, things are getting more complicated, especially that

barriers between marketers and the PR agencies are nearly becoming nonexistent. Most of the

time, marketers are being the ones dealing with people’s enquiries, grievances and praise to a

brand via social networks (Bacon, 2011).

That in turn is offering the industry a unique opportunity to better understand the public’s

perception of a company or product, permitting both to expand the well received aspects and to

enhance those less popular. Thanks to the flow of real time feedback, brands are now having the

chance to react and deal with any upcoming issues instantly (Bacon, 2011; Troni, 2012).

However, time constraints and the influx of information are leaving little room for marketers to

come out with the best responses and strategies. Posting comments and tweets hastily has often

infamously produced significant marketing catastrophes that have damaged both the client and

their agencies’ reputation (Bacon, 2011; Troni, 2012).




Also, we shouldn’t disregard the possible drawbacks from flooding customers with inadequate

and untimely branded messaging. Intrusive or annoying brand social networking activities are

quite catastrophic for companies, and can be considered the best recipe to lose customers (Bacon,

2011; Troni, 2012).

Despite its shortcomings, social media remains highly attractive with a rising popularity that’s

overtaking the traditional forms of marketing. For example, TV commercials cost millions, are

poorly targeted, and do not allow data gathering. On the other hand, social media allows the

creation of online virals, costs next to nothing, has a far greater reach and targeted audience, and

allows for much more engagement opportunities (Anderson, Bodzasy, Graves, Henderson &

Tippett, 2010; Bacon, 2011).

Hence, social media managed to drastically change the marketing sector, narrowing the gap

between marketers and consumers and creating trust and interaction between the two around the

clock (Anderson et al., 2010; Bacon, 2011).

The advent of the internet and the development of social media applications have created new

forms of interaction both on the social level and on the corporate level. Marketers can no longer

overlook this new medium when devising their marketing communications strategy.

The next chapter will tackle the viral marketing concept that relies on the use of social media

applications to market an idea, a product or a service through the creation of a novel or

entertaining online message that prompts consumers to pass it on to other consumers (Howard,

2008).




CHAPTER 3

The viral marketing concept

Viral Marketing is today's electronic equivalent of the traditional word of mouth. It is a concept

that uses social media applications to create awareness or to achieve marketing objectives

through the creation of a novel or entertaining online message that prompts consumers to pass it

on to other consumers, which results in spreading the message across the Web like a virus and at

no cost to the advertiser (Howard, 2008).

In this chapter, I will begin by discussing the traditional word of mouth concept. Next, I will

explain the viral marketing concept, the six principles of viral marketing, and the viral marketing

techniques.

3.1- Word of Mouth Concept

Positive word of mouth marketing is accepted to be, according to many marketing connoisseurs,

one of the oldest known marketing communication tools (Kalpaklioglu & Toros, 2011).

Word of mouth (WOM) messages transmitted through known and relied upon people, are usually

deemed the most trusted instruments of publicity. In general, people exchange ideas and

comments about products and services, influencing each other in the process nine times more

than through a magazine, newspaper or television advertisement (Kalpaklioglu & Toros, 2011).

WOM has a strong impact on behavior, particularly on consumers’ information search, appraisal,

and subsequent decision making (Kalpaklioglu & Toros, 2011).




The Word of Mouth Marketing Association (WOMMA) defines word of mouth as “the

transmission of information about marketing created and transmitted by consumers to another”

(Kalpaklioglu & Toros, 2011, p. 4114). Nevertheless, according to the same association, word of

mouth marketing also “includes all efforts realized by the organization to affect consumers

related to creating and transmitting marketing oriented information to other consumers”

(Kalpaklioglu & Toros, 2011, p. 4114).

A research conducted by Nielsen Media Research on a sample of 26.486 people in 47 different

countries in 2007 showed that 78% of customers counted on other consumers’ recommendations

(Nielsen, 2007). A research performed in 2008 revealed that the ratio of consumers relying on

other neutral consumers’ opinion is 83% for the participants of the age group 25-35 and 78% for

the age group 35-64 (Kalpaklioglu & Toros, 2011).

In March 2011, 73% of the respondents to a research conducted by Lightspeed Research said

they trusted Consumer Reports, 62% trusted the opinions and experiences of other consumers,

and 58% trusted recommendations from family, friends and colleagues. The research also

showed that women in general are more likely than men to ask friends, family, and colleagues

for recommendations (Kalpaklioglu & Toros, 2011).

WOM supplies information concerning product efficiency and the purchasing decision’s social

and psychological consequences (Brown, Broderick & Lee, 2007; Cox, 1963). When people

share their opinions without having any vested interests about a product or a service, an

environment of trust will emerge as a result (Kalpaklioglu & Toros, 2011).

On the other hand, research conducted by White House Consumers Relations Department

uncovered that 90% of unpleased customers have declared that they will not buy the same brand

of product again (Kalpaklioglu & Toros, 2011).




Moreover, dissatisfied customers showed a tendency to share their negative experiences with at

least nine people, and 13% of them declared they usually share them with more than 20 people.

On the other hand, satisfied customers appeared to share their satisfaction with only 5 people

(Kalpaklioglu & Toros, 2011).

Knowing that a person communicates with approximately 250 different people every day, it

should come to no surprise how fast positive or negative opinions will be exchanged and spread.

World of mouth is considered by marketing literature as a marketing communication tool that is

in close relationship with other marketing methods. Although depending on it solely might not

be enough, using it as a part of the communications mix can be very useful (Kalpaklioglu &

Toros, 2011).

Nevertheless, with the emergence of internet and specially the social media networks, WOM

witnessed an exponential increase in its importance as a way of communication and interaction

with customers. This electronic form of WOM marketing is called viral marketing, and can be

explained as: “The marketing of ideas or products from one person to another by spreading like a

virus in a planned way as a part of word of mouth marketing following technological

developments” (Kalpaklioglu & Toros, 2011, p. 4115).

3.2- Viral Marketing Concept

Nowadays, compliance with technology and marketing approaches is a priority for companies

wishing to conduct more efficient marketing activities (Kalpaklioglu & Toros, 2011).

Thanks to the increasing number of internet users and consumers’ need of self expression, the

digital environment became an alternative platform and a necessity for marketing experts





Hence, the concept of viral marketing defined as “creating informative and entertaining

messages to be passed among consumers in a virtual environment” (Kalpaklioglu & Toros, 2011,

p. 4115) crystallized and materialized (Kalpaklioglu & Toros, 2011).

But what is exactly viral marketing?

Jeffrey Rayport the Harvard Business School Faculty member was the first one to use the term

viral marketing in his 1996 article called “The Virus Marketing” (Kalpaklioglu & Toros, 2011).

In 1997, Juvertson and Draper defined the concept of viral marketing as a “network oriented

word of mouth” (Kalpaklioglu & Toros, 2011, p. 4116). This definition was initially introduced

to explain the huge success achieved by Hotmail’s online campaign. In this campaign, Hotmail

added under every email sent the sentence, get your free e-mail address, and as a result the

number of users increased sharply from 500.000 to 12 million in just one year (Kalpaklioglu &

Toros, 2011).

Currently, Tupperware, Microsoft, PepsiCo and many other international brands use viral

marketing as their main marketing strategy. For example, Burger King has recently created an

on-line promotional campaign that promotes an interactive website, where visitors can type in

commands to the guy in the chicken suit to execute. Visitors are also able to notify their friends

about this comic website by clicking the “tell a friend link ” and providing e-mail addresses


In another instance, Workopolis, which is the authoritative source for finding jobs in Canada,

offered all MSN.ca Web site visitors the chance to transmit a fake press release to their friends

on April fool’s day. Many templates to choose from were provided, like announcements of the

sender’s new job as supermodel, TV news anchor, or even CEO. The viral campaign was a huge

success and exceeded all the expectations of Workopolis (Kalpaklioglu & Toros, 2011).




In fact, the concept of viral marketing has some advantages over traditional WOM, such as

(Yang, Yao, Ma & Chen, 2009; Kalpaklioglu & Toros, 2011):

- The easy storage of information in computers and on the web allows the digital word of-mouth

marketing information to be available on the internet for a very long time.

- People generally participate in the viral marketing process in their spare time, so it is by nature

a non-synchronous spreading mode of advertisement.

- Mutual communications on the web is much easier than those face-to-face in real life, since

people can stay anonymous and are not obliged to disclose their real identities.

- Digital word-of-mouth marketing can spread more widely, much faster, and at a much lower

cost than traditional methods.

However, viral marketing is a double edge sword. Potential, former or current customers can

send viral messages including positive or negative appraisals on a brand or service to be

transferred on the internet to many people or organizations (Kalpaklioglu & Toros, 2011).

Viral marketing is a powerful marketing tool. The speed of transferring messages and the

number of people to whom these messages are spontaneously transmitted are directly related to

the efficiency of viral marketing. Therefore, this electronic form of word of mouth marketing

that is practiced in a virtual environment promptly demonstrates its impact and at the same time

reaches to very large masses (Buyer, 2007; Kalpaklioglu & Toros, 2011).

3.3- The Six Simple Principles of Viral Marketing

According to Wilson (2012), there are six basic elements that could be contained in a viral

marketing strategy. Not every viral marketing strategy might need all these elements; however

the more elements it includes, the better the strategy results are likely to be (Wilson, 2012).




Following, I will examine each of these elements.

3.3.1- Gives Away Valuable Products or Services

In a marketer’s vocabulary “free” is the most powerful word. Valuable products and services are

given away in most viral marketing programs to attract attention. Free information, free “cool”

buttons, free email services, free software programs that perform important tasks but not to the

point of granting the “pro” version.

In fact, Wilson’s Second Law of Web Marketing “The Law of Giving and Selling” says: “Attract

visitors to your site by giving away something free, and then try to sell something additional to

those who visit” (Wilson, 2000, p. 5).

“Cheap” or “inexpensive” may create a surge in attention, but usually “free” will do it much

faster. That’s why viral marketers prefer to exercise delayed gratification instead of instant gains.

Even when profits are postponed, viral marketers know well that if they succeed in producing a

wave of interest from something free, they will soon be making huge profits out of it for the rest

of their lives. In other words, free grants will attract the attention of people, creating competitive

advantage and business opportunities for the concerned companies, including valuable email

addresses, advertising revenue, and ecommerce sales opportunities (Wilson, 2012).

3.3.2- Provides for Effortless Transfer to Others

At the flu season, public health nurses offer wise advices such as: avoid people who cough, don’t

touch your eyes, nose, or mouth, and constantly wash your hands. In business as in life, viruses

only fulminate when they’re easy to transfer (Wilson, 2012).




Accordingly, marketing messages should be conveyed through media that are easy to replicate

and transfer: website, email, graphic, software downloads (Wilson, 2012).

Viral marketing benefits a lot from the ease and inexpensiveness of instant communications

through the internet. This perfect medium with its digital format facilitates the process of

copying and transmitting (Wilson, 2012).

From a marketing perspective, marketing messages should be made as simple as possible to be

propagated easily and without disintegration. Concise is better. For instance in the example of

Hotmail: “Get your private, free email at http://www.hotmail.com.” The message is appealing,

brief, and transcribed at the bottom of every free email message (Wilson, 2012).

3.3.3- Scales Easily from Small to Very Large

Scalable from small to very large, the transmission method must have the ability to spread

rapidly like wildfire (Refer to Figure 3.1).

Figure 3.1: Replication of viral messages

1

11

1111

11111111

1111111111111111

11111111111111111111111111111111

1111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111

Source: Wilson R. F. (2012, May 10). The Six Simple Principles of Viral Marketing. Web

Marketing Today. Retreived from http://webmarketingtoday.com/articles/viral-principles/

http://webmarketingtoday.com/articles/viral-principles/






Careful planning should be conducted to make sure that the circulation of the message won’t be

threatened by any possible failure in handling large number of people (Wilson, 2012).

For example, the Hotmail model of the free email service had a serious limitation, since it

required its own mail servers to spread the message. In this situation, when the strategy achieved

success the rapid growth might still have bog down and died unless the company managed to add

mail servers very quickly. Multiplying to only kill the host before spreading will make the work

of virus useless and nothing will be accomplished. Hence, early planning to add mail servers

quickly will be the right answer to such a possible problem (Wilson, 2012).

3.3.4- Exploits Common Motivations and Behaviors

Common human motivations are constantly used to produce clever viral marketing plans.

Marketers utilize messages linked to human motivations and behaviors, such as love and hunger,

to drive people to send messages to their relatives, friends, and colleagues using Internet

channels such as e-mail, forums and chat rooms. For when people identify with the content of a

certain message, it will be easier for this message to find its way to the others (Wilson, 2012).

Actually, a message of that kind is very similar to a virus, since it spreads out in a very short time

and on large scale. A marketing strategy that is built on common motivations and behaviors has

many advantages: it is cheap, provides high exposure, and is very effective (Wilson, 2012).

3.3.5- Utilizes Existing Communication Networks

Despite some antisocial and isolationist minorities, men in their nature are social beings. Each

person has according to social scientists a network of 8 to 12 people, divided between friends,

family, and associates (Wilson, 2012).




However, broader networks include scores (groups of 20 people), hundreds, or thousands of

people, according to the role played by each individual in the society. For instance, a waiter

might have the opportunity to communicate with hundreds of customers every week, and so is

the case for many other people (Wilson, 2012).

Therefore, network marketers, who early realized the importance of these human networks and

relationships in their weak and strong forms, decided to use these networks to their best interest.

Hence, since internet users develop networks of relationships too, and collect email addresses

and favorite website URLs, affiliate programs such as permission email lists, actually harness

and exploit these networks. As a matter of fact, placing messages in the right way into existing

communications between people facilitates their rapid propagation (Wilson, 2012).

3.3.6- Takes Advantage of Others’ Resources

Brilliant viral marketers seek to use the resources of others to get their word out. A good

example of this are affiliation programs through which a vendor places text or graphic links on

others’ websites and pays commissions to his affiliates in exchange for generating clicks. There

are also the authors that give away free articles in order to appear on others’ websites. In the

same fashion, some news releases can be chosen by hundreds of periodicals to be published, and

thus become visible to millions of readers (Wilson, 2012).

In this way, another person’s webpage or newsprint will be rebroadcasting your marketing

message, and other people's resources will be depleted for your sake (Wilson, 2012).

The six principles mentioned above are important for achieving success in any viral marketing

campaign. In addition to abiding to these principles, marketers should be also able to use viral

marketing techniques. The next paragraph will explore some of these techniques.




3.4- Viral Marketing Techniques

In order to spread viral messages, viral marketers need to use viral marketing techniques.

