Strategies for success: The use of social media in the marketing of professional services – evidence of a global case study

摘要

The aim of this qualitative case study was to address the problem that little research has specifically explored social media marketing in professional services firms. Many professional services firms do not know how to best use social media to achieve their business development goals. Some firms may believe social media entails a risk to their reputation, and improper use of social media could lead to negative business outcomes if time and resources are wasted. This is a problem because professional services firms are widely known to have unique characteristics differentiating them from other industries; therefore, general knowledge of social media marketing remains a challenge. To address this problem, this research sought to generate a rich description of the use of social media marketing by one global professional services firm. The research was guided by three research questions: How have social media affected the marketing of professional services in one professional services firm? How has one professional services firm responded to the rise of social media,and with what effects on its business outcomes? What lessons arise from the case of one professional services firm with regard to success strategies for leveraging social media in marketing? The study examined KPMG’s use of foursocial media platforms (blogs, Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter) to enhance its brand, create a unified web identity, and drive traffic to its website. The study highlights the importance of using blogs, Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter to address clients, as well as the business imperatives for successful planning, development and implementation.