1. INTRODUCTION 1.

1 INTRODUCTION TO THE STUDY

Social Media Marketing is the hottest new marketing concept and every business owner wants to know how social media can generate value for their business. This whitepaper provides you an outline for developing and managing a successful Social Media Marketing program. We examine what Social Media Marketing is and how to use social media in your marketing strategy. People are social by nature and collect or share information that is important to them. Social Media Marketing is about understanding how technology is making it easier for people to connect socially with their social networks and how your business can profit from that understanding. More and more of your customers, whether for personal use, business-to-consumer or business-to-business reasons use social media in every aspect of their daily life. Social networking sites are emerging tools of modern day marketing, which has its wider reach from developing the customer base to promoting a brand or a product in a shorter time span.Different social networking sites such as Facebook, twitter, Google+ are daily used by millions and millions of users worldwide for different purposes and at recent trends business people are trying to get quality leads from these sites and it happens. Social Media is a popular mode for social communication. The 21st century uses social media networking in their day to day life. In the busy urban life, people dont have time to meet or even call up their near and dear ones. Social media helps to bridge this gap. Millions of youngsters use social media websites to search their friends online and communicate with them, chat, share information, videos and photos. People seek to meet new people through social media, who share common interests and aspirations. Visiting a social networking site has become a habit for most youth, one which they cannot easily give up. This growing importance of social media has translated into its increasing use in marketing also. In todays competitive world, brands are fighting for space in the minds of consumers. Though the traditional modes of advertising and marketing like television, print media and outdoor media still contribute to a major chunk of the advertising budget, they cannot be solely relied upon to ensure reach to the target audience. Using social media like blogs and 1

networking sites for marketing of products is fast increasing its importance. Social media marketing is the latest fad and here to stay. With sites like Face book, Orkut, LinkedIn, Twitter, You tube, etc. attracts more than 5 million users every day. Having a presence on these sites is a must for all marketing organizations. Besides attracting a large number of prospective customers, the cost of social media for advertising is comparatively much lower than the other mass media options. Hence it is a value for money proposition. Social media websites help generate interest in the brand and also to build trust in the company. This goes a long way in the brand building exercise. Besides, one can reach the relevant target audience and avoid clutter. It helps the company stay in constant touch with its customers, know their preferences and upgrade their products and services accordingly. It gives them enough room to receive prompt feedback from them. It thus leads to one on one interaction, leading to customer satisfaction. A satisfied customer spreads positive word of mouth for the brand and thus enhances the brand equity. All in all, it helps a company increase awareness of its brand, generate leads, build its customer base, improve sales and market share. If planned and executed properly, social media becomes a very cost effective mode of online promotions. A recent study, The State of Small Business Report, sponsored by Network Solutions, LLC and the University of Marylands Robert H. Smith School of Business, points to economic struggles as the catalyst for social medias rapid popularity. The study results show that social media usage by small business owners increased from 12% to 24% in just the last year, and almost 1 out of 5, actively uses social media as part of his or her marketing strategy. In 2009, only 23% of marketers were using social media for years. Now that number has grown to 31%. Heres a breakdown of what the small businesses reported as the main uses of social media marketing: 75% have a company page on a social networking site. 69% post status updates or articles of interest on social media sites. 57% build a network through a site such as LinkedIn. 54% monitor feedback about the business. 39% maintain a blog. 26% tweet about areas of expertise. 16% use Twitter as a service channel. 2

According to the study, different industries are adopting social media marketing at different rates, and while many industries have started using social media marketing in their efforts to reach more customers, many still have not positioned it as their top priority. A research shows that charitable organizations are still outpacing the business world and academia in their use of social media. In a study conducted in 2008, a remarkable eighty-nine percent of charitable organizations are using some form of social media including blogs, podcasts, message boards, social networking, video blogging and wikis. A majority (57%) of the organizations are blogging. Forty-five percent of those studied report social media is very important to their fundraising strategy. While these organizations are best known for their nonprofit status and their fundraising campaigns, they demonstrate an acute, and still growing, awareness of the importance of Web 2.0 strategies in meeting their objectives. In just the last few months, marketers have shifted their attitudes toward social media marketing spending. This was recently affirmed in the new study, The CMO Survey, from Duke Universitys Fuqua School of Business and the American Marketing Association. A key finding: Social media marketing budgets continue to rise. According to the results, businesses currently allocate 6% of their marketing budgets to social media, an allotment they expect to increase to 10% during the next year and 18% over the next 5 years.