Following are the basic viral marketing techniques such as: advergaming, e-mailing, blogging,

moblogging, vlogging, wikis, social networking sites, and rate and review sites.

3.4.1- Advergaming

After the year 2000, the game industry witnessed major improvements, developed to 30 billion

dollar budget, and gained big popularity. Thereafter, a new medium for advertisers surfaced and

became ever since termed advergaming (Kurt, 2008).

Advergaming is regarded as a game with an advertisement purpose and is related to the

advertisement of a product, brand or organization by using “internet video games”. Advergaming

boosts brand awareness and steer the attention of consumers to marketing messages


Thanks to advergaming, consumers can change their positions from passive receivers in

conventional channels to active participators, interacting with brands for minutes and sometimes

for hours (Kalpaklioglu & Toros, 2011).

In 2006, a research determined that 105 million people played advergames on the Internet. More

than 25 minutes were spent on advergaming by 50% of the players, and more than 1 hour in a

week was spent by 42% of the players. Game calls coming via e-mail were accepted by 90% of

the recipients, who subsequently played the game and shared their scores (Kurt, 2008).




Successful games last at least from 4 to 5 minutes, while the best ones last from 15 to 20

minutes, have difficulty levels that increase step by step, and expressively integrates brand

names to the game. Furthermore, new experiences and improvements can be added over time to

the game (Kurt, 2008).

Thanks to the power of the internet, advergames have taken their place in today’s marketing

world as an alternative channel for spreading marketing messages.

3.4.2- Blogging

Blogs, which are consumer based media tools, are considered by the marketing communication

and public relations experts a major tool of word of mouth marketing. These Internet diaries have

enabled consumers to become information producers for other consumers. Moreover, blogs give

the chance to attain thousands of people and perform an important role in forming the purchasing

decisions of those who like to rely on the experiments and ideas of other consumers


Personal and corporate image can be developed substantially by using blogs. In this digital

environment, the ideas and experiences of many people will be offered in an unfiltered form.

Blogging gives the opportunity to experts and wannabes to express themselves in the Web-based

marketplace of ideas. Firms ignoring autonomous product reviews and blog debates about

service quality can face severe consequences (Scott, 2010).

Indeed, firms are recommended to participate in such a social network, since shared experiences

and solutions can shape positively the marketing efforts of these companies. Blog activists can

influence the attitudes of other customers in a favorable or unfavorable ways (Sweeney, Mac

Lellan & Dorey, 2006).




Following are the basic characteristics of blogs (Sweeney, et al., 2006):

- Informal (great for relationship building).

- Easy to maintain (can be maintained by yourself or by the participating sites’ visitors).

- Informative.

The different purposes of blogs’ usage in the field of marketing are (Kalpaklioglu & Toros,

2011):

- Research.

- Determination, confirmation and analysis of word of mouth marketing,

- Advertising and evaluation of ads.

- Early warning system.

- Concept leading.

Throughout the years, Blogs have been developed and improved, and are currently divided into

two groups: diaries and news. Diaries are based on the personal experiences of bloggers, which

grant them higher credibility than any type of commercial messages. However, “news” blogs are

assumed to be the most useful application for the word of mouth marketing. A good example

corresponding to the “news” blogs type can be that of Slashdot.org that is a technology blog.

News or stories that are flowing to the site get instant comments and replies from the subscribed

members, creating an environment of continuous dialog and constant interactions (Kent, 2008).

Blogs play an important role in developing corporate image. Companies are advised to take

advantage of this new medium to boost their marketing efforts (Kalpaklioglu & Toros, 2011).

3.4.3- Vlogging

Video blogs or vlogs are the quickest and the simplest way to share videos with family, friends

or total strangers in the digital world (Bryant, 2006).




A “Video blog is a connection of video files posted on the internet, using a method that makes it

easy to update content quickly-combining the usability of a blog with video files” (Bryant, 2006,

p. 9).

When people discovered the power of blogs as a spreading tool, they decided to broadcast their

own videos on this medium, creating an online environment that enabled them for everyone.

Instead of reading and writing, cameras have been applied and internet diaries were kept in the

form of videos, sounds, and pictures. Soon after becoming widespread, video blogs appeared to

the forefront as an area of advertising and marketing (Kalpaklioglu & Toros, 2011).

Following are some of the characteristics of Video blogs (Kalpaklioglu & Toros, 2011):

- A video that can be downloaded and played outside of your Web browser.

- A regularly updated blog format.

- An RSS feed with enclosures, so people can subscribe to your feed and download your videos

whenever it is convenient for them.

Video blogs can be professional or personal. Personal ones are usually created to keep in touch

with distant friends, to preserve family history, to make new friends online, to make people

laugh, or just to stroke their egos, etc… (Kalpaklioglu & Toros, 2011).

On the other hand, professional video blogs are utilized by users to promote their businesses,

products, services or themselves. Professional information, educational background about

products, and customer service to clients or potential clients can all be posted through this

medium (Kalpaklioglu & Toros, 2011).




For example, World kitchens have a video supported internet site where they place

recommendations, views and opinions, as well as many recipes. The director of Operations at

Wine Library in Springfield and star of Wine Library TV, Gary Vaynerchuk, attracted a cult-like

following of more than 80,000 viewers a day, thanks to his unconventional, often irreverent

commentaries on wine (Kalpaklioglu & Toros, 2011).

The use of vlogging by corporations can be a good medium for spreading their marketing

messages, provided that the content of these videos is appealing or interesting to consumers.

3.4.4-

Moblogging

“Using a cell phone with camera or mobile device to send information to blogs” is called

moblogging (Kalpaklioglu & Toros, 2011, p. 4122). The word moblogging is a mixture between

the words blog and mobile (Kalpaklioglu & Toros, 2011).

The use of mobile ingredients of Web sites and of programs that reduce the interface of those

sites to accommodate small screens and to maximize their usability on tiny equipments allowed

social networking sites to enter the mobile space. In parallel, the increasingly important role

played by mobile phones in people’s lives made them a perfect channel for social sharing


Also, immediacy is a basic asset of social media, where fresh information is highly valuable

while old information is considered of little value. Therefore, since the mobile medium’s speed

exceeds that of PCs, mobiles are considered to be ideal for social sharing (Kalpaklioglu & Toros,

2011).




In the same context, mobile social networking applications and platforms provide an excellent

environment for content providers to launch viral campaigns. Content providers use specific

multimedia content (e.g., branded videos, branded wallpapers, ring tones, music, stories and

news) to help in boosting the demand of their services (Kalpaklioglu & Toros, 2011).

For example, uploading photographs of the famous hotel chain in the center of Hilton Head

Island to a moblog named www.moblogging.us gave popularity to the hotel among the

consumers following this moblog (Kalpaklioglu & Toros, 2011).

With the growing trend towards using mobile social networking applications and platforms,

Moblogging is increasingly gaining more importance and is proving to be an excellent tool for

unleashing viral campaigns (Kalpaklioglu & Toros, 2011).

3.4.5- Mailing

E-mail remains one of the most preferred communication media, where at least everyone has a

professional or private e-mail account (Kalpaklioglu & Toros, 2011).

Hence, it is a very effective method for those brands that want to reach customers directly, and is

considered one of the digital word of mouth marketing methods aiming to grab the attention of

consumers and to improve sales (Kalpaklioglu & Toros, 2011).

Moreover, entering to a web site and inserting the requested information allows for customers’

contact details to be taken to the web site’s database and to be used later as a direct marketing

tool (Kalpaklioglu & Toros, 2011).

Within the scope of integrated marketing communications, emails play a major role when used

properly to reduce marketing costs, and to generate reliable and valuable feedback related to

marketing campaigns (Kalpaklioglu & Toros, 2011).




Within the framework of word of mouth marketing, people transmit emails they have received,

as a means of help, social interaction or amusement rather than a marketing tool (Kalpaklioglu &

Toros, 2011).

E-mail marketing is authorized marketing and not spam marketing. Therefore, companies should

start by sending messages to the customers who gave their consent to receive e-mails, so that

these e-mails are not considered as spam and are not disregarded by the recipients. From then on,

companies rely on the attitudes of these customers to share the messages with their close friends

or relatives who might be interested (Kalpaklioglu & Toros, 2011).

Yet, to be successful, marketing campaigns using e-mails need to take several points into

consideration (Kalpaklioglu & Toros, 2011).

First, e-mails sent by brands should present clear opportunities for the receiver, and they must be

directed to the recipient personally. Otherwise, these e-mails will be deemed unnecessary and the

receivers will end up withdrawing from the mailing list (Kalpaklioglu & Toros, 2011).

Second, timing is very important to transform e-mail marketing campaigns into a viral marketing

tool. For instance, e-mails, e-cards, coupons which provide opportunities for customers, can be

sent on special occasions like birthdays, anniversaries, etc... A customer who stopped coming to

a store can be sent an e-mail containing an attractive coupon (Kalpaklioglu & Toros, 2011).

Third, the “send it to a friend” button and “share it with social network groups” button should

always be put under the text so messages can be sent to large groups (Kalpaklioglu & Toros,

2011).

E-mailing as a viral marketing tool is a very effective way to build brand awareness and loyalty.




In order to succeed in e-mail based viral campaigns, companies and brand owners should be able

to communicate with customers and potential customers in accordance with their interests


3.4.6- Social Networking Sites

Due to their viral characteristics, social networking sites are the best platforms for customers to

make their voices heard loud and clear (Kalpaklioglu & Toros, 2011).

In 1997, the first social networking site was established under the name of “Six Degrees”.

However, currently some of the most famous social networking sites are: Twitter, MySpace,

Facebook, Flickr, LinkedIn, Bebo, Netlog, Yahoo 360, Yonja, and Orkut (especially in Brazil).

MySpace, Twitter, and Facebook sites were developed with Web 2.0 (media for social

interaction) and reached to incredible dimensions with Web 3.0 (delivering more intelligent

searches and tailored information to users) (Kalpaklioglu & Toros, 2011).

In similar sites, information spreads interactively, and people count on the advices, experiences

and ideas of those they trust, and not just on commercial messages. Actually, an important

advantage of these sites is the opportunity they give to people to share and look at the answers

given to any questions. In addition, they allow users to benefit, evaluate, develop and criticize

activities making these social networking sites more trustworthy. Furthermore, users of these

sites can immediately communicate with each other, and most importantly can control the flow

and type of advertising and sales they are exposed to (Kalpaklioglu & Toros, 2011).

Throughout the years, a steady growth in the popularity of social networking sites took place.

For example, in 2008, MySpace users increased by 11.6% in USA, Facebook witnessed a 78.6%

increase, and the number of visitors of Flickr reached 14 million (The Comscore, 2008).




Yet, in 2011, the number of Twitter users surpassed 200 million users. The active users of

Facebook exceeded 800 million with their numbers steadily rising, and 50% of these active users

logged into Facebook every day. Average Facebook users had 130 friends, and more than 900

million objects were exchanged among these people (Kalpaklioglu & Toros, 2011).

These statistics demonstrate the importance of social networking sites in marketing

communications, image building, and relationship marketing, as they constitute an excellent

medium to spread corporate messages and tell companies’ stories. For example, British Airways

created a link between New York and London by using Twitter and designing a Metrowin web

page to advise customers about where to go, where to eat, and where to stay (Kalpaklioglu &

Toros, 2011).

Social networking sites are the best platforms for viral marketing as they allow direct interaction

between consumers, and provide them with the opportunity to exchange recommendations and

comments related to products and ideas (Kalpaklioglu & Toros, 2011).

3.4.7-

Wikis

Anyone with a web browser and internet access can view the content of these web pages known

as wikis, and even modify them as he/she likes. Wikis are described as; “internet encyclopedias

in which the internet users are free to contribute to the content” (Kalpaklioglu & Toros, 2011, p.

4125).

These collaborative and active group sites grant their users both the author and the editor

privileges. Accordingly, consumers can easily express their views, remarks, opposite thoughts

about every subject freely without insulting. Moreover, sounds, movies and pictures can be

loaded and multimedia presentations and simple digital stories can be formed.




To have an effective wiki, you first must have expertise in a particular subject to succeed in

attracting people, and then must find the necessary resources to keep this wiki alive


When they first appeared in mid 1990s, wikis were considered dynamic knowledge bases. Later

on, they became important viral marketing tools as they were used to spread current news,

information regarding product promotions, comments about famous persons, experiences on

products, brands or organizations, etc…(Kalpaklioglu & Toros, 2011).

Despite of the possible inaccuracy of the information displayed in wikis, more and more Internet

users believe it is true. Businesses can use wikis to display favorable information about their

products and brands or to spread company news and messages (Kaplan & Haenlein, 2010;

Kalpaklioglu & Toros, 2011).

3.4.8- Rate and Review Sites

These are web sites containing consumers’ comments and evaluations about products or services.

For marketing experts, these are important sites that help consumers to reach to purchasing

decisions; hence marketers are using these web sites as a new area for the implementation of

word of mouth marketing (Kalpaklioglu & Toros, 2011).

For example, with its content formed by consumers, the comment and evaluation site

TripAdvisor (www.tripadvisor.com) is approximately clicked 20 million times a month. This site

has about five million registered users, and provides information about hotels, restaurants and

world cities. This site constantly updates information of 23.000 cities, and contains photographs

and comments about 180.000 hotels all around the world (Kalpaklioglu & Toros, 2011).




Rate and review sites play an efficient role in the decision making of consumers, especially in

the service industry, where they have become a new area for the applications of word of mouth

marketing (Kalpaklioglu & Toros, 2011).

In the tourism sector in particular, many people depend on similar sites to benefit from the

experiences of others before buying a tour, or choosing a restaurant or a hotel (Kalpaklioglu &

Toros, 2011).

In conclusion, viral Marketing is a powerful marketing tool that can be used to spread marketing

messages across the Web like a virus and at almost no cost to the advertiser (Kalpaklioglu &

Toros, 2011).

Now that I have overviewed marketing communications, social media and viral marketing

concepts, I will focus my attention on the use of social media in the television industry. The next

chapter will be dedicated to explore the usage of social media in the television industry.




CHAPTER 4

TV Channels and social media networks

Few inventions have had as much effect on contemporary societies as television. Commercially

available since the 1ate 1920s, the television has become a major necessity in our lives and has

secured a commonplace in our homes, businesses and institutions. Since the 1950s, television has

been the main medium for entertainment, news and advertising (Stephens, 2000).

However, the advent of the internet has produced serious changes in people lifestyles, as it

provided them with new ways of entertainment, gave them access to unlimited information, and

exposed them to a large number of advertisements. In addition, the past few years has seen the

development of Internet television that allows viewers to watch TV programs and movies from

the internet on a PC or TV (PC Magazine Encyclopedia, 2013).

