Social media marketing is the use of social media platforms and websites to promote a product or service. Most of these social media platforms have their own built-in data analytics tools, which enable companies to track the progress, success, and engagement of ad campaigns. Companies address a range of stakeholders through social media marketing including current and potential customers, current and potential employees, journalists, bloggers, and the general public (Bampo, Michael and Dineli, 2008).

On a strategic level, social media marketing includes the management of the implementation of a marketing campaign, governance, setting the scope (e.g. more active or passive use) and the establishment of a firm's desired social media "culture" and "tone". To use social media effectively, firms should learn to allow customers and Internet users to post user-generated content (e.g., online comments, product reviews, etc.), also known as "earned media", rather than use marketer-prepared advertising copy. While social media marketing is often associated with companies, as of 2016, a range of not-for-profit organizations and government organizations are engaging in social media marketing of their programs or services (Bourkas, Savvi and Feng, 2008).

Social media itself is a catch-all term for sites that may provide radically different social actions. For instance, Twitter is a social site designed to let people share short messages or “updates” with others. Facebook, in contrast is a full-blown social networking site that allows for sharing updates, photos, joining events and a variety of other activities. Social media often feeds into the discovery of new content such as news stories, and “discovery” is a search activity. Social media can also help build links that in turn support into SEO efforts. Many people also perform searches at social media sites to find social media content. Social connections may also impact the relevancy of some search results, either within a social media network or at a ‘mainstream’ search engine (Campell, Leyland and Pierre, 2011).In the past decade, marketers used the internet as a communication tool but as time passed; they realized the true potential of internet and the idea of e-marketing evolved. Smith and Chaffey (2005), gave a short and basic definition of E-marketing as “Achieving marketing objectives through the use of electronic communication technology”.

According to Hoge (2003), e-marketing (EM) “is the transfer of goods and services from sellers to buyers that requires one or more electronic methods or media. E-marketing began with the use of telegraphs in the nineteenth century with the advent and mass acceptance of the telephone, radio, television and then cable, electronic media have become the dominant marketing force. Hoge’s (2003), idea of E-marketing is simple but it does not touch the important aspect of customers’ relationship. Strauss and Ansary (2006), defined E-marketing as the use of information technology in the process of creating, communicating and delivering value to customers, and for managing customers’ relationships in ways that benefits the organization and its stakeholders. This explanation tells us that e-marketing is not only about selling product or providing series through information technology but it does more than that. It is not just traditional marketing using the information technology tools but it is a strategic model to achieve brand value and provide customer satisfaction. On Market Conscious.com (2006), the author simply stress on a website URL, in marketing effort. A clear and very complete definition of E-marketing has been given on an educational website; it says “moving element of marketing strategies and activities to a computerized networked environment such as the internet or through digital tools. (aced.Osu.edu/programs.e.agbe/page glossary/main.ntml, 2006).

From the above definitions, the idea of E-marketing can be derived as a type of marketing in which objectives are achieved through the use of electronic  communication tools like internet, interactive TV and mobile phones where online marketing is just limited to the use of internet technology to attain marketing objectives.

There are many E’s circulating in the text that is quit a confusing matter; E-commerce, E-business and E-marketing. E-commerce is commonly thought to include e-trading, online banking and shopping. It involves transaction where buyers actually buy and shoppers actually shop (Smith, 2002). Others suggest that E-commerce is any transaction such as a support enquiry or an online catalogue search. Hanson (2005), explain that different activities over the internet can be group according to their type.

E-business according to Strauss and Ansary (2006), is bigger than e-commerce. They reckon e-commerce as a subject of e-business. Strauss and Frost (2006), explains in their book that e-business has a broader perspective. It involves automation of all business processes in the value chain from procurement or purchasing of raw materials to production, to stock holding distribution and logistics, to sale and marketing, after sales, invoicing, debt collection and more. It includes e-marketing and e-commerce.

E-marketing is at the heart of e-business adding value to product, widening distribution channels, boosting sales and after sales services, while getting closer to customers and understanding them better. It is on this note that Chaffey (2003), defines E-marketing as “applying digital technologies which form online channels (web, e-mail, databases, plus mobile/wireless and digital TV to contribute to marketing activities aimed at achieving profitable acquisitions and retention of customers (within a multi-channel buying process and customers lifecycle through improving our customer knowledge of their profits, behavior, value and loyalty) (http//www.wnim.com/archive/issue214/e-marketingntml, 2006).

Chaffey, (2002) definition reflects to the relationship marketing concept, it emphasize that it should not be technology that drives e-marketing but the business model. It also stresses that e-marketing is not effectives when used with other conventional communications channels. Chaffey, (2002), also reckons that any communication or message to the customer must be personalized and each buyer must be tested distinctly (http//en.wikipedia.org/wiki/E-marketing, 2006).