MKTG2001 · Digital and Social Media Marketing
Social Networks & the Rules of Engagement
Week 3 covers how brands actually behave on social networks: permission versus interruption marketing, the holistic SMM framework (Felix et al.), the inbound Attract-Engage-Delight methodology, and the ethics and governance rules that keep a brand out of trouble. It also introduces platform choice by audience and network theory (nodes, edges, influencers). The comment-moderation and crisis-response logic here is an explicit deliverable in the assessment pipeline.
What this chapter covers
- 01Permission vs interruption marketing — earning attention (opt-in, following) vs buying it (ads, pop-ups); modern SMM blends both
- 02Holistic SMM framework (Felix, Rauschnabel & Hinsch): Scope, Culture, Structure, Governance dimensions
- 03Inbound methodology (HubSpot): Attract strangers → Engage prospects → Delight customers who become promoters
- 04SMM ethics — Honesty, Privacy, Respect, Responsibility; crisis response = Acknowledge → Apologize → Act
- 05The seven rules of engagement (use channels as intended, don't spam, have personality, respond to negatives, stay on topic, pace posts, be careful with bots)
- 06Choosing a platform by audience (LinkedIn for B2B; visual products on Instagram/Pinterest/YouTube)
- 07Network theory: nodes, edges (tie strength), communities, central nodes as influencers; word of mouth to eWOM
- 08Comment moderation decision logic — review, remove, or let it stand
Diagnose tactics and a crisis using Week 3 frameworks
- +1(a) Opt-in email = permission marketing — the customer granted consent, so attention is earned, not bought.
- +1(b) Pop-up ads on third-party sites = interruption marketing — the brand buys the right to interrupt attention the audience did not request.
- +1Map to inbound. Opt-in nurture email best serves Engage/Delight (deepening an existing relationship); a pop-up ad to strangers best serves Attract (top-of-funnel awareness).
- +1Crisis response follows the Responsibility principle: Acknowledge the issue publicly and promptly, Apologize sincerely, then Act — fix it and say what you have done.
- +1Ethics check. Do not delete the post merely because it is negative; the moderation rule is to remove only content that is threatening, defamatory or unlawful. An honest, respectful public reply protects trust better than silence.
Key terms
- Permission marketing
- Marketing to an audience that has consented to receive it — email opt-ins, followers, subscribers. Attention is earned rather than bought.
- Interruption marketing
- Marketing that buys the right to interrupt attention the audience did not request — TV spots, pop-ups, unsolicited ads.
- Holistic SMM framework
- Felix et al.'s four-dimension model — Scope, Culture, Structure, Governance — describing how a firm's whole social-media approach is configured.
- Inbound methodology
- HubSpot's Attract-Engage-Delight cycle: draw strangers in with useful content, engage prospects, and delight customers so they become promoters.
- Acknowledge-Apologize-Act
- The taught three-step crisis-response sequence under the Responsibility ethics principle: recognise the issue, apologise, then fix it and communicate the fix.
- Share of voice (eWOM)
- A brand's share of total online conversation about a category; the electronic word-of-mouth that network theory shows spreads through central, influential nodes.
Social Networks & the Rules of Engagement FAQ
Should a brand ever delete a negative comment?
Only when the content is threatening, defamatory, discriminatory, obscene, unlawful or infringing — not merely because it is critical or disagrees. The taught moderation logic is to review first, remove genuinely harmful content (and document why), and otherwise respond helpfully or let it stand. Deleting honest criticism usually damages trust more than the comment did.
How do I choose the right platform for a brand?
Start from the audience, not the platform. LinkedIn suits B2B and professional audiences; Instagram, Pinterest and YouTube suit visual and demonstrable products; the mix should follow where the brand's customers actually are. In the plan, justify each platform choice by audience fit and objective, not by popularity alone.
What are the four SMM ethics principles?
Honesty, Privacy, Respect and Responsibility. In practice: be transparent about who you are, collect personal data only with consent, avoid manipulative or fake content, and respond responsibly in a crisis via Acknowledge-Apologize-Act. These principles double as a checklist when you critique or design a brand's conduct.
Can AI help me with the moderation and ethics content?
Yes — Sia can walk you through the moderation decision tree on tricky cases, test whether a tactic is permission or interruption, and rehearse a crisis response. It explains the reasoning and checks yours; it does not complete graded work, and University of Newcastle integrity rules apply.
Exam move
This week supplies the conduct rules you will apply in the assessments — permission vs interruption, the inbound stages and the ethics/moderation logic. Practise by taking your focal brand's real posts and classifying each as permission or interruption and by inbound stage, and by drafting the comment-moderation flowchart the pipeline expects. Memorise Acknowledge-Apologize-Act for any crisis question, and keep the four ethics principles as a critique checklist. Justify platform choices by audience fit. Confirm the specific deliverables on Canvas, and ask Sia to test you on moderation edge cases where the right call is not obvious.
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