While television has remained extraordinarily dominant as a medium of entertainment and

marketing communications (The Economist, 2011), the internet is attracting more and more users

and has become an important marketing communications medium for advertisers and marketers.

For a long time, TV stations used to promote their programs on their own channels. Recently, the

development of social media and the popularity they gained among users has compelled TV

stations to embrace these new media, not only as promotion tools but also as a mean to have

conversations with the audience (Bergman, 2013).




In this chapter, I will elaborate on the use of social media as a part of TV experience. Next, I will

discuss the ideal fit between TV and social media networks, and the rise of the status of social

media and viral marketing at TV stations. The last part will be dedicated to the overview of

Neilson’s 2012 social media report.

4.1- Using social media as a part of the TV experience

Based on the latest reports and studies, the number of TV viewers who surf the internet while

watching television is increasingly growing (Bauder, 2012).

According to a US Media survey performed by Nielsen company (a global marketing and

advertising research company headquartered in New York, and active in over 100 countries, and

employing some 36,000 people worldwide) between July 19 and August 8, 2012, one in three

people using Twitter in the USA in June 2012 transmitted messages about the content of TV

shows at some point, registering a growth of about 27% from only five months earlier (Bauder,

2012; Nielsen official website, 2013).

Furthermore, the study found that nearly a third of the people aged between 18 and 24, reported

using the sites while even in the bathroom (Bauder, 2012).

According to Nielsen, almost 41% of tablet owners and 38% of smart phone owners used their

device at least once a day while watching television, while a year earlier, 40% of smart phone

owners reported daily dual screen usage. In other words, the percentage remained almost the

same. However, owners and users of these devices increased in number, and people were

employing them for longer periods of time (Bauder, 2012).




In fact, Americans spent a total of 157.5 billion minutes on mobile devices, nearly doubling the

81.8 billion minutes used a year earlier (Bauder, 2012).

According to the US media survey performed by Nielson, networks in the USA were getting

real-time feedback on what they are doing thanks to social media and the related technologies. In

fact, the performance of moderators at the USA’s presidential debates of the fall of 2012 was

closely watched, probably more than ever, since people were providing their critiques instantly

through social media channels (Bauder, 2012).

Nevertheless, some of the received information from social media might be conflicting. For

instance, social networks buzzed in the summer of 2011 with many complaints against NBC’s

policy of broadcasting many Olympics activities from London on tape delay (NBC is a US

television network). Yet, ratings for the prime-time Olympics transmission surpassed past

expectancies (Bauder, 2012).

In contrast, there is another big trend taking place lately in the USA: more people were recording

programs and watching them later. These two opposite trends boosted the value of live event

programming such as awards shows or sporting events. Nielsen’s study also revealed that 35% of

people using tablets while watching TV searched online for information about the program they

were watching. Moreover, coupons or deals for products advertised on TV were researched by

25% of tablet owners (Bauder, 2012).

Still and always according to Nielsen, the USA lags behind other countries when it comes to the

growth of social media usage while on TV (Bauder, 2012).




According to a global survey performed by Nielsen and that involved more than 28,000 people in

51 countries between March 23 and April 12, 2011, 63% of the people in the Middle East or

Africa and 52% of the people in Latin America use social media while on TV (Bauder, 2012).

It is clear that social media usage while watching television is a growing trend, and that viewers

are increasingly interacting on the internet to express their views about TV programs and even

about the products advertised on TV. The next paragraph will discuss whether there was a

perfect fit between television and social media networks.

4.2-

The ideal fit between TV and social media networks

For marketers, social media and television both form a perfect match made in heaven, which is

capable, as the industry develops, to change the way these two media operate (Mikho, 2012).

As a matter of fact, this symbiotic relationship between the two media is in the minds of

marketers all over the world. Social media networks have a growing ability to provide what

television doesn't, and television has the ability to remove the biggest argument against social

media networks, which is the lack of data standardization (the impressions of a social campaign

are difficult to measure) (Mikho, 2012).

However, before stating and comparing the advantages and disadvantages of social media and

TV channels, it is useful to learn few facts. First, the growth rate of the Internet audience

immensely exceeds that of traditional media. Second, the total number of users of new media is

less than that of traditional media. Third, the vast majority of the significant content on the

Internet is first issued by traditional media. Internet media just spreads the purport for the second

time (People’s Daily Online, 2010).




Fourth, traditional media's resources in brand, content and personnel compiled over its long

history is something incomparable for Internet media, and it is impossible to be overrun by

Internet media in the short run (People’s Daily Online, 2010).

As a marketing communication medium, television has both strengths and weaknesses. Its

strengths are: it is far-reaching, highly effective in impacting sales (a fact proven over years of

media-mix modeling), and allows accurate measurements in terms of determining the number of

homes reached by a commercial (especially in the United States where Nielson mainly operates).

TV’s weaknesses are that it implicates high advertising costs for the advertiser and it has no long

term benefits. In fact, when brands make media investments, impressions and sales increase

proportionately to the dollars spent. Yet, when ads stop, sales return to their previous status.

Conversation and subsequent conversion fade significantly as soon as dollars are out of the

market (Mikho, 2012).

The importance of social media can be very significant in this case. Increasingly, brands and TV

channel programs are using social media networks as an amplifier to support broadcast

operations, stirring earned media (publicity gained through non-advertising promotional efforts)

that boosts results while slashing the cost per impression (Mikho, 2012).

Moreover, social Medias' popularity, and the strong online presence of people, allows brands and

TV channels alike to observe and affect conversations in a way that assists them to keep their

rates high. Therefore, the short-term benefits obtained by televisions are being a prelude to a

longer and more prosperous relationship that is preserved and maintained through social media

presence. In other words, brands and TV programs now have strong loyalty-building

opportunities with the advent of social media, to complement TV messages (Mikho, 2012).




Unfortunately, social media is not without faults either. In fact, social media’s focus is

predominantly on providing measurable data, and not on gathering and improving the traditional

marketing tactics. Instead of being promoted as a great branding tool, social media has been

simply portrayed as being measurable (Mikho, 2012).

The bottom line is that social media is falling into the same trap as the digital technology in its

beginnings, when it presented measurement as its unique selling proposition (Mikho, 2012).

Furthermore, while data is a major selling point to social networks, it can be also considered as

one of their greatest weaknesses. The digital marketing expert Adam Kmiec stated:"Ask how

many homes a commercial reached and you'll get one number, from one source. Ask someone

how many impressions a social campaign delivered and you might get four different answers.

This creates skepticism" (Mikho, 2012).

Here, the link between TV and social media can be very useful to the latter, since it can form a

consistent measuring tool which reduces confusion and subsequent skepticism concerning Return

on Investment (ROI). In fact, marketers need to consider social media “as an amplification tool

for a TV-heavy marketing plan and plug it into a media-mix model” (Mikho, 2012).

Although social media isn’t capable of driving immediate sales, brands can use social media to

amplify the effect of broadcast advertisements, which drives low-cost impressions and increases

the brand-relevant conversation. In this case, the increase in sales resulting from social media

impressions “can be easily measured by comparing sales data to media dollars spent, both with

and without social support” (Mikho, 2012).




The complementary nature of social media and TV has recently pushed broadcast marketers and

social marketers of several brands to adopt collaborative strategies. Broadcast marketers started

to create engaging content to leverage the long-term benefits of social media, and social

marketers worked more closely with broadcast marketers to amplify reach and drive calls to

action (Mikho, 2012).

4.3- The rise of the status of social media and viral marketing at TV stations

Having discussions in social media with people who ‘like’ or follow TV programs can lead to a

stronger connection between the viewers and these programs, which leads to higher ratings and

consequently to increasing the number and monetary value of the advertisements displayed

during these programs.

Also, viral videos can instigate a lot of conversations on social media platforms about the TV

programs, and generate earned media and a positive buzz about these programs. This in turn can

increase viewership and ratings, and allow TV stations to charge higher prices for the

advertisements that appear during these programs.

Also, the use of social media and viral videos by TV stations to boost viewership of individual

programs positively affects the TV brand name in general, as it increases viewer’s loyalty to

these programs and consequently to the TV station itself.

4.3.1- Social media as a TV application

The television industry is a living proof that you can combine two channels in an interesting

manner and achieve strong outcomes. This industry is increasingly discovering a multitude of

styles to encompass an ever-social internet (Robles, 2011).




In fact, Internet’s growing popularity has enticed TV programs to associate online components,

including websites, as well as Twitter, Facebook and YouTube accounts (Robles, 2011).

In most cases, varying degrees of interactivity are provided according to the nature of these

components. For instance, a television program’s website might have a blog granting viewers

extra content, and the capability to leave comments. MTV uses such blogs in many of its shows.

In other cases, television programs might develop an entire social network around them.

American Idol’s website offers a social network granting fans the capacity to originate their own

blogs and fan groups, post personal photos, and chat with other viewers via message boards,

some of which have amassed hundreds of thousands of posts (Robles, 2011).

Branded games, Facebook applications, content aggregators, viral videos, mobile features, and

contests, are all other popular tools that can be used to create opportunities for interaction around

TV shows online. The big number of available tools for players and the ways in which these

tools can be applied are making the social web similar to a TV application. Interactive

components are giving viewers the opportunity to extend the consumption on even smaller

screens (computers and mobile devices), before, during and after consuming programming on

TV screen (Robles, 2011).

4.3.2- Social Media as a foundation for TV programming

For some programming, networks are actually integrating social media into their shows. For

instance, for several years now, Cable News Network CNN has been just doing that. Internet

content which is user-generated is integrated by CNN in diverse ways (Robles, 2011):

CNN hosts, such as Anderson Cooper, Don Lemon, and many others, make time to read

opinionated tweets to their audiences.




CNN.com readers are constantly encouraged by CNN's Jack Cafferty to comment on the

day's topics. Thereafter, he chooses the most interesting opinions, and read them to the

Situation Room's television viewers.

CNN runs a platform called iReport allowing citizen journalists to upload their own

stories, photos and videos. CNN will then verify the most newsworthy stories that will be

featured on-air.

In many cases, this sort of integration may not seem that important. However, integration

between social media and television is not in its entirety too subtle (Robles, 2011).

In some instances, social media is indeed the program. For example, take the popular Comedy

Central show tosh.0. This show is more than just a television-based assembler of funny and

shocking viral videos. According to the Los Angeles Times, “Tosh.0′ has done so well that it

has been attracting more men in the coveted 18- to 34-year-old demographic as the most

successful comedy on NBC, 'The Office'” (Robles, 2011).

The CBS sitcom “$h*! My Dad Says” can perhaps be an even more powerful example of how

social media can be used as a foundation for television programming (CBS is a television

network in USA). This program starring William Shatner is based on Justin Halpern’s Twitter

feed, who began tweeting things his dad was saying after he moved back home at the age of 29.

His Twitter account obtained a huge following, and soon after he signed a book deal and a

television deal with Warner Bros, proving that the internet, which is an axis for pop culture, can

be an important source for new content and programming (Robles, 2011).




In short, TV stations can no longer disregard the usage of social media and viral marketing as a

supportive promotion tool. The interaction between television and social media has proved to be

a fruitful collaboration capable of achieving strong outcomes.

4.3.3- Social Media as Talent branding tool

Social media is not just sparking new opportunities for aspiring content creators and viewers, but

it is also effectively helping existing TV celebrities to boost their personal image and to promote

their own personal brand (Robles, 2011).

For example, following his departure from NBC's Tonight Show, Conan O'Brien found himself

out of work. Consequently, he decided to resort to the internet, and more specifically to Twitter.

Within only few hours, he received more than a quarter of a million followers and the “I'm With

Coco” movement begun (Robles, 2011).

Eventually, O'Brien's online popularity enabled him to sign a lucrative deal with cable network

TBS, granting him everything he practically asked for, in addition to an eight-figure pay day in

advance, as well as an ownership stake in the show. In return, TBS obtained a real partner who

solicited with him an audience and a lot of goodwill. The O'Brien's TBS deal makes us conclude

that top talents today can construct a brand by employing social media (Robles, 2011).

Another example of a celebrity that has built a personal brand through the usage of social media

is Lady Gaga. In fact, Lady Gaga used to heavily interact with her fans on social media, in such

intensity and dedication that she recruited thousands of loyal followers. She is also one of the

celebrities that helped making virals successful (Nobel, 2011; Marketing week, 2012).




In fact, one of the videos showing her interacting with her fans and that was made available on

Google’s Chrome web browser was viewed a staggering 78 million times, and was one of the

main causes for Google to be named the “most viral” Fortune 500 company in 2011(Nobel,

2011; Marketing week, 2012).

Actors and media personalities can build their own properties on the web, own their fans, and

exert almost unlimited control over their creations. In other words, a strong internet presence is

arguably becoming the most powerful asset that individuals like Conan O'Brien or Lady Gaga

have. Accordingly, the power to build a brand is increasingly shifting from the networks or the

programming to the talents themselves (Robles, 2011).

4.3.4- Social media as a virtual water cooler

While TV networks are increasingly recognizing the importance and benefits of social media and

are integrating it into their programming, social media has quickly become a virtual “water

cooler” for viewers who want to express their opinions about the shows they love - and hate

(Robles, 2011).

Actually, the topic of television is discussed on a daily basis on the different social networks

from Facebook to Twitter. Social media affords an outlet for viewers to voice their opinions

about the shows they're watching, whether it is the season finale of a popular series or the

shocking elimination of an American Idol participant. For instance, Twitter reported over 4,000

Super Bowl-related tweets per second during the 2011 Super Bowl! A recent study conducted by

the digital marketing firm Digital Clarity, and which polled 1,300 mobile internet users under the

age of 25, revealed that “80% of young, mobile-savvy youth in the U.K. are utilizing the internet

and mobile internet to comment on television programming while they're watching it ” (Robles,




2011). Another study conducted in the United States by Nielsen discovered a comparable trend

(Robles, 2011).

However, in 2010, a study undertaken by the social media monitoring firm Viralheat revealed

that online buzz and ratings are not always correlated. Still, many people in the industry believe

otherwise (Robles, 2011).

One thing is certain though: digital blabber is supplying television executives with fresh insights

into what viewers think about their programs. At times, TV networks discover that their viewers

are more attached into their programming than what they were previously supposing.

For instance, in 2007, an online campaign was organized by the fans of the ABC series Jericho,

after which 40,000 pounds of peanuts were forwarded to ABC executives. The message (“Don't

cancel our show!”) was clear, and the executives decided to give the show a second chance

(Robles, 2011).

