The blogging community as a marketing tool

Abstract

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to understand how the Maltese audience perceive blogs and why should Maltese based companies start using such phenomenon. Approach: A questionnaire was distributed to any Maltese individual over the age of eighteen, in order to gather personal opinions and thoughts in relation to blogs. Detailed result analysis and conclusions, together with discussions were drawn up. Findings: Conclusions were drawn up on people‟s opinions on blogs, through the interpretation of data. It was made clear that the Maltese audience does depend on the blogging community, as some factors are influenced by blogs. Such factor includes information seeking on any product and service, irrespective of the business sector. In comparison, to the traditional marketing, digital marketing is leaving an effect of the consumers, including the blogosphere itself. This is reflected in any audience, irrespective to the age segment. Research Implications: These findings were an initial attempt to understand the thoughts of the Maltese audience, aging from eighteen onwards. However, further studies should be done in order to get more depth on such topic. Practical Implications: The findings show that in order for companies to further reach their targeted audience, they much also focus their efforts by also opting to use blog to promote their products and services. Value: Even though the exact number of blogs in Malta is unknown, such readers are still continuously growing. This study manages to gain an understanding on why companies should opt to include blogs in their marketing plan.