Write a 8 pages paper on do ads work on social networks. Many social media analysts say that even if the brand is not online, it will still be discussed there by the consumers. One popular example is about a video on YouTube by Dave Carroll about his eight-month struggle to get compensation from United Airlines for a damaged guitar. The video was viewed by 6.6 million people and it became a Public relations nightmare for the company as it reached the news on television as well.

The companies have now realized the need to change the conventional ways of pushing ads to consumers. Consumers are no more interested in seeing your ads. They would rather enjoy if they can interact with your brand.

Southwest Airlines, announced a 2-day fare sale through twitter last July instead of taking the paid-advertising route. This resulted in two days that generated the highest traffic to the airline’s website and two days which had the highest revenue in the airline industry.

While the article talks about some airlines that are actively engaging their customers on social media, there are many that think they don’t need it or do not find the time to do so.

(Unnikrishnan & Robert, 2010)

There are a lot of ways through which you can use social media to advertise your brand. Some do it subtly by adding their banner ads to their websites or blogs, some engage the users in interactive discussions on their fan pages, while some upload their ads on YouTube for consumers to watch, some post viral videos and blogs over the internet. Andrea Ahles in her article ‘In the airline industry, social media marketing takes flight’ writes that companies are starting to move beyond open social-networking sites like Facebook or Twitter and creating their own brand communities. This gives them a chance to connect with their consumers directly and they advertise freely through their website. Miyuru, a social media consultant for airlines says that it is very important for airlines to market online. The customers are online most of the time, be it from their computers or mobiles.