Surely, TV executives aren’t looking at social media as a mere feedback tool. In fact, the

prospect of impacting the digital chatter is tempting, and there are many efforts going in that

direction. For example, cable network A&E bought a Twitter Promoted Trend (an ad offer

provided by twitter which allows an advertiser’s hashtag or trend to appear at the top of the

Trending Topics list on Twitter) to spur the debut of a new show entitled Breakout Kings

(Robles, 2011; The Digital Marketing Glossary, 2013).

But arguably, paid media is absolutely not as effective as the earned media in the field of social

media (Twitter promoted Trends are marked as “Promoted”). FOX's hit show Glee is a powerful

example that illustrates the importance of earned media in bringing on success (Robles, 2011).




Due in large part to the efforts of its social media-savvy cast, which actually communicates with

fans via Twitter throughout the show; Glee is one of the most “tweeted-about” shows on Twitter

(Robles, 2011).

During a discussion at the Consumer Electronics Show CES 2011 (CES is a major technology-

related trade show held annually in the United States) in 2011, Twitter’s CEO Dick Costolo told

an audience: “People feel like they have to watch the show while it's going on because the

community is tweeting about the show and the characters are tweeting as the show's happening”

(Robles, 2011).

A similar dynamic was created in 2011 by Howard Stern, who tweeted live commentary during

the broadcast of his more than a decade old movie “Private Parts”. This led to a far higher

viewership ratings (Robles, 2011).

A very important aspect about Glee's social media popularity and the increase of viewership

resulting from Stern’s comments on Twitter , is the fact that this kind of social media interaction

that takes place behind-the-scenes doesn't require social media’s integration into the

programming itself. By making themselves accessible to the public, the “Talents” managed to

enrich the viewing experience of their many audiences, by adding a clearly interesting new

dimension to it (Robles, 2011).

Social media can be monitored, participated in, and integrated with other channels to create

synergies and produce better results (Robles, 2011).




The complementary nature of television and social media has led to the development of a

powerful, multi-faceted, multi-dimensional and symbiotic relationship between these two media.

This led to the enhancement of the experiences in both channels and to the creation of new

experiences that were previously not possible with either alone. In fact, the association between

television and social media has changed the nature and the scope of the conversations triggered

by television programs, and has affected the way television programming is currently developed

and the way television figures or stars market themselves (Robles, 2011).

Dana Hahn, news director of Fox O&O WJBK Detroit (DMA 11), who resisted integrating

social media into news operations at the beginning, states the following: “We have learned our

lesson. We really can’t survive now without being in the social media game. It’s a way to reach a

lot of people who aren’t watching the five o’clock news” (Marszalek, 2012).

In the following paragraph, I will explore the relationship between television and social media

further by taking a peek into Nielsen’s 2012 social media report.

4.4- Nielsen’s 2012 social media report

In 2012, a study commissioned by the Cable & Telecommunications Association for Marketing

(CTAM) and conducted by the research firm Nielsen in the USA revealed that social Media have

a great influence on people’s TV watching habits (Chmielewsky, 2012; Consoli, 2013).

An equal amount of men and women were surveyed. Both live and online interviews were

conducted with 828 adults of 18 to 64 years of age, and who are regular television viewers that

engage in social interactions around TV shows either online or through word-of-mouth (Consoli,

2013; Chmielewski, 2012).




The study discovered that social chatter - especially on Facebook- has a considerable influence

on what viewers watch on television (Chmielewsky, 2012).

According to the study, 46% of respondents declared they began watching a TV show because of

chatter on Facebook (Refer to Figure 4.1). 54% of the millennials or those aged between18 and

34 said they were influenced by the discussions on Facebook. The percentage was 48% for the

adults aged between 35 and 49, and 30% for the baby boomers aged between 50 and 54 (Consoli,

2013).

Figure 4.1: Distribution of respondents who started watching a TV program due to opinions

online, by site and age

Source: The Next Web (TNW) (2013, February 9). As the social TV industry comes of age, staytuned for what Facebook has in store. The Next Web. Retrieved fromhttp://thenextweb.com/facebook/2013/02/09/facebook-social-tv-checkin-feature/

Twitter rated second in terms of social media’s influence on TV viewing, but it laggedsignificantly behind Facebook. Only 14% of respondents declared they started watching a TVshow because of chatter on Twitter. By age, 21% of millennials said they were influenced bytweets on Twitter, versus 12% of the adults between 35 and 49 years of age, and 6% of the adults between 50 and 54 (Consoli, 2013).

http://thenextweb.com/facebook/2013/02/09/facebook-social-tv-checkin-feature/


http://cdn.thenextweb.com/wp-content/blogs.dir/1/files/2013/02/emark.gif





TV shows' own websites, forums and online discussion boards and general entertainment sites

rated a little behind Twitter, but far behind Facebook (Consoli, 2013).

The study found that 9% of respondents said they started watching a TV show because of the

chatter on a TV show's website. By age, 8% of the millennials said they were influenced by the

chatter on the TV show’s website, versus 12% for the adults aged between 35 and 49, and 6% for

the adults aged between 50 and 54 (Consoli, 2013).

Regarding chatter on Web forums or discussion boards, 8% of respondents declared they were

influenced to watch a show because of that. Within that number, 11% of millennials said it had

an influence, 8% of adults between 35 and 49 said it did, and 3% of adults between 50 and 54

also said it did (Consoli, 2013).

7% of respondents said chatter on entertainment sites stimulated them to begin watching a TV

show. By age, 8% of millennials were influenced this way, versus 9% of the adults between 35

and 49, and 4% of the adults between 50 and 54 (Consoli, 2013).

Less than 4% of respondents said Pinterest, Reddit, Viggle, Foursquare, GetGlue and IntoNow

(these are content sharing web services) motivated them to turn on a particular TV program

(Consoli, 2013).

The study found that females are more influenced by social chatter on Facebook than males, and

that males are more influenced by social chatter on Twitter than females. In fact, the study

discovered that 49% of the female respondents began watching a TV show due to social chatter

on Facebook, versus 43% for male respondents. On the other hand, 16% of the male respondents

started watching a show due to Twitter chatter, versus 12% for females (Consoli, 2013).




As for the biggest influencers on social sites when it comes to watching particular TV shows,

friends and family come first, coworkers and business colleagues come second, and the public at

large and the more casual acquaintances come third (Consoli, 2013).

The study asked respondents how often they talk about TV shows or their content. It found that

millennials talk about television more than the average TV viewer overall, including those in

both in the 35-49 and 50-54 age groups (Consoli, 2013).

The survey found that conversations about TV shows occur most often with people in the same

room while watching a show (67%), or in face-to-face conversations with people at various times

(63%). Discussions via phone ranks next (37%), followed by texting (31%), posting on Facebook

(29%), emails (25%), instant messaging (19%), tweeting and social network apps (each 17%)

and blogging (13%). It comes to no surprise that millennials do more TV show discussions via

texting, posting on Facebook, instant messaging, tweeting and social network applications than

do the older age groups (Consoli, 2013).

Respondents were asked when they typically talk about TV shows either in person, on the phone

or online; 49% said before the show goes on that day, 70% said during the show or during

commercial breaks, 75% said right after the show and 83% said the next day. Also not

surprisingly, live sporting events draw the highest percentage of conversation before or during

the show (Refer to Figure 4.2) (Consoli, 2013).




Figure 4.2: Distribution of the respondents in terms of when they typically talk about TV shows

either in person, on the phone or online

Source: Chmielewsky, D.C. (2012, December 28). Facebook friends fan interests in TV. Los

Angeles Times. Retrieved from http://www.sagactoronline.com/2012/12/facebook-friends-fan-interests-in-tv.html

This study has revealed that social media is influential for all viewers, particularly the 18-34 year

olds (Chmielewski, 2012).

According to CTAM’s Chief Executive Char Beales: “Networks need to provide many

ways for viewers to discover and talk about their shows — second-screen apps, fan sites,

network sites and by seeding social media — find out what works best for their audience,

and take advantage of the new opportunities to spur conversations” (Chmielewski, 2012).

Based on all the above, the cultivation of the relationship between television and social media

has currently become a must for all broadcast marketers, whether abroad or in Lebanon.

In the coming chapter, I will investigate the currently existing relationship between the Lebanese

televisions and social media through an empirical qualitative research based on in-depth

interviews with representatives from the Lebanese TV stations.

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CHAPTER 5

Empirical Research

The use of social media to boost the TV experience has become a must for TV marketers,

especially when it comes to targeting young people.

TV stations in Lebanon have lately begun to embrace this new medium to create synergies and to

increase the worth of the content delivered by their TV programs.

In this chapter, I will start by giving a general overview of the Lebanese television industry.

Then, I will explain my adopted methodology. Next, I will give a briefing about the interviewed

sample and the questionnaire used in conducting the study. Then, I will interpret and analyze my

findings and give my recommendations.

5.1- The television industry in Lebanon

Lebanon has a well-developed and diverse media landscape, especially in the television, audio-

visual production and advertising sectors (Dubai press club, 2012).

In 2011, the total TV penetration on households was 93%, the mobile penetration on population

76%, and the Broadband penetration on population 7% (Dubai press club, 2012).

Internet user penetration was rated at 31% in 2011-12. Lebanon tops the list of Arab countries

using English for social media, and is amongst the top five countries in the region utilizing

Facebook (Dubai press club, 2012).




In fact, Facebook is by far the most popular website in Lebanon, with a penetration of 30%

(remarkably higher than the fixed broadband penetration), followed by YouTube and Twitter.

Regarding local content, political websites are amongst the Top 20 websites in the country

(Dubai press club, 2012).

In the Lebanese market, there are two important television platforms: analog terrestrial (14% of

households) and free satellite (83% of households) (Dubai press club, 2012).

Compared to the other countries of the region, Lebanon has a relatively high penetration of cable

TV, however the high domination of illegal cable connections indicates that the official cable

penetration rate is low (<5%) (Dubai press club, 2012).

With many terrestrial channels and their affiliated Free to Air (FTA) satellite channels,

Lebanon’s domestic broadcasting scene is very well developed. Many TV stations are politically

affiliated, and are considered as an important tribune for expression of political opinions (Dubai

press club, 2012).

In terms of popularity, unlike other countries where pan-Arab channels dominate, domestic

channels in Lebanon- and the Lebanese Broadcasting Corporation (LBC) in particular- have

historically ranked the highest. However, channels’ popularity depends on the platform.

Although local channels occupy the top positions overall, pan-Arab satellite TV viewers can

easily tune in to the large pan-Arab broadcasters, such as, the MBC channels (Dubai press club,

2012).

Tele Liban -which was established in 1957- is the only Lebanese government owned TV

channel in Lebanon. LBC (Lebanese Broadcasting Corporation) was the first launched private

TV network in Lebanon in 1985 (Dubai press club, 2012).




Other TV channels include MTV, Future TV, Al Manar TV, NBN (National Broadcasting

Network), Al Jadeed TV, OTV (Orange TV), and Tele Lumiere (Dubai press club, 2012).

Some of the smaller domestic channels were severely impacted in 2011 after the drop in

advertising budgets, and were only able to survive thanks to alternative funding, from the various

political parties that support them. The fragmentation of the TV market in Lebanon and the

increasing local and regional competition that these TV stations are facing only compounded to

the problem (Dubai press club, 2012).

Local television is the dominant advertising platform in Lebanon, with a share close to 38% of

total advertising expenditures in 2011 (Refer to Appendix A). Moreover, local television

advertising spending is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 5% over

the period from 2011 to 2015, and is expected to reach 66$ million by 2015 (Dubai press club,

2012).

A report published in February 2012 by the Arab Ad magazine indicated that political news

bulletins received 32% of total TV advertising, followed by comedy programs which attracted a

9% share (The Daily Star, 2012).

Comparing to regional standards, the size of the domestic TV advertising market is considered

high, and is estimated at around 54$ million. Nevertheless, it is low considering the very

competitive nature of the market comporting numerous FTA broadcasters (Dubai press club,

2012).

The digital platform - which has been strongly adopted by the young and highly educated

Lebanese population - is increasingly used by the traditional media players in Lebanon as an

alternative way to engage with audiences. In general, Lebanese broadcasters offer a kind of live-

streaming on their portal (Dubai press club, 2012).




For example, MTV has invested in its digital platform with the release of MTV online and a free

mobile application which allows live streaming of MTV news notifications, with photos and

videos, video-on-demand and archived bulletins and shows (Dubai press club, 2012).

Also, all Lebanese TV stations have official Websites and all have a presence over social media

except Tele Liban (Tele Liban has a website but no social media presence) (Refer to Appendix B

to view two snapshots of the TV stations’ presence over Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube taken

at 3-4-2013 and at 13-8-2013 along with an analysis to these two snapshots. It is worth noting

that the first snapshot was taken before the execution of the interviews to evaluate the online

presence of the TVs’ before getting in touch with them, while the second was taken a month and

a half after the execution of the interviews to detect if there was any significant change in the

general trends detected before).

Since my research is about the use of social media and viral marketing, Tele Liban will be

excluded from it.

In the following paragraph, I will introduce the method of research that I will subsequently use:

the qualitative method.

5.2- The Selected method of research: The Qualitative method

Qualitative research is defined as “research that derives data from observation, interviews, or

verbal interactions and focuses on the meanings and interpretations of the participants”

(Holloway and Wheeler, 1995, p. 223).




Since the number of domestic televisions in Lebanon is limited (nine TV stations and only eight

with online social presence) and since my research is exploratory in nature (as it studies a topic

about which there is little information), I have decided to adopt the qualitative method of

research (Guest, Namey & Mitchell, 2013).

Qualitative research is exploratory by definition, and it is utilized when we are not sure of what

to expect, how to determine the nature of a problem or prepare an approach to a problem. It is

also used to explore nuances related to the problem at hand and go deeper into issues of interest.

Focus groups, triads, dyads, in-depth interviews, uninterrupted observation, bulletin boards, and

ethnographic participation/observation, are common data collection methods used in qualitative

research (Mora, 2010).

Hence, qualitative research method is perfect to improve an initial comprehension of an issue or

problem, to look for a scope of ideas and feelings about something, and to understand different

perspectives between classes and groups of people (Mora, 2010).

The data gathered from this kind of research affords a fertile, elaborated picture of reality and is

therefore very helpful when it comes to exploring a new topic (Learn Higher and Manchester

Metropolitan University (MMU), 2008, Learning to analyze qualitative data).

Moreover, it helps in discovering the tacit motivations and factors that influence decision making

and opinions, provides information needed to design a quantitative study, and even interprets the

findings extracted from a quantitative study (Mora, 2010).

It is worth noting that quantitative research is defined as “explaining phenomena by collecting

numerical data that are analyzed using mathematically based methods (in particular statistics)”

(Aliaga & Gunderson, 2000, p.3).