1.2INDUSTRY PROFILE

PRINTING: Printing is a process for reproducing text and images, typically with ink on paper using a printing press. It is often carried out as a large-scale industrial process, and is an essential part of publishing and transaction printing. MODERN PRINTING TECHNOLOGY: Across the world, over 45 trillion pages (2005 figure) are printed annually. In 2006 there were approximately 30,700 printing companies in the United States, accounting for $112 billion, according to the 2006 U.S. Industry & Market Outlook by Barnes Reports. Print jobs that move through the Internet made up 12.5% of the total U.S. printing market last year, according to research firm Info Trend/CAP Ventures. OFFSET PRESS Offset printing is a widely used printing technique where the inked image is transferred (or "offset") from a plate to a rubber blanket, then to the printing surface. When used in combination with the lithographic process, which is based on the repulsion of oil and water, the offset technique employs a flat (planographic) image carrier on which the image to be printed obtains ink from ink rollers, while the non-printing area attracts a film of water, keeping the non-printing areas ink-free. Currently, most books and newspapers are printed using the technique of offset lithography. Other common techniques include:

Flexography used for packaging, labels, newspapers Hot wax dye transfer Inkjet used typically to print a small number of books or packaging and also, to print a variety of materials from high quality papers simulating offset printing, to floor tiles; Inkjet is also used to apply mailing addresses to direct mail pieces

Laser printing mainly used in offices and for transactional printing (bills, bank documents). Laser printing is commonly used by direct mail companies to create variable data letters or coupons, for example

Pad printing popular for its unique ability to print on complex three-dimensional surfaces Relief print, (mainly used for catalogues) Rotogravure mainly used for magazines and packaging Screen-printing for T-shirts to floor tiles.

GRAVURE Gravure printing is an intaglio printing technique, where the image to be printed is made up of small depressions in the surface of the printing plate. The cells are filled with ink and the excess is scraped off the surface with a doctor blade, then a rubber-covered roller presses paper onto the surface of the plate and into contact with the ink in the cells. The printing plates are usually made from copper and may be produced by digital engraving or laser etching. Gravure printing is used for long, high-quality print runs such as magazines, mailorder catalogues, packaging, and printing onto fabric and wallpaper. It is also used for printing postage stamps and decorative plastic laminates, such as kitchen worktops. Small format (up to ledger size paper sheets), as used in business offices and libraries Wide format (up to 3' or 914mm wide rolls of paper), as used in drafting and design establishments. Some of the more common printing technologies are: Blueprint and related chemical technologies Daisy wheel where pre-formed characters are applied individually Dot-matrix which produces arbitrary patterns of dots with an array of printing studs Line printing where formed characters are applied to the paper by lines Heat transfer such as early fax machines or modern receipt printers that apply heat to special paper, which turns black to form the printed image 5

Inkjet including bubble-jet, where ink is sprayed onto the paper to create the desired image Electrophotography where toner is attracted to a charged image and then developed Laser a type of xerography where the charged image is written pixel by pixel using a laser Solid ink printer where cubes of ink are melted to make ink or liquid toner Vendors typically stress the total cost to operate the equipment, involving complex

calculations that include all cost factors involved in the operation as well as the capital equipment costs, amortization, etc. For the most part, toner systems are more economical than inkjet in the long run, even though inkjets are less expensive in the initial purchase price. Professional digital printing (using toner) primarily uses an electrical charge to transfer toner or liquid ink to the substrate onto which it is printed. Digital print quality has steadily improved from early color and black and white copiers to sophisticated colour digital presses such as the Xerox iGen3, the Kodak Nexpress, the HP Indigo Digital Press series, and the Info Print 5000. The iGen3 and Nexpress use toner particles and the Indigo uses liquid ink. The Info Print 5000 is a full-color, continuous forms inkjet drop-on-demand printing system. All handle variable data, and rival offset in quality. Digital offset presses are also called direct imaging presses, although these presses can receive computer files and automatically turn them into print-ready plates, they cannot insert variable data. Small press and fanzines generally use digital printing. Prior to the introduction of cheap photocopying the use of machines such as the spirit duplicator, hectograph, and mimeograph was common.

