During the 2008 United States presidential election, the Obama team put social networking technologies at the centre of its campaign - among other things, recruiting 24-year-old Chris Hughes, cofounder of Facebook, to help develop them (Business Pundit, 2008). Talbot (2008) mentions that the Obama team recognised the power of campaigning via these various social media platforms, as their supporters would spread their message for them.

The research problem was directed at the marketing power that has evolved in the hands of 'always on' consumers, allowing consumers to post opinions, in real time, on social forums viewed by their peers and other potential customers. In addressing the research problem this paper will provide an overview of the literature review findings as well as the relevant empirical research findings with regard to user-created content and organisational web strategies.

The findings of the study are reported in the paper and emphasize the importance of engaging your market, as they will have their say about your product or service whether you choose to listen or not.

References

Business Pundit. 2008. Obama’s success: It’s the online networking, stupid. Available from: http://www.businesspundit.com/obamas-success-its-the-online-networking-stupid/ (Accessed 4 January 2010).

Talbot, D. 2008. How Obama really did it. Technology Review, 111(5):78-83.