“Quantitative studies emphasize the measurement and analysis of causal relationships between

variables, not processes” (Denzin & Lincoln, 2000, p. 8). Quantitative research is often used to

find evidence that either supports or contradicts a certain idea or hypothesis (Learn Higher and

MMU, 2008, Learning to analyze quantitative data).

Its main advantage is that it “allows for a broader study, involving a greater number of subjects,

and enhancing the generalization of the results” (Learn Higher and MMU, 2008, Learning to

analyze quantitative data). In fact, quantitative methods allow researchers to “to summarize vast

sources of information and facilitate comparisons across categories and over time” (Learn Higher

and MMU, 2008, Learning to analyze quantitative data). The main disadvantage of quantitative

research is that it collects “a much narrower and sometimes superficial dataset” (Learn Higher

and MMU, 2008, Learning to analyze quantitative data) and that it provides numerical

descriptions rather than detailed narrative about a certain situation or issue (Learn Higher and

MMU, 2008, Learning to analyze quantitative data).

On the other hand, the advantages of qualitative data analysis are (Learn Higher and MMU,

2008, Learning to analyze qualitative data):

- Qualitative research provides depth and detail, looks deeper and doesn’t rely on just

analyzing static data. It also permits to record attitudes, feelings and behaviors.

- It creates openness, stimulates people to elaborate on their answers, and on opening new

topics for consideration.

- It mimics people's personal experiences, giving a realistic picture about why and how

people act in certain ways, and their feelings about these actions.




- If used alongside quantitative data collection, it can help to avoid prejudices, and

consequently explain why a particular response was given.

The disadvantages of using qualitative data analysis are (Learn Higher and MMU, 2008,

Learning to analyze qualitative data):

- When adopting a qualitative research method, fewer people are generally studied;

especially that collecting qualitative data usually needs more time than quantitative data.

Therefore, it is generally necessary to have a smaller sample size unless time, staff and

budget permits.

- Generalizing is much harder when using this form, since fewer people are usually

studied. So, it is not possible to popularize the results on the others.

- When people give widely differing responses, which are highly subjective, it becomes

much more difficult to make systematic comparisons.

-

It highly depends on the talents of researchers, especially when conducting interviews,

focus groups and observation.

Now that I have discussed the advantages and disadvantages of the qualitative research method,

and explained the conditions which necessitate the use of this method and which apply to my

current study, I am ready to move on to the next phase and start the field work that will be based

on in-depth interviews with representatives of the Lebanese televisions.




5.3- The sample and the interviews

The original plan was to interview representatives from all eight Lebanese TV stations that have

a presence over social networks. However, interviews could only be held with six representatives

from six stations, which are: Tele Lumiere, OTV, MTV, Al-Manar, Al-Jadeed, NBN (Refer to

Appendix C).

The empirical research section was conducted during the months of May and June 2013 and was

based on in-depth interviews with the Managers responsible of managing the online presence of

the interviewed TVs.

All TV stations were contacted by phone, where an interview with the people in charge of the

TVs’ online presence was requested. Three out of eight were also visited to make a direct contact

with the television and be able to get an appointment with the person in charge of the TV’s

online presence. The two TV stations that did not participate in the study were also contacted

through third parties related to the TVs in question. These middlemen tried to get me an

appointment with the person in charge of the online presence. Unfortunately, they were not

successful in their quest. Some TVs showed some reluctance at the beginning. It took sometimes

a big number of phone calls and a long time to be able to get in contact with the right individual

in the interviewed TVs. However, once the contact was made and the interview’s date was set,

the procedure went smoothly.

The interviews were based on a questionnaire that I used as a guideline and not as a

questionnaire per say (Refer to Appendix D). The questionnaire was prepared in a way not to

hurt or attack political affiliations. The same questionnaire was used in conducting all interviews.




The interviews consumed an average of one hour, were conducted in Arabic, were recorded and

translated. The information provided by the interviewees was coded manually to determine the

differences and similarities between the different TV stations in terms of online presence.

The next paragraph will be dedicated to summarizing and analyzing the findings. These findings

are all based on the views and information given by the interviewees. The analysis is based on

the views of the interviewees and or my personal interpretation of the information provided by

them.

5.4-

Summary and Analysis of the findings

All the interviewed TV stations’ representatives expressed a deep belief in the importance of

using social media networks and other forms of online presence (especially websites) to promote

the TV stations and their various programs.

In fact, online media are considered useful extensions for conventional TV stations allowing

them to reach people that are out of their range of coverage in terms of time and space (living in

other countries, not being able to watch the programs at the time of display, having time

constraints) and or that belong to different behavioral groups than the classic television viewers

(selective in terms of what to see and when to see it, searching for convenience, technology

oriented, heavy internet users…).

TVs’ presence on different platforms is also very important to extend the reach of TVs and

achieve ubiquity. That’s why TVs often work on creating applications (mobile applications,

tablet applications, applications on other gadgets and devices) that allow the users to access TVs’

online pages via different digital platforms.




One of the most important platforms currently used by TVs are mobile phones (via mobile

applications) which constitute one of the most used digital platforms in Lebanon (more than 60%

of the population are currently using smart phones). Five out of six TVs have also plans to

create applications for the new devices that will be launched in the future.

TVs’ websites are considered the headquarters of all forms of online presence. A strong website

is the basis for a strong online presence. According to the Head of Web and News Services at

MTV, MTV’s website is the base of all its online operations, while social media and other tools

are the means that are used to attract traffic to the website. According to the Webmaster of Al-

Manar website, the first and most important pillar of Al-Manar’s electronic strategy is the

Website. According to the Chief Everything Officer of Dotcom company (the company

responsible for managing NBN TV’s online presence), the success benchmark for online

presence is the website and the ideal scenario is to be able to drive traffic from social networks to

the website.

Unlike websites (which are one-way communication models), social media are places where

two-way communication takes place between the users and the TV stations. Users get to speak

their mind about the offerings of the TV stations and TV stations get to react and respond to the

claims and the demands of the users via different means (direct responses, taking corrective

measures, improving the offerings…).

In fact, TVs’ social media pages are online platforms where users can express themselves freely

and give their opinions regarding everything that interests them such as political events, news,

TV programs, TV presenters and anchors, the station itself...




Consequently, these platforms allow TV stations to get valuable feedback from users and to use

this feedback to shape and enhance their strategies and tactics.

Indeed, the feedback received from the users help the stations ameliorate their offerings both on

the screen and off the screen (on digital platforms), take corrective measures when necessary,

and plan for better or more targeted offerings in the future. They also help the stations to better

understand their viewers and online users, to determine the demographic and behavioral profiles

of the online users, and to consequently tailor more targeted offerings and to anticipate the

reactions of the users towards these new offerings.

Social media can also be used by TV stations to access important information and or interesting

footages, pictures and reports that can be used both on the online pages and on normal TV (via

the “You Reporter” service for example or simply through direct interaction from the part of the

users). They can also be used to spread news and footages, to promote for the programs and to

incite online users to go to the website.

Also, social media contribute in building strong relationships between the TV stations and their

audiences. In fact, the possibility of free expression and the dialogue and interaction that occur

on these platforms (between the TV and the online users on the one hand and between the users

themselves on the other hand) increases users’ satisfaction and loyalty (especially when TVs

refer to these contributions or use them on normal TV) and encourages new people to become

active participants on social pages.

Moreover, social media offer users the opportunity to interact with each other, which contributes

in heating up the conversations and increasing the level of interactions.




In sum, social media function as listening tools and dialogue platforms. They are used to increase

the level of online interactions, to drive traffic to the website, to promote for the stations and

their programs, to create a buzz about the televisions and their different offerings, to support and

enhance these offerings, to create a stronger bond with the audiences and to attract new

audiences.

All interviewed TV stations are committed towards ensuring the free flow of the conversations

on social media. Online teams do not interfere on social media unless there is a question to

answer or a clarification to make or there is a need to remove comments containing offensive

language (swearing or cursing). Otherwise, the conversations flow freely even if they contain

criticism or strong opinions.

As a matter of fact, the free flow of the conversation on TVs’ online pages is most beneficial,

because it allows TV stations to reflect a positive image, to listen to the true opinions of the

users, to better understand online users and their needs, to keep old users and to attract new

ones…

All these lead to increasing the levels of online interactions, which ultimately benefits the TV

stations. In fact, even the expression of negative or controversial opinions can lead to increasing

the level of online interactions by heating up the online conversations.

On the other hand, the removal of an opinion expressed online might backlash on the TV station

and negatively affect its image (it will be considered an autocratic behavior). In fact, the world

of the internet is a free space where negative opinions can spread fast. People who feel alienated

by a certain institution can retaliate by spreading negative comments about it on cyber space and

or by asking their friends to do so.




There are several opinions about the relationship between the level of online interactions and the

viewership rates (some TV stations’ representatives gave two interpretations about this issue and

not a single conclusive opinion). One opinion is that the programs that attract most of the online

interactions are the ones that have the highest viewership rates. In other words, the success on

conventional TV is reflected on social media networks (at least to a certain extent).

Another opinion is that the level of online interaction is the real indicator of success on normal

TV and not the viewership rates calculated by research companies. Another opinion states that

the high levels of online interactions are not necessarily related to high viewership rates on

normal TV, because the internet audience is sometimes different than the conventional TV

viewers or that the subject being discussed appeals to online audiences more.

On the other hand, four out of six TV officials stated that a program that attracts a high level of

interaction on social media or the promotion of a program on social media might incite online

surfers to watch it on normal TV.

Half of the interviewed TV stations’ representatives stated that they believe in online statistics

more than normal statistics and or that the divergence between the levels of online interaction

and the viewership rates on normal TV might be due to the way statistics for normal viewership

are gathered.

According to these TV officials, the online statistics provided by the online pages through the

Google Analytics service are more accurate than the normal statistics, because they take into

consideration the whole population that interacts with the TV through digital media, while the

normal statistics only take a sample of the population (that sometimes isn’t truly representative

of the whole Lebanese population) and extrapolate the results.




This is why there is sometimes a divergence between the rates registered on digital media and the

normal viewership rates and this is why online statistics are more accurate and more reflective of

the viewers’ real preferences than normal statistics.

In fact, all televisions have a Google Analytics service attached to their different online pages

and that generates detailed statistics about the online pages’ traffic and traffic sources (the

number of entries, the length of entries, the return entries, the referrals from the social media

pages to the official website, the number of entries related to a specific subject or picture or

footage or page...) and about the profiles (age and gender) and whereabouts of the online users.

It is worth noting though that the degree of accuracy of the analytics related to the profiles of the

users is dependent on the accuracy of the information provided by these users on their online

accounts. The Google Analytics service also offers the televisions the possibility to monitor

online interaction in real time through a feature called Real Time.

Analytics are considered accurate because they take into consideration all the online interactions

on the different online pages or the entire population of online users, and not only a sample of

the population like it is the case with normal statistics.

Four out of six of the TVs’ online officials think that most of the people interacting with the TV

on digital media are different from the people who view the TV programs on normal TV.

This argument is partly justified by the fact that a large part or the majority of the online users in

all televisions live abroad (some in places where broadcast through normal satellite is not

available or is difficult to capture). Another justification is that there are large segments of

online users that rely mostly on the internet for entertainment and for accessing information and

that do not watch a lot of television.




According to online officials, people interacting with the TV via the internet might be those who

are unable to view the programs at their time of display (because they live in other countries

where the timing is different or are simply occupied at the time of display), and or those who are

heavy internet users that watch television very little (especially the young), and or people with

time constraints, and or people who like to be selective in terms of what to watch and when to

watch it, and or people who like to express their opinions and to interact with other users.

Lebanese TV stations send consistent messages through both conventional and digital media.

The messages sent by the TVs via their online pages reflect the image and the values of each

station and are within the frame of their broader strategies and visions. Also, TV stations use

digital media in coordination with their other marketing tools and activities to deliver consistent

and clear messages about the stations and their offerings.

On the other hand, online media have been used by one of the televisions to change its image and

to reposition itself in the minds of its current and potential viewers. In fact, the television in

question used digital media to change people’s perspectives about the station and was thus able

to attract new segments of people (especially young males).

However, this change remained consistent with the original vision and mission of the television

and the messages delivered via internet were consistent with the messages coming from other

communication channels.

In sum, all stations embrace the concept of IMC in their marketing activities.




When asked about the age and gender of the majority of online users, the representatives from all

TVs said that the majority are males with ages ranging from 15 to 60 years old (Refer to Table

5.1). Their statements were based on the statistics or the analytics provided by the different

online pages.

Table 5.1: The distribution of the majority of TV stations’ online users in terms of age and

gender according to the information given by the different TV stations’ representatives

Age of social media users Gender of social media users

TeleLumiere

Between 15 & 25 years old on all differentsocial media platforms and between 25 & 40 on

YouTube

The majority are Males.

OTV Users from Lebanon: Between 20 & 30 yearsold.Users from foreign countries: Less than 45 yearsold.Users from Arab countries: Between 18 & 30years old.

The majority are Males.

MTV Most interactive users on social media belong tothe group age 18-24.The rest of the users are between 16 & 64 yearsold.

The largest proportion of those who enter thewebsite is the age group 24-35, followed by theage group 18-24.

On YouTube: 69% males and31% females.On the Website: 56% malesand 44% females.

Al-Manar Between 24 & 60 years old.Almost equal distribution among age groups.Users from foreign countries: Mostly more than24 years old.

50 % males and 50% females.

Al-Jadeed Between 15 & 45 years old. News followers: 70 % malesand 30% females.Entertainment followers: 40 %males and 60 % females.

NBN Between 25 & 50 years old. The majority are Males.Although the ages of the majority of internet users vary from one station to another, the common

factor is the high interaction registered by the youth (the majority of the users belong to young

age groups). In fact, the youth are faster to adopt technological changes and are more inclined to

use them than older segments of the population.




The use of digital media is thus important to target and build a strong connection with the young

segments that will ultimately constitute the largest part of TVs’ future audiences.

Concerning users’ gender, the majority of the online users are usually males, except in the case

of Al-Manar TV where there is equality between males and females. As for Al-Jadeed TV, there

are more females when it comes to entertainment and more males when it comes to politics.

Is this male majority due to the fact that most of the TV stations are politically affiliated and that

males are more interested in politics than females? Or is it due to the fact that males are more

inclined to use technology than females? This might be determined in future more extensive

studies.

Also, the majority of the online users in all TV stations live abroad and not in Lebanon. This

might be due to the large number of Lebanese emigrants living abroad and who are still much

attached to Lebanon.

All interviewed Lebanese TV stations have official websites that include an online streaming

service and all have a more or less complete archive on their website except Tele Lumiere. Tele

Lumiere does not have its archive on the website yet, but is planning to put it in the near future.

