Using Social Media for Social Good – A Conceptual Overview

Social media, and in particular user-generated media, offer a myriad of possibilities for enhancing the engagement of target audiences with social marketing campaigns. Social media, which enables easy and free content creation, is often seen as a cost effective way to promote social messages, engage users and inform stakeholders.An immediate advantage of social media is the increased credibility over traditional media channels, especially advertising. In a recent survey of 14,000 consumes across Germany, France and the UK conducted by CRM company Satmetrix, only 2% of the British population said they trust advertising claims, 15% trust anonymous online reviews, while reviews from friends, family and colleagues are trusted by 49% (Fernandez 2010). However, in contrast to traditional media channels, there are some important differences when using social media as part of a health promotion or social marketing programme.