Social Networks Hit With Big Brands

Are social networks the way to draw Generation Y into the brand wars? Some say yes – and they have the trends to back up the message.

by Kristina Knight

Take Jones Soda’s recent Pimp Your MySpace page promo. It allows social networkers to update their pages using Jones icons. Other brands are following suit. Chase Bank, Apple and Victoria’s Secret have opened FaceBook groups and thousands of members have joined in. Those members get perks like discounts and the chance to meet their favorite celebs.

Advertisers across the board are jumping to create social network pages and invest in different social networking aspects. So far in 2006, online marketers have spent upwards of $350 million in online, social networking, that is just over 2% of the total online ad spend. eMarketer, who completed that study, predicts that social network ad sales will reach $2 billion by 2010.

Another new trend for advertisers is using bloggers to promote their products and services. Paid blogging companies like ReviewMe, Blogsvertise and PayPerPost having post listings that bloggers can choose to blog about. This type of word-of-mouth advertising has had it’s criticisms, however, that hasn’t stopped new paid blogging companies from signing on, or bloggers from signing up.