“What makes social media ‘social’ isits give and take,” says Jeff Gerst ofBolin Marketing, who manages theCarmex® social media properties. By“give” Gerst is referring to the feedbackconsumers send on social media;“take” is what they receive—such asnews and coupons. “For Carmex,Facebook isn’t just a way to share couponsor the latest product news, but it is also a marketingresearch resource.
1. What are the advantages and disadvantages for the Carmex marketing team in collecting data to narrow the flavor choices from three to two using (a) an online surve of a cross-section of Internet households or (b) an online survey of Carmex Facebook likers?

2. (a) On a Facebook brand page, what are “engagement”and “likes” really measuring?
(b) For Carmex, which is more important and why?

3. (a) What evokes consumers’ “engagement” on a brand page on Facebook?
(b) What attracts consumers to “like”a brand page on Facebook?

4. (a) What are the advantages of using a fixed-alternative poll question on Facebook?
(b) When do you think it would be better to use an open-ended question?

5. (a) If you had a limited budget and two weeks to decide which two flavors to put into quantitative testing, would you choose a “poll only” or a “contest only” strategy? Why?
(b) If you had a sizable budget and two months to make the same decision, which scenario would you choose? Why?