1.3COMPANY PROFILE ABOUT BELL

The Bell Group is a group of companies, service industries and educational institutions founded in 1952, by Mr. A.Chelladhurai. Based in Sivakasi and Palayamkottai. The company that he first formed under the Bell brand was the Bell Pins Manufacturing company, in Palayamkottai in 1952.Bell Printers, established in 1970, has now emerged as a leading printer with extensive expansion of the printing infrastructure in recent years. With a constant quest to further expand our printing potential, Bell Printers now specializes in high quality offset printing catering to the luxury segment as well as mass producing cheap yet enduring products for the common man. Bell Printers is a leading Indian offset printing and packaging company. Established over three decades ago, Bell Printers has always been an eminent company in the domestic print industry. Now with an incredible new corporate infrastructure, Bell is all set to becoming a global player in the print industry within the next five years. With quality and timely delivery being the keywords of focus, Bell has a cutting edge over competition by creating value-added products of the highest quality. INFRASTRUCTURE: Bell Printers has an extensive, purpose-built infrastructure. The new 4-acre facility is fortified with over 30,000 sq. ft. of production floor space. The location right in the heart of Indias printing hub, Sivakasi, helps us harness the skilled manpower and efficient logisticsboth of which are the essential boons of Sivakasi.Bell Printers has the superior competitive advantage of a complete Heidelberg setup, also commonly termed 'The Rolls Royce of Printing presses'. Managed by an efficient team of supervisors with extensive experience abroad in large printing corporations, our skilled operators and technicians always make sure the quality of our products are of higher standard as possible. The board members have a collective experience of over five decades in the print industry. The experience and expertise also branches evenly along the hierarchy of our organization. 7

Bell Printers has installed India's first Varimatrix 105CS die-cutting machine from Heidelberg. This machine is a part of a raft of Heidelberg equipment the company has invested in to expand its packaging printing business. It includes Heidelberg Speedmaster CD 102 four-colour press and a Polar 115XC cutting machine. This is Heidelbergs first Varimatrix 105CS die-cutter installed in India. The machine is equipped with inline stripping and creasing unit and has a decent speed of 7,500 sheets per hour. It can process paper and card board weighing between 80gsm and 400gsm, also cuts corrugated board up to four millimeters (0.16 inches).This, when coupled with in-house design studio, pre-press and finishing equipment make it a winning combination for Bell Printers.

VISION:
To be a trendsetting Indian Printing and Packaging company offering innovative products and world class services.

MISSION:
The Mission is to deliver dynamic customized, cost-effective products that meet the unique need and expectations of every customer with high ethical standards. A performance and technology driven culture that uses stringent metrics to continually expand and improve processes, systems and quality practices. Dedicated to create a workplace that respects and values people from diverse backgrounds and enables all employees to do their best work, ensuring a safe workplace.

AWARDS:
Bell Printers has won The Best Printer award for two consecutive years in PAMEX (Printing and Allied Machinery Exhibition), New Delhi amongst hundreds of printers across the nation.

1.4 PRIMARY OBJECTIVE:

OBJECTIVES

To study the influence of social networking sites in business regarding the customer base development and promotions SECONDARY OBJECTIVES: To identify whether the social networking sites help in developing customer base. To study that social networking site can be used for promotions. To analyze whether to invest in social networking sites for business development