All interviewed Lebanese TV stations have mobile applications and have a presence on

Facebook, YouTube, and Twitter. Although some stations have a presence on other social

networks, Lebanese TVs focus more on Facebook, YouTube, and Twitter as they consider them

the most successful social networking concepts. Table 5.2 informs us about the digital presence

of the studied TV stations.




Table 5.2: The digital presence of the studied TV stations

Lebanese TV Stations Digital Presence

Tele Lumiere -Website.-Facebook, YouTube, and Twitter.-Mobile applications.-Two internet TV stations (Nour El-Sharek and Nour El-Kalima).

OTV -Website.-Facebook, YouTube, and Twitter.- Google+ and Instagram.-Mobile applications (Iphone and Android).

MTV -Website.- We bsite for the “Dancing with the stars” program. -Facebook, YouTube (3 YouTube channels), and Twitter.- Mobile apps on IPads, IPhones, Android, Blackberry, and windows phones.

Al-Manar -Six independent sites (Archive site, Sports site, Arabic site, Englishsite, French site, and Spanish site).-Facebook, YouTube, and Twitter.-Mobile applications (Iphone and Android).

Al-Jadeed -Website.-Facebook, YouTube, and Twitter.-Instagram, Pinterest.-Mobile applications (Iphone, android, and blackberry).

NBN -Website.-Facebook, you tube, and Twitter.-Instagram, Pinterest.-Mobile applications.

All interviewed TV stations have internal online teams that run their internet presence, except

NBN which have outsourced the management of its online presence to a specialized online

agency named Dotcom. Most of the members of the online teams are young people coming from

different backgrounds. Although there is an important number of multimedia, marketing and IT

specialists among the online teams, there are also people who come from totally unrelated

backgrounds (economists, journalists, and other).

Table 5.3 gives a glimpse about the online teams running the online presence of the interviewed

Lebanese TVs.




Table 5.3: The online teams running the online presence of the interviewed Lebanese TVs

Lebanese

TV stations

Teams running the online presence of TVs

Tele Lumiere -Internal specialized team.-Content to be published decided by the Programs Directorate.

-Some programs have their own online presence that is managed by the anchors

or the presenters of these shows.

OTV -Internal team composed of marketing and IT specialists.

-The marketing specialists in OTV’s online team are only three people.

-The multimedia team is composed of people aging between 20 and 30 years.

-Marketing specialists determine what to post, when to post it and under which

format.

MTV -Internal specialized team of more than 25 people.

- Composed of the online news team (which is separate from the traditional news

department), webmasters, developers and technicians

-Different backgrounds: economics, multimedia, journalism…

-All less than 30 years old.

Al-Manar -Multifunctional internal team (members have various responsibilities).

-Different crews forming this team (technicians, editors, and social media

supervisors).

-The average age is 30 years old (the ages vary between 22 and 42).

-The content is the responsibility of the editors.

Al-Jadeed -Internal team of 18 people.-Most have New media background.

-Team members’ ages vary between 20 & 30 years old.

-New media department is formed of three sub-departments: the online, the catch

up and international distribution. It is also responsible for running Sawt Al-

Jadeed radio and Hawakom TV.

-TV presenters and reporters have their own social media pages and have large

freedom in expressing their views.

NBN -External team from Dotcom Company.

-The online existence is managed in collaboration between the Dotcom

Company’s team and NBN TV. -The team assigned of managing the NBN online presence consists of five young

adults from Dotcom Company.

-Their ages are between 25 and 40 years old.

-This team is formed of engineers and marketers.

-The creative planning is the responsibility of Dotcom Company’s manager.

Others in the company offer supportive services.




All TV stations are interested in monitoring what is going on in the industry for different

reasons: monitoring others’ achievements, checking out their current status or even their lead in

comparison to others, searching for inspiration, and so on. Whatever the reason is, monitoring is

important for improving the performance of televisions and inciting them to achieve better

results.

However, this doesn’t mean that televisions are replicas of each other or that they should be

such. Although there are similarities in the types and in some aspects of the offerings, each TV

station has its own independent identity and its own specific way of displaying and marketing its

programs and offerings.

In fact, TV stations seek to differentiate themselves by being creative and by focusing on

different combinations of media, contents, and ways of communication. For example, some TV

stations are more interested in communicating through Twitter, while others focus on Facebook

or on YouTube. Some stations focus on politics, while others focus on entertainment or spiritual

issues (although politics seems to be of great importance for almost all TVs). Some stations

display contents in different languages, others do not. Some stations have a very well segmented

archive, others do not… There is a large span of choices that TVs take for different reasons.

It is also worth noting that all the online teams’ officials are aware of the importance of creativity

in the elaboration of their digital media plans. Creativity is not only related to the format of the

online pages or to the offerings provided through them, it is also about the content marketed on

these pages (the programs and the ideas of these programs) and the ways used to market this

content.




In fact, based on all I have heard during the interviews, I came to the conclusion that there are

three pillars on which successful online presence can be built: The marketed content (the content

produced for the normal TV and or for the online pages), the technological infrastructure (the

technological know-how, the hardware and software, the used web pages, the availability on

different platforms, the used applications …) and the way the content is marketed (the titles used,

the way news are edited, the format of the pages and their division, the segmentation of the

footages, the topics chosen, the way programs are promoted…).

Although all three factors (the content, the technological infrastructure, and the marketing

process) are important to achieve a successful online or digital presence, the content produced by

the TV is the starting point and is the major determinant of the level of interaction.

The example of OTV with “LOL” is a clear demonstration of this supposition. Although OTV

was at the time a new TV station with a modest technological platform compared to others,

“LOL” created an unexpected surge in the levels of online interactions. The huge success of the

program drove the levels of online interactions.

In sum, and like it has been clearly stated by the Head of Web and News Services at MTV,

“Content is king”. If the content produced by the TV is interesting to viewers, it will be easier to

market it through the technological infrastructure on online pages and it will necessarily produce

a high level of online interactions. In fact, a successful show will create a buzz as people will talk

about it online and offline (Word of Mouth effect). This in turn will incite online surfers to see

scenes of the show over and over again (high online viewership rates) and or send videos or

share videos of the show with their friends (viral marketing). The successful content will thus

drive online interactions.




Online interactions related to the TV programs happen before, during and after the shows for all

TVs except OTV and NBN, where the interactions happen during and after the show. This might

be due to the fact that -unlike other stations- OTV and NBN do not promote their programs on

social media in advance. The following table (Refer to Table 5.4) shows the timings of the

interaction on social media for all TV stations.

In general, TV stations believe that the main determinants and the real parameters to gauge their

own progress in terms of digital media are traffic and engagement.

Table 5.4: The timings of the interaction on social media for all TV stations

TV stations Time of interaction (before, during, or after the shows)

Tele Lumiere Before, during, and after (depending on the subject treated or the program promoted)

OTV Depends on the nature of the program and the way it is promoted.Higher level of interaction during the show for certain entertainment programs.During and after for the political programs.

MTV Before, during, and after (the largest number of interactions happen duringand after the programs).

Al-Manar Before, during, and after.Al-Jadeed Before, during, and after.

NBN Majority of interactions after the shows to ask for replaying certainepisodes.Some interactions happen during the shows to comment and or participate.

Political programs attract the highest numbers of online interactions at OTV, Al-Manar and Al-

Jadeed. This might be due to the fact that these TVs focus mainly on politics: Al-Manar and

OTV are politically affiliated and Al-Jadeed tries to present itself as medial in terms of politics

(which is helping it in attracting audiences from different political affiliations).




As for MTV, it mainly focuses on entertainment and has a lot of successful entertainment

programs. However and according to the Head of Web and News Services at MTV, the launch of

the news webpage has increased the traffic to the website by 600%.

As for Tele Lumiere and NBN, there are no specific types of programs that attract the highest

numbers of interactions. The degree of interaction at Tele Lumiere depends on the level of

interest generated by the treated subject or the promoted program. The degree of interaction at

NBN is almost similar for all programs.

It is worth noting though- and this is a personal opinion- that politics play a major role in the

Lebanese lives. This is why politics and political news are excellent for triggering online

interactions and for providing TVs with a somewhat stable income generated through

advertisements on the online pages (although the advertisements on political online pages are not

as highly paid as entertainment) and through the news notifications services on mobile phones.

In fact, politics and political news on online pages play the role of cash cows for the online

departments in TVs. That’s why it is necessary for TVs to keep focusing on this type of content

(except for Tele Lumiere whose mission is inconsistent with the display of political views) in

order to ensure a somewhat regular flow of revenues.

It is worth noting in this regard-and this is also a personal opinion- that OTV might be facing a

problem in terms of its online presence on the political scale due to the existence of tayyar.org,

which is one of the most important news portals in Lebanon and which represents the same

political view promoted by OTV (as it is related to the same political party).




Al-Manar has been able to avoid this problem by operating as both a news portal and a TV

website. Is it better for OTV and tayyar.org to join forces then? This issue can be discussed and

studied within the organization.

The following table (Refer to Table 5.5) shows the types of programs that attract the highest

levels of interactions on TVs’ online pages.

Table 5.5: Types of programs that attract the highest levels of interactions on TVs’ online pages

TV stations Types of programs attracting most interactions on social media

Tele Lumiere No specific type. Depends on the subject treated or the programs promoted andthe degree of interest they generate.

OTV Political programs, then entertainment.

MTV Entertainment, then political programs.

Al-Manar Political programs, then other programs.

Al-Jadeed Political programs, then entertainment.

NBN Almost equal.

Five out of six interviewed TV stations (all TVs except MTV) showed a big interest in viral

marketing and explained that viral techniques are often used to increase the level of online

interactions. Even MTV- which do not plan to use viral marketing and which links the concept of

viral marketing to unethical behaviors such as the display of violent or sexual scenes or the use

of titles bearing sexual or politically controversial connotations- has achieved alongside other TV

stations important viral successes (some were unintended, others were due to the use of extracts

of MTV’s programs by other individuals who gave them sexy or controversial titles).

There are many types of contents that go viral: Extracts from comedy shows, extracts from

political events or political programs, and spiritual clips or normal video clips containing

interesting, controversial or funny content...




It is worth noting though that the titles used for the footages play a major role in inciting viral

transmission, even if the title does not reflect the real content of the footage. Although the TVs

do not use titles bearing false connotations in the entitlement of their footages, people who take

the footages and play them on their own YouTube channels do.

While all TVs perceive viral marketing as the viral transmission of footages or images, NBN

perceives it as the transmission and the sharing of online applications. In the following table

(Refer to Table 5.6), we see one example of viral success related to each TV station.

Table 5.6: One example of viral marketing success

TV stations One example of viral marketing success

Tele Lumiere Short videos about the life stories of saints.

OTV Clips from the comedy show LOL.

MTV Clips from the comedy show Mafi Metlo (or “There’s no one like him”).

Al-Manar Excerpts from the speeches of Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah.

Al-Jadeed Clips from the comedy show Shi-N-N (Oppa Saida Style, etc).

NBN The application launched for the horoscopes program “with Joumana”.

All TV stations have big ambitions concerning their online presence and four out of six TV

stations consider themselves avant-gardes and or leaders.

All of them has expressed the desire to produce specific contents or specific programs for online

users in the future and many have already had a certain experience in this field: Tele Lumiere has

two internet TV channels, MTV had produced specific content for its star program “Dancing

with the stars”, Al-Manar produces specific online contents for its different sites on a regular

basis.




It is then logical to presume that the production of specific internet contents might be the future

trend for TVs. However, it is necessary -in my opinion- for TV stations to thoroughly study the

economic feasibility of such projects as they might necessitate large investments, especially if

the plan is to produce entire programs and not footages or supportive contents related to already

existing TV programs (like those created for “Dancing with the stars” for example), or simple

written contents or reports or interviews.

Although the production of all forms of specific online contents necessitates the allocation of

time and resources and constitutes a managerial burden and a workload for online teams, the

production of entire online programs or the launch of internet TVs is much more complicated as

it needs good planning, good management, strong infrastructures, human and financial resources,

and the possibility of ensuring long term durability and economic viability.

In the following table (Refer to Table 5.7), we see how each TV classifies itself in terms of

online presence: avant-garde, aggressive, or traditional, etc.

Table 5.7: How each TV station describes itself

TV stations How each TV describes itself

Tele Lumiere Avant-garde, aggressive, and traditional at the same time.

OTV Avant-garde, aggressive, and traditional at the same time.

MTV Leader.

Al-Manar Independent and having a unique style.

Al-Jadeed Leader.

NBN Still new, but the goal is to become leader.




According to the interviewees, social media and websites enable TV stations to obtain accurate

statistics about trends, users’ demographic profiles, users’ locations, users’ preferences and so

on. In fact, the analytics service provided by the online pages has made the gathering of

information quite easy and accurate.

The accumulated information about users and their usage patterns is very important to all the

interviewed TV stations, as it enables them to enhance their positioning and targeting strategies,

to create and deliver better services and offerings, and to ultimately increase customer

satisfaction.

In fact, the statistics help TV stations to know which type of users are interested in their offerings

or which offerings (politics, entertainment …) appeal to which types of users. This helps TV

stations to know where they stand in terms of digital media (their past and current status), who

are their target audiences (their profiles and whereabouts), which subjects or programs create the

highest interactions, what is the level of interactivity created by each type of webpage (the

website, Twitter, YouTube…), what is the level of traffic generated by the social pages or from

the social pages to the website or from mobile applications to the website…

This knowledge offers TV stations the opportunity to improve their digital offerings or to create

contents that are more appealing to users. It also allows them to be in better position to make

future plans concerning digital media.

Lebanese TV stations consider that the threshold to maintain success and to improve is to be

wherever their online audiences are and to be available (via applications) on every platform they

use. Their ambition has no limit and is animated by their creative ideas on both the technical and

content-related levels.




Views about Lebanese social media users have ranged between “highly interactive” to “not

interactive”. Some online media departments’ officials have described the users as aggressive or

critical. The common denominator in this issue – except in the case of Tele Lumiere- is the

recurrent mentioning of the political factor in the description of users’ attitudes.

The following table (Refer to Table 5.8) shows the interviewees’ perspectives about the attitudes

of Lebanese social media users.

Table 5.8: How the interviewees describe Lebanese social media users

TV stations How the interviewees describe Lebanese social media usersTele Lumiere Very interactive.

Like to share online interesting content with friends.

OTV Critical about everything.Don’t show much interactivity over social media.

MTV Very aggressive.

Al-Manar Offensive and candid.

Al-Jadeed Very positive and active participants.Express criticism.Are harsh when it comes to expressing their political views.

NBN Users living in Lebanon don’t like to show their political affiliations.

