Hutch Sri Lanka is a mobile telecommunication brand under the company Hutchison Telecommunications International Limited. The company is the smallest Sri Lankan mobile operator with a market share of 07 percent at the end of 2010. This article analyses the social media presence of Hutch Sri Lanka across the internet.
Hutch and Facebook
Similar to other mobile networks in the country, Hutch’s main social media platform is Facebook. The Facebook page is liked by more than 86,000 fans and is dominated by Hutch promotions and random images.
Furthermore, Hutch has taken steps to answer the various queries of its customers and this includes responding to customer complaints as well.
A few quizzes were also seen in the page. Hutch apps such as the YouTube app, reload and bill payment app and the Twitter app did not work when we tried to access them. This could be a temporary glitch or a more serious one and Hutch should look into it.
Hutch can reap much better benefits if it implements an effective social media marketing strategy on FB that includes engaging its fans, hosting competitions, conveying its corporate identity, posting original content, educating the public regarding their CSR activities and so on. The Sri Lankan mobile service provider market is very competitive and Hutch should strive to stand out from the rest; a unique, compelling social media strategy will do wonders to the company.
Hutch’s Twitter feed
Hutch’s Twitter feed is filled with product announcements and offers. Hutch cross promotes most of its Facebook posts on Twitter. This is significant and provides more exposure to its Facebook page. However, we did not see any customer service done through Twitter. Moreover, there were no retweets, favourited tweets or lists. To make full use of Twitter, Hutch should use these features as well. Compared to its Facebook account which has over 86,000 fans, Hutch’s twitter account, with 1,100 followers, is meager. Following the right people on Twitter, can generate a lot more followers for the company. Hutch can use ‘twitter phone directories’ such as Twellow to find the right people in the industry to follow.
Hutch’s YouTube account
Hutch’s YouTube page contains 26 videos and 67 subscribers. Most of the videos are TV commercials. One of the videos with the most number of views is called ‘Hutch- High Speed Bikes’ and it was specifically created as a brand awareness video for social media marketing. Hutch would be much more successful if it creates unique content specifically for YouTube; the videos can be given publicity through the other social media platforms.
At present Hutch has no blog and this is a huge drawback. According to a Hubspot research, almost three out five marketers rated blogs as critical or important to their business in 2012. Over a third of marketers said that blogs had become more important over the last six months. Blogs are the backbone of content marketing as they build traffic, increases credibility, allow for better customer service and establishes the business as an expert. Blogs provide keyword-rich content that answers customer questions. Additionally through the use of blog post links and integration into the main website, blogs improve search optimization. Hutch will reap benefits if it creates a blog and takes the time to invest in it.