Vodafone's new head of social media has been given the go-ahead to boost the operator's brand by using social media as more than a tool for customer service.
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Vodafone is going to leverage social media to boost its brand awareness. |
The company said its new social media chief, Samuel Hall, will aim to develop Vodafone's brand strategy across all social media channels. He will focus on identifying influencers in social media as well as engagement and advocacy, according to Marketing Week.
Vodafone had the highest response rate to customer service questions via Twitter in the fourth quarter of 2012, according to analytics firm Social Bakers.
This shift toward using social media to improve brand awareness comes as Vodafone and Telefónica's O2 UK ready their marketing launch plans for LTE. Both operators are expected to unveil extravagant advertising campaigns within the coming months in an attempt to attract consumers to their LTE networks, which are likely to be ready by early summer.
The focus on social media and branding also comes shortly after Vodafone announced plans to end its sponsorship of the McLaren Formula One racing team at the end of the year. The operator, which has backed the F1 team since 2007, rebutted claims reported in The Times that the move was due to the company's unease over the decision to race in Bahrain in 2012.
For more:
- see this Marketing Week article
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