Wal-Mart Is Learning to Love Social Media

In a recent post on THE BIG MONEY, Caitlin McDevitt shared the fear and experience Wal-Mart is having with face book. A sure sign that social media is entering the main stream. Here is some of what Caitline observed:

Wal-Mart has apparently quit worrying about the negative feedback it’s bound to get online. Instead, it’s trusting that its fan base will grow larger and louder than its detractors. The page now boasts slightly more than 200,000 fans. It has grown tenfold in just two months. And according to recent reports, Wal-Mart is in the process of launching what the executive vice president and chief marketing officer, Stephen Quinn, calls a “very big, significant initiative on Facebook.” It seems that the world’s biggest retailer is preparing to win over the Facebook community once and for all. Better late than never.

As mentioned during a recent presentation at MFA, the 4 P's of marketing (price, place, product, promotion), are being replaced with value exchange, merger of the digital & physical, experience and engagement. Promotion is no longer as ROI friendly and for Wal-Mart to recognize this by diving into social media just proves the point. Read Caitlin's article for more insights.