Users living in Lebanon avoid sharing or liking certain content in order not toappear politicized.Lebanese expatriates are more open to expressing their real views.

According to the interviewed stations’ officials, TVs remain the main entertainment providers.

The internet has given TVs the opportunity to extend their reach and to be able to access new and

hard to reach geographic areas, but has not replaced or taken the role of televisions. In fact, the

content provided by televisions on the internet is in its vast majority either the content produced

by the normal television or materials based on that content.




However, there is an increasing convergence between TV stations and other online platforms and

tools. The technological developments such as the launch of smart TVs will increase viewers’

power and give them access to thousands of entertainment materials to choose from. Although

Lebanese viewers will be always interested in watching Lebanese TV stations, the rise of the

competition will pose new challenges for TVs and will require the development and the

elaboration of interesting contents and the use of creative ideas to keep viewers interested.

Another facet of the technological developments is the existence of a multitude of platforms

(mobile phones, tablets, laptops, and other gadgets and devices) that people can use to entertain

themselves, communicate and or watch television.

This multi platform world creates many opportunities and threats to TV stations. The most

important opportunity is ubiquity and the possibility of following audiences wherever they are.

On the other hand, the challenges are related to security issues and to the need to dedicate more

time and effort to run numerous platforms simultaneously. It is worth noting that the

technological platforms that can be used to watch television are expected to increase in number

in the future. That’s why TV stations need to remain vigilant and well prep ared to deal with any

new developments and to be constantly prepared to master and make the most of the new

technologies.

Interviewed TV stations’ officials stated that innovation, creativity, and the provision of special

and interesting contents are what enable TV stations to cut through the online clutter

successfully.




Technical capabilities and skills are extremely impor tant to support the televisions’ online

presence, come up with technical solutions and innovations, and enhance the users’ experience

on the online pages from the technical point of view (better streaming, more customized content,

interesting applications, and possibility of higher interaction with the TV and with other

users…). Also, creative thinking in terms of the elaboration of new applications or the use of

new technologies as well as in terms of the development of interesting contents and programs

(both on normal TV and online) can be an important factor of differentiation that allows TV

stations to cut through the clutter.

To achieve that, it is necessary that TV stations stay tuned to people’s needs and wants and to be

able to anticipate and or create new needs and wants. Analytics, data mining and advanced

statistics (online or normal) can be excellent listening tools to read and understand the

environment and detect the emerging opportunities and threats. Also, the detection and early

adoption of new technologies in addition to the good usage of existing technologies can give

televisions an edge over others by enabling them to achieve ubiquity, and or to provide users

with distinctive technology supported contents, and or enhance their usage experience.

In conclusion, the internet and other technological advances have paved the way to the

information revolution that we are currently experiencing and that will continue to develop in the

coming years. These major developments have changed people’s lifestyles and the way they do

business. People and businesses can no longer avoid to be engaged in technology, as it became

an important part of our daily routines and an important facilitator to all our interactions and

dealings.




This especially applies to televisions for which the internet constitutes both a competitor and a

facilitator. It is a competitor because-like TVs- the internet is a platform that provides

entertainment and information, and a facilitator because it provides numerous opportunities for

televisions. Televisions are then compelled to make the most of the opportunities and face the

challenges posed by the internet in order to preserve their status as the number one entertainment

platform.

The following paragraph will be dedicated to recommendations about the steps that should or can

be taken by TV stations to maintain a profitable and noticeable presence on the internet and on

social media in particular.

5.5- Recommendations

My recommendations for the TV stations concerning the management of their online presence

are:

A- The use of statistics: Online statistics or analytics are of great importance, as they permit

TV stations to know the demographic profiles, the whereabouts and the usage behavior of

their users (what sort of news or programs trigger interactions, the timings of usage, the

length of usage). This knowledge enables them to enhance their offerings and to provide

users with the contents they like and that can most probably trigger online interactions. It

is then highly recommended to continue to build on these statistics in the development of

the contents to be displayed on online pages, especially when it comes to the elaboration

of contents that are specific to the online pages.




It is also recommended to study the different correlations existing between the different

variables found in these statistics, in order to detect the influential variables that can be

used or manipulated to positively affect the level of usage. This can be achieved through

the use of appropriate computer programs and or the help of professional statisticians.

Online statistics can also be complemented by normal statistics to know more about

viewers who have not yet interacted with televisions’ online pages and to discover the

factors that might incite them to do so.

B- Detection of trends and opinions: The internet pages (especially social pages) can be

used as listening platforms to discover the preferences, the criticisms and the opinions of

the users and viewers regarding televisions’ online and offline offerings.

Although many televisions are using their online platforms to listen to and to understand

their audiences, special computer programs (such as data mining programs and or other

listening tools) can be used to facilitate the detection of trends and opinions. This will be

particularly beneficial for the televisions which have small online teams or face time

constraints in terms of running their digital platforms. Having a computer program doing

this kind of work for them give online teams more time to focus on creativity issues and

on the enhancement of their services on web pages.

C- Two Major Groups to target: The analytics attached to the online pages have showed

that the youth- especially young males- are the most active users of televisions’ internet

pages. These analytics have also showed that most of the interactions come from people

living abroad, most probably Lebanese expatriates. Special contents that interest these

two segments can be developed to be displayed solely online. This increases the loyalty

of these segments of users and drives them to spend more time on the televisions’ pages.




D- Attracting new types or new segments of users: The online networks of the Lebanese

TV stations are being less used by females than males. Therefore, more attention should

be given to this important segment since females tend to be more social, talkative, and

self expressive. In other words, females are more inclined to talk about and even promote

programs they like with other people. Actually, females should be encouraged by TV

stations to participate and engage online, by providing them with suitable contents and

more incentives.

Also, the online efforts mainly target Lebanese residents and emigrants. However, the

Arab World has a combined population of around 422 million people, with over half

under 25 years of age (young people are more inclined to use social networks than older

segments). Lebanese TV stations can profit from this huge market opportunity especially

in the field of entertainment. In fact, there are many examples of entertainment programs

that have achieved great successes in terms of viewership rates and the levels of online

interactions. The creation and the promotion (or the advertisement) of such programs

along with their online pages (these programs should have their own website and social

pages) on normal TV and even on other Arab Televisions might achieve the double goal

of realizing high viewership rates and high online interaction levels. In addition, tailored

online contents and other incentives can be used to lure Arab audiences to engage online

and to promote Lebanese TV stations and online networks to their friends and

compatriots.

E- The use of technology as facilitator: Technology is the basis or the foundation on which

online presence is built.




It can also be used to facilitate the running of the online pages by using computer

programs or software that automatically perform the repetitive tasks (such as the

download of advance promotions or the publication of next week’s programs’

schedule…). This saves the online teams time and help them focus on more important

matters such as creativity issues and the elaboration of strategies and plans. Using

technology to alleviate online teams’ workload is especially beneficial for small online

crews.

F- The necessity to remain alert in terms of detecting technological developments:

Technological developments are happening at a very fast pace. It is then important for

televisions to remain alert and to detect these developments as early as possible in order

to make the most of them and grab the opportunities they offer. Online teams have to be

creative in order to find unconventional ways to use the new developments and realize

what others cannot with the same materials and tools.

G- Creativity in the use of technology and digital platforms: Online teams have to work

on figuring out new ways of using current and new technologies to provide users with

new, better and or exquisite online experiences or to serve them in a better way. They

also have to explore the possibility of using the digital platforms in different ways or to

provide users with new services or with better interfaces on the different digital

platforms. This leads to creating a bond or to maintaining an already existing bond

between the TV and its audiences, in addition to attracting new users who might hear

about these experiences through Word of Mouth and or viral marketing. Therefore, the

possibility of using technologies and digital platforms in more creative ways should be

seriously explored and worked on by the online teams.




H- Magnets for online interactions: Branded games, Facebook applications, content

aggregators, viral videos, mobile features, and contests, are popular tools that can be used

to create opportunities for interaction around TV shows online (Robles, 2011). There is

also the “You are the reporter” service that is already used by many televisions to both

receive interesting materials and create interaction.

In fact, all televisions are currently encouraging their audiences to play the role of eye

reporters or reporters for them, which has the triple benefit of increasing loyalty,

strengthening the bonds between the TV and its audience, and accessing interesting

materials.

I- Facebook is a winner: A study conducted by Nielson revealed that social chatter

especially on Facebook has a considerable influence on what viewers watch on television

(Chmielewsky, 2012). Hence, social media in general and Facebook in particular could

be used to stimulate people to watch conventional TV and vice versa. This can be

achieved by promoting the TV’s or the programs’ Facebook pages (if they exist) and or

organizing contests or opinion polls related to the program and or organizing and fueling

discussions about it on Facebook (A specialized staff member can run and or animate the

discussions).

J- Two-way conversation: Detecting trends and opinions on social media and online pages

is most important to take corrective measures and enhance the TV’s offline and online

offerings. However, in order for social media pages to be a real place of dialogue

between the users and TVs, televisions should show users they care by answering their

questions, thanking them for their contributions (if they tip them with valuable

information or send them an interesting footage) and by always keeping their promises to




them (a question should be answered at the time promised, a contest award should be

delivered at its due time…). Appointing specialized staff to interact with users might also

encourage more people to participate on social media at the same time increase the

loyalty of current users.

K- Direct interactions: TV celebrities can make themselves accessible to the public via

social media. This will enrich the experience of users, help celebrities build a personal

brand, and positively affect the TV stations' image. The establishment of direct contacts

with TV celebrities can be done through the pages of the programs or by creating a link

between the official social pages of the TVs and the personal social pages of the

celebrities. Also, special websites and social pages can be created for the important

programs and drama serials, where the stars of the program or the actors directly interact

with their viewers and discuss the content of the programs or the events happening in the

serials with them. The example of “Glee” shows that this approach might be quite

successful and might lead to increasing the levels of viewership and online interactions at

the same time.

L- Empowerment of the internal staff: TVs’ internal staffs (presenters, reporters, drafting

teams…) should be encouraged and trained (if necessary) to use social media and

different other digital tools and applications to communicate with the TVs’ or the

programs’ fans and audiences and create a long lasting bond with them.

Serious efforts from the part of the management and the online teams should be exerted

to enable staffs to realize the importance of the use of digital technologies in the world of

television and to enable them to adopt and effectively use these technologies.




Appropriate technical and or other support can be provided by the online teams, but the

internal staff should be empowered to run its own pages under the supervision of the new

media teams.

M- Tighter collaboration between the online teams and the different departments and

programs: Although there is already collaboration between the online departments and

the different departments and programs, this collaboration should go beyond the

minimum requirements to include the provision of ideas and suggestions related to the

use of digital technologies, in addition to the support of feasible ideas and suggestions by

all involved staff members. For example, the online departments, other departments or

other individuals working in the TV (members of the internal staff, presenters or drafting

teams of programs…) should be encouraged to make suggestions related to the use of

digital technologies and supported in the implementation of feasible ideas by all involved

staff members. These suggestions can range from the use of social media in some

programs, to new ways in using social media in certain programs, to new ideas about

internet specific programs and or contents, to internet TVs’ concep ts, to ideas for TV

programs that are entirely based on social media, or to ideas related to the use or the

development of certain applications that can be made available on TVs’ or the programs’

social pages… Both the elaboration and the implementation of these kinds of suggestions

necessitate the existence of a favorable atmosphere regarding digital technologies within

the organization and the existence of a tight collaboration between the different

departments and staff members. The desire of collaboration should be mutual and is not

solely the responsibility of the online department.




The atmosphere of collaboration should be nurtured within the organization by the higher

management and the strategies devised by it, in addition to the encouragement of the

internal staff to adopt and actively use digital technologies.

On the other hand, allowing some appointed staff members (that are related to the

internal departments or to the programs) to directly post news and other materials without

having to pass by the online department can lead to speeding up the process and ease the

burden supported by the online team (this can be especially beneficial for small online

crews).

N-

Integration between TV programs and social media: Creating more integration

between TV programs and social media increases traffic and engagement. For example,

sharing the comments of social media users during TV shows or showing their comments

on a strip located at the bottom of the screen increases the chances of getting people’s

participation and loyalty. Also, it is possible to create programs that are entirely based on

social media like it is the case abroad.

O-

Advertising online pages and online based activities or events on TV: TVs are the

most viewed advertising platforms and have the possibility to reach large numbers of

people. It is then logical for TVs to use the normal TV platform to advertise for their

online pages, online contests and games, digital applications and all their offerings in

terms of digital media. This can be done during the programs and or in the time of the

display of other advertisements. It is also possible for TVs to use other forms of media or

platforms to send messages to their target audiences concerning their digital offerings,

but advertising on normal TV will be more cost effective and more pervasive.




On the other hand, the website and TVs’ social pages are perfect platforms to promote the

stations and their programs and are mainly used to achieve this goal.

P- Getting professional help: Human resources’ shortages or technical shortages can be

dealt with by seeking the help of second parties that have the capability of providing TV

stations with the needed solutions. For example, a professional agency can provide the

TV with computer programs designed to perform some online processes automatically, or

with applications that can be used to enhance users’ online experience (the concept might

be elaborated by the online team and executed by a professional agency), or with

solutions to persistent problems, or even with consulting services. If the internal online

team lacks certain skills, other agencies might fill the gap and provide it with what it

needs in terms of training and or the execution of certain tasks. The internal teams can be

able then to focus on more important issues like creative thinking and planning, strategy

and tactics, the elaboration of solutions and the development of the digital interfaces and

services.

Technological developments are here to stay. It is then imperative for TV stations to prepare

themselves to make the most of them and of the new situations they will create. Lebanese TV

stations seem to be aware of the importance of digital and social media in their future

development and success and are working hard to create lasting impacts on their audiences.

The next chapter will be the final conclusion of this study and will constitute a sort of overview

on the findings of the field work.




Conclusion

All studied TV stations are aware of the importance of the use of digital media in ensuring their

future development, success and sustainability.

Digital presence is also a source of income for TV stations. In fact, a time might come when

digital presence will generate more revenues than the TV’s presence on normal platforms.

In the mean time, digital presence is a useful extension for normal TVs that allow them to attract

new types of viewers or users, exceed their limitations in terms of time and space, and generate

additional revenues from their already produced or displayed content.

Social media are important components of televisions’ digital and online presence. Social media

can be used to collect valuable information about the users, their opinions and their preferences.

Social media can also contribute in building engagement, increasing the traffic to the TV’s

online pages, promoting the TVs and their programs and creating a long lasting bond with the

users.

Viral marketing are marketing techniques deliberately used by almost all televisions to increase

traffic, create a marketing buzz and promote the TV stations and their programs.

