ICT in Business

Question 1

forms/ medium of communication

Answer 1

Letters/memo/reports (word processing & spreadsheets)
Faxes (paper message by phone line)
Telephone (verbal message by phone line)
E-mail (electronic written message, can attach other media files)
Face to face (use of presentations, bluetooth, electronic organiser?)
Video/video conferencing (internet, video communication software/hardware)
Internet / Website / Intranet
Databases (electronic store of information)
SMS – (electronic via satelite)
EPOS (electronic point of sale)

Question 2

Choice of Medium affected by:

Answer 2

Choice of Medium affected by:
Need for record
Method of communication – written, spoken, visual (body language)
Number of people to be reached
Confidentiality
Nature of the information – length, complexity, speed of transfer, discussion, visual expression
Ability of the sender – how much the sender understands of the message they are trying to send
Technical capabilities – ICT!
Cost

Question 3

DIGITAL MEDIA

Answer 3

At a basic level – putting newspapers, tv, radio, Netflix etc. on the internet
However, full digital media = interactivity e.g. forming groups to discuss and engage with it
Companies can use digital media to perform market research on a continual basis as it encourages feedback from potential customers
Companies can then devise products or marketing promotion targeted at that particular group

Question 4

EXAMPLES OF DIGITAL MEDIA STRATEGIES 1

Answer 4

ZipCar:founder Robin Chase re-invented the car rental experience by linking vehicles to the Internet, and giving customers the tools to find, rent, and return vehicles through their phones and PCs at any time.

Question 5

EXAMPLES OF DIGITAL MEDIA STRATEGIES 2

Answer 5

Stephenie Myers:when she reached out to her early fans online in their own fan sites, they helped build her Twilight books into a cult hit.

Question 6

EXAMPLES OF DIGITAL MEDIA STRATEGIES 3

Answer 6

CD Baby:musician Derek Sivers built a $30 million company by creating an online business model that allows independent musicians to build their own digital storefront and sell music to consumers

Question 7

EXAMPLES OF DIGITAL MEDIA STRATEGIES 4

Answer 7

Kiva:the charity has given a half-million donors the power to choose what projects and what families they want to sponsor, using the Web to access a network of micro-entrepreneurs around the world.

Question 8

EXAMPLES OF DIGITAL MEDIA STRATEGIES 5

Answer 8

Wine Library: Gary Vaynerchuk built a huge online followingwith his daily web videos of wine tastings, reaching thousands of new fans and growing the wine retailer’s business ten-fold in three years

Question 9

HOW TO DO IT

Answer 9

Set your objectives – trying to reach current or new customers?

Focus on customers – what motivates their behaviour online?

Benchmark against other companies that have used digital media – copy their best ideas!

Digital media is becoming a must have not nice to have feature of many businesses

Rather than just marketing using Yell.com (marketing to anyone that will listen) – focus on finding out what customers actually want and what motivates them to buy

Question 10

HOW CAN BUSINESSES USE SOCIAL MEDIA IN THEIR MARKETING?

Answer 10

When you’re selling, your updates likelyinclude discounts and coupons, limited-time deals, new releases and promotions.

Providing the information your audience craves translates (e.g. new products) into lots of follows,shares and positive word of mouth – Business becomes a trusted source and increases market share

Improving customer service. Many of your interactions willinclude tips, tricks and hacks, information on how to use your product or service and solutions to complaints.