1.5 REVIEW OF LITERATURE

The paper by Ms.Sisira Neti, in International Journal of Enterprise Computing and Business Systems Vol. 1 Issue 2 July 2011, on the topic social media and its role in marketing about how the social networking sites helps in marketing activities. Social Media is really picking up new heights in India. According to the 2010 Regus Global Survey of business social networking, India tops the usage of social networking by business it has the highest activity index, 127, far more than theUS97, and 52% of the Indian respondent companies said that they had acquired new customers using social networks while 35% American companies managed that. Many companies are coming big way for Social Media Optimization for their Product or Services nowadays. During Election 2009 Social Media was used for Influence Indian Voters. Social Media Marketing in India is being undertaken by brands like Tata DoCoMo, MTV India, Channel V, Clear Trip, Tata Photon, Axe deodorants, Microsoft, Naukri, Shaadi and many more. Besides, numerous Indian celebrities are also using SMM platform to promote their movies, music and events via Twitter, Facebook and personalized blogs. Social Media Marketing is also boosting public relations business. Several PR agencies in India are undertaking brand building exercises for corporate organizations, brands and celebrities. Companies using traditional marketing methods (e.g. surveys, focus groups, test marketing) often spend millions to locate their target markets. Establishing a social media strategy will help them see where potential customers are hanging out. The companies can search for related groups and Fan Pages through Facebook, start accounts on social bookmarking sites such as Digg or Stumble Upon, and check on who is linking to your site to find out whos interested. Social media gives businesses on small budgets the ability to find out what people are saying about them (and others) in their industry, without paying large sums on market research. With its ear to the ground on social media, the company will be the first to know if its product is working or if changes need to be made. Chris Murdough (2009), Social Media Measurement: It's Not Impossible, Journal of Interactive Advertising, Vol. 2010, No 1 (Fall 2009), pp 94-99.have positively agreed on the potential of social media but like any other marketing tool it is difficult to gauge the kind of 10

impact that it lays on the masses. According to Biil Winterberg (2010) Tools and Techniques to Leverage Social Media, Journal of Financial Planning, May 2010., social media websites like Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter come with unbelievable techniques to communicate with family, colleagues and friends. Benson, Vladlena, Filippaios, Fragkiskos & Morgan, Stephanie, (2010), 'Online Social Networks: Changing the Face of Business Education and Career Planning, International Journal of e-Business Management, vol. 4, no. 1, pp. 20-33. DOI 10 3316 / IJEBM 0401020. have studied the usage of social networks in career development of students and also building the relationship with their employers and have concluded on some International Conference on Technology and Business Management March 28-30, 2011 757 better understanding of motivations as an effective application of these networks on businesses. Elisa Backer (2010) Using smart phones and Facebook in a major assessment: The Student Experience, E-Journal of Business Education & Scholarship of Teaching, Vol. 4, No. 1, 2010, pp: 19- 31,have investigated the usage pattern in adoption of new technologies like Facebook and Smart phones on students and found that such applications create a sense of motivation and responsibility as well as it enriches their learning experiences. Donna L. Hoffman and Marek Fodor (2010), Can You Measure the ROI of Your Social Media Marketing?, MIT Sloan Management Review, Fall 2010, Vol.52, No.1,have found out that instead of using companies investment for calculation of returns on investment, managers must assess consumer motivations for using social media and measure customers investments in calculation of ROI. Sara Tye (2010), Communicating in the Social Media Age, The British Journal of Administrative Management; summer 2010; ABI/INFORM Global pg. 22.have analyzed the impact of advances in technology and how it transformed the traditional business procedures in communicating to their target audience. Chan & Prendergast (2007) have perceived Materialism and social comparison as important issues, amongst adolescents and found that Social comparison with friends and with media figures were both positive predictors of materialism.

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1.6 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

Based on Literature Review, it was observed that SME as well as Large Enterprises have started to use online social media for their business promotion and marketing. RESEARCH TYPE: The project employs systematic, formal and descriptive research techniques. The research type is primarily a qualitative research. This study is based on the data collected through structured questionnaire and in-depth, unstructured and informal interview with the company officials. DESCRIPTIVE RESEARCH The major purpose of using descriptive research is description of state of affairs, as it in which at present and to control over the variables to report what is happening in the social media marketing. DATA COLLECTION The collection of data is collected through a structured questionnaire and through telephonic discussions with the company officials who are considered in the sample. Primary data is used is the study in order to meet the requirements of the purpose. PRIMARY DATA Under this study primary data was collected by using Structured Questionnaire. The structure questionnaire consists of both open-ended and closed ended questions. The primary data has been collected through the questionnaire by means of e-mails and personal interview. The questionnaire consists of number of question printed in definite order on a form. The primary data was collected from various companies, with the help of Questionnaire irrespective of location. TARGET RESPONDENTS:

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The target respondents were companies which require printing and packaging services. The respondents were selected irrespective of their locational factor. DETERMINATION OF POPULATION & SAMPLE SIZE: Population size: unknown Sample size: 29 DATA COLLECTION TECHNIQUE: Structured questionnaire Telephonic discussion SAMPLING TECHNIQUE: Convenient sampling The technique was chosen based on the time restrictions and respondents DESCRIPTION OF STATISTICAL TOOLS: In order to come out with the findings of the study, the following statistical tools are used in the study. The various analytical tools used in this study are,

t-Test Cross tabulation Chi-square test Frequency distribution Tabulation and percentage method accompanied by charts are used to interpret the analysis.

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1.7 NEED AND SCOPE OF THE STUDY NEED FOR THE STUDY:

To know whether the company clients were using social networking page and to develop a good relationship with the client through these sites. To analyze whether the clients are using social networking sites for business updates To know the clients interest towards business through social networking sites in future. To decide whether to invest in social media advertising campaign for promotions. To find whether the company can develop its customer base through the social networking sites

SCOPE OF THE STUDY:

The study area is Impact of social networking sites in business emphasizing customer base development and promotions. The study helps in demonstrating the usage of social networking sites by their clients. The study provides a platform for the company to decide when to invest in social networking sites in future. The study helps the company to gain a clear sense of views about the clients and potential customers and helps them in improving the customer-base through social media advertising campaign

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1.8LIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY

The study is limited by the fact that a relatively small sample of participants (n=29) were selected using non-probability sampling. This limitation makes it difficult to generalize and apply the findings of this study to the entire clients of the company. The study also failed to determine consumers attitudes towards social media advertisements when consumers have given permission to receive such advertisements. This represents a further limitation of the study. Most of the clients failed to respond though they use such social networking sites. The calculation of return on investment is also a major limitation because it is hard to calculate the returns just by the likes and connections from the social networking sites

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2. DATA ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATION

2.1 FREQUENCY OF SOCIAL NETWORKING USERS: The frequencies of the companies which use social networking sites from the sample are as follows. Since the data is nominal the frequency analysis is used. Statistical tool used: Frequency analysis. Table 2.1 Frequency of companies that have page in social networking sites Cumulative Percent 48.3 100.0

No Yes Total

Frequency 14 15 29

Percent 48.3 51.7 100.0

Valid Percent 48.3 51.7 100.0

Figure 2.1 companies that owns a social network page

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The Statistics from the thesocialskinny.com supports that 53% of small businesses are using social media. INFERENCE: From the above data interpretations with the help of the frequency table and the chart,it is clear that almost half of the sample size(52%) owns a page in the social networking sites. 2.2 MAJOR SOCIAL NETWORKING SITE USED BY THE COMPANIES The companies that own a social networking page from the sample have the following pattern of social networking sites. The analysis is done to find the frequently used social networking site and so relatively the frequency analysis was used.. Statistical tool used: Frequency analysis. Figure 2.2 companies using various social networking sites

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The Statistics from the thesocialskinny.com supports that, 89 percent of agencies said they would use Facebook to advertise for their clients in 2012 either by purchasing ads, creating pages, or other methods of engagement 39% of agencies said they would focus on Twitter, 36% YouTube, 21% LinkedIn and 18% Google+ INFERENCE: The above data helps us to find that most of the companies have their Facebook page and then next comes the linked-in profile followed by twitter and Google+ pages. 2.3 COMPARISON BETWEEN COMPANIES HAVING A PAGE IN SOCIAL NETWORKING SITES AND ITS INFLUNCE LEVEL To find the companys view about having a social networking sites page and the companies having their own page and companies having their own social networking page are compared below. For comparison of the nominal data the cross tabulation is used. Statistical tool used: Cross tabulation

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Table 2.2 comparison between views of companies and their social networking pages Cross tabulation Owns Social network page No Yes 0 1 3 6 5 14 0 4 10 15

Interest or view on Social network page Total

2 3 4 5

Total 1 3 10 15 29

INFERENCE: From the above table it is found that companies which have a positive view about social networking sites influence in business mostly own a social networking site page.

