What Are the Benefits and Dangers That Universities Face by Including Social Media in Their Marketing Campaign?

3) What are the benefits and dangers that universities face by including social media in their marketing campaign?

Social media marketing can be used to increase attendance at university games. The use of social media is increasing and has become a primarily mobile activity for young adults. According to a Pew Researcher Center study, 74% of all adults use social networking sites in 2014 (Pew Research Center, 2014). Social media offers new possibilities for people to communicate and also interact with each other. The motivation for people to join social network sites, such as Facebook or Twitter goes beyond a simple need to communicate. Social networking furthermore helps students to fulfil the need to belong and students derive both utilitarian and hedonic value from group membership. A benefit that universities face by including social media in their marketing campaigns is that social media can be used to gain awareness for students. Social media networks are new channels to promote upcoming events and university games. Universities can create a Twitter account or a Facebook page in order to reach a target audience such as potential and current students, families and friends, who are supposed to attend university games in the future. Social media allows direct engagement with the targeted audience through collaborating, creating and sharing content about the next event. The University should keep it interesting and also should try to include the audience. Through interaction with the targeted audience, the university develops more understanding about the targeted audience and also gains insights on topics and themes that would appeal to their interests. With insight information, university could keep it interesting in order for more people to attend upcoming events. Information about upcoming events would also be more accessible for new students through social media. Current students would have the chance to become more familiar