Week 3 - Part 2: Communication Between Business and Customer

Business 1: Bread and Cie

• https://www.breadandcie.com/
• Bread and Cie are visibly using Twitter, Facebook, Google plus, Foursquare, Instagram, and Yelp.
• Twitter: (February 27, 2016) The company was very active in 2016, but years following had little to no posts at all.
• Facebook: (September 6, 2018) The company is very active on facebook! They post a lot of videos, content, and photos. It seems to be an easier access for customers to engage with them through this platform.
• Google plus: (Not available) This link opened up as an error page.
• Foursquare: (Not available) This platform was used years ago, and doesn't appear to be active year to date. It seems dated, and out of use.
• Instagram: (September 6, 2018) Bread and Cie have a large following on Instagram with 4,979 followers! They post frequently, and communicate with their customers through their posts.
• Yelp: (August 17, 2018) There are over 1,000 reviews for this bakery on Yelp! I didn't notice any replies from the company, however there are hundreds of Yelp users that are helping spread the word of how fantastic this bakery is.

Business 2: Hans & Harry Bakery

• http://hans-harry.com/
• Hans & Harry bakery are visibly using Facebook, Instagram, and Yelp.
• Facebook: (July 7, 2018) Hans & Harry's keeps their company visible on this platform, however their posts are lacking. A lot of the content comes from their customers, and there aren't many responses to their posts on their page.
• Instagram: (July 3, 2018) They have 1,026 followers, but hardly post throughout the year.
• Yelp: (August 13, 2018) They have 944 reviews, and have a high rating on Yelp! However, they hardly connect with their customers on this platform as they don't respond to any of their reviews received.

Business 3: VG Donut & Bakery

• https://www.vgbakery.com/
• VG Donut & Bakery are visibly using Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.
• Facebook: (August 16, 2018) VG Donut posts frequently onto Facebook, and have a large customer following of 5,551 followers. They reply to their customers on their platform, and continue to make themselves present.
• Instagram: (August 16, 2018) They have 6,294 followers! I think as a small business that's pretty impressive. They communicate with customers through their posts, and make themselves present on this platform as well.
• Twitter: (July 2, 2018) Twitter appears to be a minor marketing tool used for this company. They don't have many followers, so there isn't too much communication seen throughout their feed.

Business 4: Elizabethan Desserts

• https://elizabethandesserts.com/
• Elizabethan Desserts are visibly using Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.
• Facebook: (August 23, 2018) This company is active on Facebook, and keep themselves active monthly throughout their feed. They communicate with customers here, and market their special events.
• Instagram: (August 23, 2018) They post a lot of their personal work onto their account, and have 881 followers. I feel that this could use some work, especially since they've been in business since 1997.
• Twitter: (August 23, 2018) Elizabethan Desserts used to have a strong presence on Twitter, but since 2018 began they've hardly posted. They have close to none when it comes to followers, so this platform is a huge opportunity for them!

Business 5: Extraordinary Desserts

• https://extraordinarydesserts.com/
• Extraordinary Desserts are visibly using Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and Pinterest.
• Facebook: (September 6, 2018), Instagram: (September 6, 2018), Twitter: (August 23, 2018), and Pinterest: (Last 7 Days).
• Extraordinary Desserts is active throughout all of their social media platforms. They are also the largest business within the 5 business selected. They have thousands of followers across every platform, and not to mention they have 39,000 followers on Facebook.

After analyzing all of these businesses using social media, I've come to realize that it's being utilized mostly as a marketing tool. Most of these businesses hardly reply to consumers wether it's a positive or negative comment. I saw mostly pictures of products being sold at their bakeries, or what events they were participating in. 

Also, I noticed that Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter were the most popular platforms being utilized. However, Twitter was being utilized the least. All of the businesses I chose had a Twitter account linked to their websites, but each one of them hardly used it! Facebook, however, was used the most within each business. It gives them an opportunity to not only market their products, but they have a greater opportunity to communicate with their consumers due to the high amount of followers. 

In the end, I think social media is a huge opportunity for the businesses I decided to go with. The customers and consumers are there, but they aren't being paid attention to. I'm thinking within the next three years businesses will grow to their full potential when it comes to social media, and will begin to embrace the beauty of it.

The 3 classmates I've responded to are:
1. Eva Whitburn
2. Chade Montgomery
3. Amanda Gonzalez