2.4 INFLUENCE OF SOCAIL NETWORKING SITES IN BUSINESS To find the significant influence of the social networking sites in business, the significance of companies interest or positive view towards the social networking sites page a one sample t-test is used since the sample size is less than 30. Statistical tool used: one sample t-test Analysis: 19

Null hypothesis (H0): The social networking sites does not have influence over the business Alternate hypothesis (H1): The social networking sites have influence over the business Table 2.3 one sample t-test for finding influence of social networking sites over the business One-Sample Test Test Value = 0 Sig. (2tailed) .000 Mean Difference 4.345 95% Confidence Interval of the Difference Lower Upper 4.04 4.65

t Interest in social network 28.745 sites pages

Df 28

INFERENCE: From the above table, it is found that the significance value obtained is less than 0.05 and therefore the null hypothesis is rejected. It implies that the social networking sites have significant influence over the business.

2.5 IMPROVEMENT OF BUSINESS BY THE SOCIAL NETWORKING PAGES To find the significant influence of the social networking sites in improvement of business, the significance of companies improvement in business after using the social networking sites page is analyzed and so a one sample t-test is used since the sample size is less than 30. Statistical tool used: One sample t-test

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Analysis: Null hypothesis (H0): The social networking page does have significant influence over the improvement of the business. Alternate hypothesis (H1): The social networking pages have significant influence over the improvement of the business. Table 2.4 one sample t-test for finding influence of social networking site pages in improvement of business One-Sample Test Test Value = 0 Mean Difference 1.690 95% Confidence Interval of the Difference Lower Upper .98 2.40

t Level of improvement in business 4.859

Df 28

Sig. (2-tailed) .000

INFERENCE: From the above table, it is found that the significance value obtained is less than 0.05 and therefore the null hypothesis is rejected. It implies that the social networking sites have significant influence over the improvement of the business. 2.6 COMPANIES VIEW ABOUT HAVING A SOCIAL NETWORKING SITE PAGE IN FUTURE To find the significant influence of the social networking sites in business, the significance of companies interest or positive view towards creating a social networking sites page is analyzed using a one sample t-test since the sample size is less than 30. Statistical tool used: One sample t-test Analysis:

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Null hypothesis (H0): The companies are not influenced to have a social networking sites page in future Alternate hypothesis (H1): The companies are influenced to have a social networking sites page in future Table 2.5 one sample t-test to find the companies view about having a social networking sites page in future

One-Sample Test Test Value = 0 Sig. (2Mean tailed) Difference 28 .000 1.931 95% Confidence Interval of the Difference Lower Upper 1.11 2.75

t Future idea towards social networking sites 4.829

df

INFERENCE: From the above table, it is found that the significance value obtained is less than 0.05 and therefore the null hypothesis is rejected. It implies that the companies are influenced to have a social networking sites page in future. 2.7 COMPANYS INTERACTING WITH CUSTOMERS THROUGH SOCIAL NETWORKING SITES To find the significant influence of the customers interaction through the social networking sites is analyzed. Since the data is nominal, the chi-square test is being used. Statistical tool used: chi-square test Analysis: Null hypothesis (H0): There is high level of interaction with the customers through social networking sites.

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Alternate hypothesis (H1): There is no high level of interaction with the customers through social networking sites. Table 2.6 Frequency table of customer interaction through social networking sites

0 2 3 4 5 Total

Observed N Expected N 14 5.8 2 5.8 7 5.8 4 2 29 5.8 5.8

Residual 8.2 -3.8 1.2 -1.8 -3.8

The Statistics from the thesocialskinny.com supports that, 95% of Facebook wall posts are not answered by brands

Table 2.7 Test statistics for customer interaction through social networking sites

Chi-square df Asymp. Sig.

