Social marketing summit examines issue of metrics

Panelists at the SWAT Summit - a San Francisco-based conference on advertising and social networking held this week - have suggested that advertisers using social media platforms should view the opportunity as a new way of doing business.

Internetnews.com reported that some of the most successful advertising campaigns are those which tie social media marketing campaigns into other marketing channels, creating brand awareness through partnerships.

Furthermore, Misha Combs, group director of strategy for Organic, a digital agency, suggested that metrics should be used to track the effectiveness of advertising via social networks.

While pass-along applications and widgets can be used to track effectiveness, developers should also enter into similar partnerships to those formed with more traditional publishers which come to the table "with ideas, not just inventory", she stated.

Meanwhile, a study released earlier this week by Deloitte, Beeline Labs and the Society for New Communications Research suggested that online communities can increase word-of-mouth, promote brand recognition, encourage new ideas and enhance customer loyalty.