Wikipedia Research Papers - Academia.edu (original) (raw)

In the present world, the role of social media, as the important and actual tool of marketing communication is relevant for operation of commercial organizations, since according to various studies, the number of social media users amounts ¬¬¬¬to nearly half of the world population; consequently, social network platforms developed into important channel of communication between commercial organizations and their target audiences. The said world trend determines actuality of the theme discussed in the present work.
The present Master’s Thesis: “Social Media Competence and the Importance of Its Position on the Example of Specific Organizations” looks at representation of Georgian commercial organizations on social media platforms; the scope of the paper encompasses studying communication competence of the said commercial organizations and consequent assessment of professional competences of Georgia’s social media professionals.
Taking into account scarcity of literature and relevant Georgian market specific studies on social media marketing, the aim of this study is to motivate next-stage development of this field in Georgia which is a prerequisite for satisfying trends and requirements existing in the contemporary world.
In the framework of this study, the author looked at the potential, platforms and functional specifics of the social media sphere; in the course of the work performed, relevant literature was reviewed, both Georgian and international statistical data on social media was gathered and analyzed, qualitative and quantitative studies were conducted.
In order to meet the aims of the thesis, relevant design was selected for the study to be implemented in the form of a qualitative self-administered questionnaire survey conducted online, encompassing primarily closed and categorical questions, including one open and one multiple-choice question, in total 37 questions.
Sampling, the target population of which were Georgian customers of social media, was conducted in June 2019 (2.06.2019 – 28.06.2019), through non-randomized sampling method. The qualitative study covers responses received from 210 interviewees.
Qualitative study was conducted employing so called content-analysis technique for content-wise and technical audit of representation of three Georgian commercial organizations - “Samoseli Pirveli”, “Alaznistavi” and “Soplidan” - on social media platform “Facebook”. In order to avoid bias in selection, principle of selection of these companies was based on their participation in the competition for nomination - “ Creation of Best Product or Service” and prize for “Digital Strategy and New Website” - both organized by JSC “ TBC BANK” - leading company for social media marketing, generally innovative decision-making and conduct of marketing campaigns.
The results of the study show that unfortunately competence in the field of social media marketing is lacking in Georgia. No implications can be drawn from qualitative and quantitative studies conducted. Notwithstanding the fact, that companies selected for analysis were among those nominated by JSC “ TBC BANK”, respondents participating in quantitative study preceding the conduct of the qualitative study, did not name any of the companies studied by the author for content-analysis in the framework of the qualitative study.
Quantitative study results showed that respondents were actively using social media platforms for communication, information gathering, are subscribers of Georgian websites, yet they are completely disregarding commercial organization blogs and are irresponsive to commercial advertisements (57.3% of respondents). 61.8% of those interviewed say commercial organization pages on all platforms are filled in with similar type of content, which is not as interesting as to motivate subscribers to react. The study showed that majority of organizations are not exploiting social media management tools – monitoring system, artificial intelligence programs, leaving them unable to fully take advantage of social media. The abovementioned attests to low level of digital literacy in the country.
Based on the analysis conducted, it can be said that two pillars viewed by the author as prerequisites for social media management development in Georgia are professional education and awareness raising of the society, in particular raising responsiveness of managers of commercial organizations.