Test Statistics Level of customer interaction 17.379a 4 .002

a. 0 cells (.0%) have expected frequencies less than 5. The minimum expected cell frequency is 5.8. 23

The statistics report from jeffbullas.com supports that. The B2B customers acquire 61 percentage success rate of customer acquisition through liked-in

INFERENCE: From the above table, it is found that the significance value obtained is less than 0.05 and the calculated value (17.379) is greater than the critical value(9.49) therefore the null hypothesis is rejected. It implies that there is no high level of interaction with the customers through social networking sites.

2.8 COMPANIES INVESTED IN SOCIAL NETWORKING SITES FOR BUSINESS To find the frequency of the companies those have invested in the social networking sites promotion. Since the data is nominal the frequency analysis is used. The following graph describes the companies which have invested in social networking sites for business. Statistical tool used: Frequency analysis Figure 2.3 companies invested in social networking sites for business Invested in social networking sites 24 Not invested in social networking sites

No.of companies

27

The Statistics from the thesocialskinny.com supports that, Only 10% of marketers are actively monitoring social media ROI Around 13 % of the companies in social networking sites invested in promotions such as ad-campaigns etc. INFERENCE: From the above graph it is clearly visible that even though the companies have their own page in the social networking sites around 93% of the companies are not interested to invest in any of the campaigns in the social networking sites.

3. FINDINGS AND SUGGESTION 3.1 FINDINGS:

It is found that from the analysis the company can develop the customer base through social networking sites and investments on promotions must be considered From the analysis it is found around 52% of the companies use social network sites and have influence in development of the business and so customer base development can be done with the help of social networking sites. From the analysis results the social network has positive influence over the companies that have social network sites and customer follow the brand in social networking sites so promotions can be done. 25

It is found that the customer interactions are low and only a meager amount of companies have invested in social networking sites in case of B2B segment from the analysis so only calculated investments must be made.

3.2 SUGGESTIONS: Bell printers can open up their page in the top three social networking sites, Facebook, linked-in and twitter. Constantly monitor the social networking trends and adapt wisely so as there is possibility of reaching more quality leads. Since the local clients are unaware of the social networking sites it is better to convey the idea to the clients for the future developments in social networking. Can use the social network medium to promote your brand image and bring up uniqueness in communicating with the customers. Can concentrate on a particular focused group on the social networking sites. 26

 Facebook can be used for the B2C marketing and Linked-in and twitter can be used for the B2B marketing.

4. CONCLUSION
Based on the interview with the sample companies and the analysis shown above, my view is that the following parameters are important to measure for effective use of marketing. Today, online social medias are used for the promotion of products or services and not for any money transaction. There may be a great chance in future that the company may tie up with trusted online payment gateway like PAYPAL on online social media like Facebook, LinkedIn etc. Thus consumer can directly pay the amount through online social media which eliminates the cost of building a E-Commerce website and cost of promoting the website. Facebook is the right social media to promote B2C product companies. LinkedIn is the right 27 social media marketing by companies. Only generating fans or Prospects is not sufficient for effective

social media to promote B2B business. Twitter is the right social media to engage the prospects/customers with all the updates regularly. Blogs can be used successfully once the business is started to establish online. Blogs can be used to build a personalized community of all the customers which helps to build a good relationship with the customers for a longer period of time and can be used as a testimonial social media for the lead generation or for converting prospect to the consumer. Online Forums are the right social media to reach to the target market easily as community forums are categorized by the subjects / area / interests etc. Continuous engagement with the prospects/leads or customers is highly required if social media needs to be used for promotion of the business effectively and thus the required resource should be available 24 x 7. This research paper is just an initiative towards the study of social media marketing. Finally I conclude that social networking sites have a strong impact over the business, it has developed the ability to develop the customer base and it can be used as one of the effective promotional tool when handled in a efficient way.