It is not possible to consider social media separately from all the other components of digital

presence and or from the televisions themselves. In fact, the entire elements forming digital

presence work in synchronization to achieve the strategic and tactical goals of the televisions and

are a true reflection of the televisions’ images, missions and visions.




According to Al-Manar’s website’s webmaster, “The television, the website and social media

pages are interconnected and play complementary roles. Each attracts different types of people

and contributes in spreading the television’s message and produced materials”.

In the same context, the Head of Web and News Services at MTV has stated: “social media

cannot be considered separately from the Web in general, as they are part of a more extensive

package that also comprises the website, the mobile applications, the smart TV applications…”.

The messages sent through the different digital communications platforms are consistent with the

televisions’ visions and missions and with the messages sent by the different communication

platforms used by these televisions, which shows that televisions embrace the concept of IMC.

Televisions are even keen on reflecting an image that is consistent with the values and principles

they defend on normal TV and to the values of the Lebanese community (principles of

democracy, respect for the opinions of others, credibility, impropriety of using offensive

language …). Some decisions taken by the online officials are directly related to the need of

preserving the TVs’ images and are consistent with the commitments of these TVs to certain

ethical standards.

While websites are the bases of all forms of online presence, social media are two-way

communication platforms that allow the establishment of a dialogue between the TVs and their

audiences on the one hand and between the users on the other hand.




In fact, the Chief Everything Officer of Dotcom Company (NBN) has stated: “For Dotcom

Company, social media are used to create a dialogue between a company and its fans or the

people interested in it. While the nature of a website imposes the creation of a sort of monologue

between the company and the internet users, social networks allow companies to open a dialogue

with these users. Therefore, the main use of social networks is to create this kind of dialogue”.

Creativity and innovation are most important for achieving success in terms of digital presence.

Creativity is not only related to the format of the online pages or to the offerings provided

through them, it is also about the content marketed on these pages (the programs and the ideas of

these programs) and the ways used to market this content.

According to the multimedia coordinator at OTV, finding and implementing new ideas -or in

other terms creativity- is the key to ensuring successful online presence and it is what enables TV

stations to cut through the clutter on the internet. The ideas that the Multimedia Coordinator at

OTV refers to are not only related to the internet content, but they also concern the content

displayed on TV. This is consistent with what the Head of Web and News Services at MTV said

when he stated that “content is king” (the Head of Web and News Services at MTV was referring

to the programs displayed on TV).

It is also consistent with what the Head of Digital Media at Al-Jadeed TV, have said when he

stated: “In this competitive world, TV stations have to be unique, special, and creative regarding

the materials produced by the television, the content delivered on the internet and the use of the

online innovations that allow the delivery of that content. These features will enable TV stations

to break the clutter on the internet and to make their voices heard. The secret is to always come

up with something new”.




The three pillars of online presence are: The marketed content, the technological infrastructure

and the way the content is marketed. The marketed content is the starting point. The

technological infrastructure is the vehicle that carries this content to online audiences. The way

the content is marketed plays an important role in attracting the targeted audiences.

Technological developments have created new realities and have changed people’s lifestyles and

the way they do business. These developments have directly affected televisions and have

created both threats and opportunities for them.

Televisions should be able to detect and to deal with the opportunities and threats offered by the

current and future technological developments. Technological developments can be either

related to the development of the internet or digital technologies in general or to the development

of a multitude of new platforms. The Head of Digital Media at Al-Jadeed TV has gone as far as

stating that the future will bring conversion between digital media platforms and televisions,

which is not an improbable scenario knowing that this conversion has started to happen with the

launch of smart TVs.

Such developments will definitely have repercussions on people’s lifestyles, needs and demands

and their perception of the concept of television. Consequently, they will also affect the way

televisions operate and are managed. After all, and like the Chief Everything Officer of Dotcom

Company (NBN) has said: “In today’s world, it is the audience that decides what the co mpany

needs to be. The client is King”. That’s why the audiences’ new requirements (induced by the

technological changes) will impose new burdens and challenges on televisions in addition to

offering them new limitless opportunities.




Either way, it is imperative for televisions to be prepared to deal with the coming changes

through the elaboration of appropriate strategies, the construction of proper infrastructures, and

the empowerment of the internal staff.

Some of the interviewed TV stations have already realized great achievements in terms of digital

presence. Others have just started to take concrete steps in that direction. However, and like the

Director of Programs at Tele Lumiere, has said: “There are no guarantees when it comes to the

Internet and social media. The number of followers might change and people might lose interest

if a continuous effort is not made”.

That’s why televisions should always seek to develop their internet related capabilities, to

understand their audiences and perceive their needs, cater for these needs, and build a strong

bond with the users and viewers.

Above all this, televisions should be constantly able to adapt and make the most of the

opportunities technology offers. Failing to do so might lead to losing their market shares to

others, even if they were once far ahead of their time.

In sum, the wind of technological changes is already blowing and will continue to blow in the

future. Televisions should be prepared to embrace these changes and to make good use of them

in their journey towards the future.




APPENDIX A

The advertising spending distribution in Lebanon throughout different media

Key Indicators

2011

*CAGR stands for the Compound Annual Growth Rate

Source: Dubai press club. (2012). Forecasts and Analysis of Traditional and Digital Media in the

Arab World, report No 4 (p. 90.). United Arab Emirates: Dubai press club and Deloitte.




APPENDIX B

Two Snapshots of the TV stations’ social presence over Facebook, Twitter, and

YouTube at 3-4-2013 and 13-8-2013

A- Snapshots in a table

Al-Jadeed Al-

Manar

Future LBCI MTV NBN OTV Tele

Lumie

Facebook likes3-4-2013

97670 Notclearᵃ

11449 180972 237000 4535 127988 17624

Facebook likes13-8-2013

132320 349 24870 220458 269705 1947ᶜ 157579 22514

Increase ofFacebook likesin percentage

35.48 - 117.22 21.82 13.8 -57.1 23.12 27.75

Twitter followers3-4-2013

180179 43301 33942 134596 189225 64 19687 1155

Twitter followers13-8-2013

220154 63545 51353 177263 244285 185 31725 1500

Increase inTwitter followersin %

22.19 46.75 51.3 31.7 29.1 189.1 61.15 29.87

Number oftweets3-4-2013

56735 109384 82850 10586 5036 298 4317 4981

Number oftweets13-8-2013

76183 145858 123591 13741 6402 423 7263 6113

Increase in thenumber of tweetsin %

34.28 33.34 49.17 29.8 27.12 41.95 68.24 22.73

YouTubesubscribers

3-4-2013

60264 Notclearᵃ

563 37162 86126 31 16792 2633

YouTubesubscribers13-8-2013

103695 1579 2605 84206 160119 93 30514 3636

Increase in thenumber ofYouTubesubscribers in %

72.1 - 362.7 126.6 85.9 200 81.72 38.09




Al-Jadeed Al-

Manar

Future LBCI MTV NBN OTV Tele

Lumie

Videos viewedover YouTube

3-4-2013

78542447 Notclearᵃ

169472 22099634 46390804 7201 10219595 338849

Videos viewedover YouTube13-8-2013

104563571 82219 Notclear b

41356027 69034274 707ᶜ 14799465 393771

Increase in thenumber ofVideos viewedon YouTube in%

33.13 - - 87.13 48.81 -90.2 44.81 16.2

ᵃAl-Manar TV is struggling to keep an online presence. Its Facebook accounts are always shut

down. Its official channel on YouTube is also shut down frequently. That’s why it is difficult to

determine the real numbers related to the level of interaction on Facebook and YouTube.

ᵇThe number of videos viewed over YouTube could not be found for Future TV at 13-8-2013.

ᶜ The decrease in NBN’s Facebook likes and the number of videos viewed on YouTube is most

probably due to the work Dotcom is performing on its various online accounts (adjustments,

redesign…).

B- Figures related to the two snapshots

0

50000

100000

150000

200000

250000

300000

Facebook likes at

3-4-2013 and 13-8-2013

3/4/2013

13-8-2013




0

50000

100000

150000

200000

250000

300000

Twitter followers at

3-4-2013 and 13-8-2013

3/4/2013

13-8-2013

0

20000

40000

60000

80000

100000120000

140000

160000

Number of tweets at

3-4-2013 and 13-8-2013

3/4/2013

13-8-2013




0

20000

40000

60000

80000

100000

120000

140000160000

180000

YouTube subscribers at

3-4-2013 and 13-8-2013

3/4/2013

13-8-2013

0

20000000

40000000

60000000

80000000

100000000

120000000

Videos viewed over YouTube

at 3-4-2013 and 13-8-2013

3/4/2013

13-8-2013




C- Analysis of the snapshots

The situation between the two dates has remained the same in terms of the order registered by

the televisions concerning the different variables with varying percentages of increases in the

total numbers. MTV is still number one in terms of Facebook likes, followed by LBCI and Al-

Jadeed. MTV is still also number one in terms of the number of twitter followers, followed by

Al-Jadeed and LBCI. Al-Manar is still number one in terms of the number of tweets, followed

by Future TV and Al-Jadeed. MTV is still number one in terms of the number of YouTube

subscribers, followed by Al-Jadeed and LBCI. Al-Jadeed is still number one in terms of the

number of videos viewed over YouTube followed by MTV and LBCI.

A decrease has been registered for NBN’s Facebook likes and the number of videos viewed on

YouTube, but this decrease is most probably due to the work Dotcom is performing on the

accounts. In fact, it is most unlikely that the likes and the videos viewed decrease in number,

especially when NBN is registering important increases in terms of other variables (an important

increase in terms of the number of videos was even detected one week after 13-8-2013). Also, it

is still early (and unfair) to assess the overall performance of NBN in terms of online presence,

as it has entered the world of the internet very recently and has still a lot to do to build a strong

presence.

As for Al-Manar, it is difficult to assess its performance due to the problems it is facing on the

different social network accounts. However, it is worth noting that Al-Manar is very active on

Twitter and is number one in terms of the number of tweets.

It is also worth mentioning that the number of YouTube subscribers has registered an important

increase between the two dates (much more important than the other variables) for all TV




stations (Refer to Table A). Is this due to the users’ preference for YouTube when it comes to

interacting with televisions (most interactions are related to watching the programs)? Or do users

in general prefer watching to reading? This might be explored in future studies.

Table A: Average increases of the different variables

Facebook

likes

Twitter

followers

Number

of tweets

YouTube

subscribers

Videos viewed

over YouTube

Average Increase

in percentage

26.02 57.64 38.33 138.15 23.32

In sum, MTV, Al-Jadeed and LBCI are the stations that register the first three positions in terms

of all the previously studied variables except the number of tweets where Al-Manar comes first,

followed by Future TV and Al-Jadeed. MTV comes first in terms of the number of Facebook

likes, twitter followers and YouTube subscribers, while Al-Jadeed comes first in the number of

videos viewed over YouTube. It is worth noting though that NBN and Al-Manar are special

cases, Future TV is facing internal problems and OTV is still a relatively new station.

In fact, this assessment is a snapshot of the current situation, but the future might be different.

The world of the internet has no limits and offers thousands of opportunities for those who want

to grab them. MTV’s and Al-Jadeed’s examples prove this reality. These two TV stations have

been able to realize great achievements in a very short time, and so can others. It is up to every

television to work on building a noticeable and strong online presence, in order to ensure a place

in the future.




APPENDIX C

Interviews with the TV stations

Interview Position Organization Date

1 Director of Programs Tele Lumiere 27-5-2013

2 Multimedia Coordinator OTV 5-6-2013

3 Head of Web and News Services MTV 7-6-2013

4 Webmaster of Al-Manar website andTV presenter

Al-Manar 14-6-2013

5 -Head of strategy and planning-Head of Digital Media-Managing Director of Hawakom TV

-Managing Director of Sawt AlJadeed Radio

Al Jadeed 19-6-2013

6 Chief Everything Officer of Dotcomcompany

NBN 25-6-2013




APPENDIX D

Questionnaire

1- How important and vital is for your station the use of social media? Do you believe in

the impact of social media and do you think it can bring something different to your

station?

2- If you use social media, who do you think will be the most responsive? And for

which specific purpose- if ever- your station may one day use social media?

3- Does your TV station have an online presence? Who is handling this presence over

social media? A specialized team? The marketing team? What is their average age?

Do you think they are successful and you are getting the expected results from theirwork?

4- Is this team also responsible for managing the online presence of each individual

show present on social media? Or is it the job of program preparers or presenters? Or

is it the job of another team appointed for this reason?

5- Do you benchmark with your competitors or other TV stations in general?

6- As a television, what kind of social media interactions do you have? (Facebook,

Twitter, you tube, website …)? What about the individual programs?

7- What kinds of programs have a presence on social media (news, political talk shows,

social talk shows, comic programs, series (Lebanese, foreign), all programs?

8-

Which types of programs attract most interactions on social media? (news, politicaltalk shows, social talk shows, comic programs, series (Lebanese, foreign), all

programs?

9- Do program preparers or presenters, actors in series, or news presenters directly

interact with the online audience?

10- Are the programs attracting most interactions the ones that have the highest

viewership?

11- Is the interaction higher during the show? Before the show? After the show?

12- Does the television try to monitor or to guide online interactions made on social

media?

13-

Does the television try to use viral marketing tactics to promote itself? Or to promote

the programs?

14- Were there clear instances where viewers received a certain message that was

subsequently propagated by them to other people in a viral way?

15- Do you consider that a TV station has to be aggressive and modern to use the web,

and how do you classify your station: “avant-gardiste”, aggressive, traditional …




16- Is it easy and practical and useful to gather info about your online audience? Do you

have such info?

17- According to you, what are the known effects from using social media whether on

usage or on loyalty?

18- Do you have measuring parameters to check the progress achieved accordingly?

(Increase in viewership, more ads received, interesting feedback, increase in the

number of followers, increase in viewers’ loyalty…)

19- Do you see Lebanese viewers as active or passive participants on social media in

general and on TV stations pages in specific, and to what extent? (Do they share with

their friends, like to engage in conversations, and care for leaving feedback).

20- In this multi platform world where people use new ways to watch television (mobile

phones, tablets, laptops, and other gadgets and devices), do you think there are

opportunities and threats for TV stations?

21- Do you think people are going to watch TV content on YouTube instead of the big

screen? If TV stations start putting their content on an online catch-up service, is itgoing to cut into their broadcast figures and so their core revenues?

22- Since most TV stations in our times are using social media as part of their

communication mix, how can your TV station differentiate itself and cut through the

clutter successfully?

23- According to you, how easy or difficult it is to use social media and viral marketing?

24-

What are your future plans and where you see the relation between TV and digital

platforms in the near future?




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Documents

Lebanese TV Stations in the Age of Social Media & Vial Marketing