APPENDICES
OUESTIONNAIRE: Respected sir/ madam, I am doing MBA in MEPCO SCHLENK ENGINEERING COLLEGE, Sivakasi, and Tamilnadu. I am doing a research on Impact of social networking sites in business emphasizing customer base development and promotions. Kindly provide your valuable response in the space provided after each question. I assure that the data collected will be used only for my study purpose. 1) Social network site will be helpful in business development? [a] Strongly agree [b] Agree Answer: ____

[c] Neither agree nor disagree[d] Disagree 28

[e] Strongly disagree 2) Do your organization / institution own a social network page? [a]Yes (answer the following questions) Answer: ____

[b] No (skip to question No: 17)

3) In which social network do your organization / institution own a page? Answer: ____ [a]Facebook [b] Linked In [c] Twitter [d] Google + [e] others Answer: ____ more than

4) How long your organization/institution owns a social network page? [a] less than 1 month [b] 1-6 months[c] 6-12 months 3year 5) Frequency of visiting social network site per day? [a] less than 1 time [b] 2 times [c] 3 times [d] 4 times

[d] 1-3 years [e]

Answer: ____ [d] more than 5 times Answer: ____ [d] more than 1 hour

6) Time Span of staying in social network site? [a] less than 15 mins [b] 15 to 30 mins [e] not using it 7) Number of likes or followers or connections (approx.)? [a] less than 20 than 100 8) Organization use social network sites for business purpose? [a] Very frequent [b] frequent [c] sometimes [d] rare [b] 20-50 [c] 50-75 [c] 30 to 60 mins

Answer: ____ [d] 75-100 [e] more

Answer: ____ [e] never

9) For what purpose does the organization/institution use social networking site? Answer: [a] To create awareness [c] Focusing potential customer [b] To reach existing customers [d] other reasons Answer: ____ [d] other reason Answer: ____

10) What does your organization expect from social network? [a] customer details [b] supplier updates [c] competitor strategy

11) Level of customer interaction through social networking sites? 29

[a] Very frequent

[b] frequent

[c] sometimes

[d] rare

[e] never Answer: ____ [e] Never

12) Follow-up on supplier status/updates in social networking page? [a]Very frequent [b] frequent [c] sometimes [d] rare

13) Assistance of social networking page to organization in selecting supplier & service provider [a] Very high [e]Very low 14) Have you invested for Ads & other promotional activities in social networking sites? Answer: ____ [a] Yes [b] No [b] High [c] Neither high nor low Answer: ____ [d] Low

15) How much have your organization / institution invested in social networking sites for promotional activities (per annum)? Answer: ____

16) Level of improvement in your business after using social network page? Answer: ____ [a] Very high (skip to details) [b] High [c] Medium [d] Low [e]Very low

17) Reason not to get a social network page? [a] I havent time for social network site network site [c] Havent heard of social network site business [e] Other reasons [d] not [b]Not

Answer: ____ interested convenient in for social my

18) In future do the organization / institution has idea towards marketing through social network sites? [a] Strongly agree Disagree [b] Agree [e] Strongly disagree Answer: ____ [c] Neither agree nor Disagree [d]

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DETAILS: NAME DESIGNATION COMPANY PLACE PRODUCTS E-mail ID CONTACT NUMBER : : : : : : : : AUTHORITIES SEAL/SIGNATURE

NET CONNECTIVITY (SPEED)

BIBLIOGRAPHY
Chris Brogan, Facebook ads: Success secrets from an insider. Entrepreneur. November 2010, p.50. Allen Moon, Promoted tweets: is your business ready? Entrepreneur. November 2010, p.54. Michael A. Stelzner (2010), Social Media Marketing Industry Report, How Marketers are using social media to grow their businesses, Social Media Examiner, April 2010. Cooper R, Donald. Business research methods.India:Tata McGraw-Hill 2011,pp 305632

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 Donna L. Hoffman and Marek Fodor (2010), Can You Measure the ROI of Your Social Media Marketing? MIT Sloan Management Review, Fall 2010, Vol.52, No.1. http://www.ctam.com/html/sfsb/pdf/Marketing-White-Paper-Social-Media.pdf http://pauladaunt.com/books/Social%20Media%20Marketing.pdf http://expansionplus.com/pdf/expansion-plus-social-media-strategies.pdf http://www.b2bento.com/whitepaper/SocialMediaB2B.pdf http://www.oppapers.com/essays/A-Study-On-Social-Media-Marketing/574224 http://www.grin.com/de/e-book/159141/social-media-marketing http://thesocialskinny.com/100-social-media-statistics-for-2012/ http://www.jeffbullas.com/2012/04/23/48-significant-social-media-facts-figures-andstatistics-plus-7-infographics/

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