abcs of social media: authenticity, boldness and credibility

8/8/2019 ABCs of Social Media: Authenticity, Boldness and Credibility

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The ABCs of Social Media:

Authenticity, Boldness and Credibilityby John Friedman, CSR-P

The globalization of information and the increasing

influence and importance of social media and other

non-traditional media as powerful sources of

information are combining to change the ways in

which companies and organizations must

communicate with their stakeholders if they are to

be effective and have credibility. While many

companies fear the free flowing nature of these

communication vehicles and are reluctant to engage

others are finding that they can be powerful tools to

tell the organizations message, engaging multiple

stakeholders in a way that actually enhances

reputation and brand value.

Whether you chose to join the conversation or

not, it is happening. The question really is; do

you prefer it go on with you or without you?

One of the main reasons companies fear social

media is because theyre afraid that it means ceding

control of their images and brands. But, in point of

fact, the idea that one ever really has control is

illusory. No slick marketing, advertising or public

relations effort has ever had the same impact on

public perception as employees or customers

describing their personal experiences. Multi-million

dollar ad campaigns can be undone with one single

act as BP discovered when the Deepwater Horizon

catastrophe put in sharp contrast their efforts to

position themselves as a clean, environmentally-

responsible, alternative energy company.

After months of unsatisfactory conversations with

customer service representatives for the airline,Canadian singer/songwriter Dave Carroll found a

creative outlet for his frustration and released a

United Breaks Guitars song and video on YouTube.

By December 2009, Time magazine named the ditty

as number seven on its list of the Top 10 Viral Videos

of year. By that time the video had received over 9

million hits.

The problem for United was not the existence of the

video, or the damaged guitar in question. The

problem for them was the fact that, rather than

complaining to his limited circle of friends about the

problem, social media gave Mr. Carroll a wider

audience and platform for a message that resonated

with a public tired of feeling helpless in the face of

frustrations with air travel and customer service

representatives.

The problem is not when someone

uses social media to be critical. The

real problem is that companies often

do not want to face the reality that

social media has exposed and fail to do

so before it has spread to hundreds,

thousands or even millions of people.

United eventually used this experience to revise

their customer service training and practices. The

Internet saved them the time and trouble of

conducting focus groups exploring their customersexperiences. It also cost them in reputation and,

perhaps, customers. In that respect, the internet can

serve as an early warning system when things go

awry, but only if youre listening.

The key to credibility: Authenticity of voice and

message

Authenticity is critical because the internet is a wide

open platform, giving equal opportunity to all. The

same internet that showed the world the price that

Iranians were paying for free elections by sharing the

heartbreaking video of the tragic and senseless

death of teenage protestor Neda Agha-Soltan with

the world also provides a platform to wild conspiracy

claims about U.S. government complicity in the

terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001 to President

Obamas alleged ineligibility to be President due to


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specious claims that he was born outside the United

States.

Despite the fact that people joke about the veracity

of information on the Internet, it still has credibility.

Sites like Wikipedia have demonstrated that self

policing by an almost infinite number of contributors

can result in incredible accuracy. Today information

from social media - including blogs, social media

networking sites such as Facebook and twitter - is

considered more credible than (obvious) marketing

messages, including corporate websites.

It is best to recall that traditional media, with which

organizations have learned to be comfortable, are

also not as assiduous as they should be when it

comes to fact checking. While some blame can be

placed on the Internet and bloggers (who served as

the source for the edited video that resulted in the

misguided firing of the Department of Agricultures

Shirley Sherrod), it was the internet forums and

blogs that exposed CBS News failure to authenticate

documents purporting to call into question then

President George W. Bushs service in the National

Guard.

Police to Guide, not Enforce

The desire to control and efforts to do so can oftendetract from the real business at hand. Rather than

accepting the opportunity that social media offer as

an effective feedback mechanism that can alert

them to potential problems and vulnerabilities,

some companies go beyond non-participation and

engage in misguided attempts to stop the

conversations that they dont appreciate. In June

2010, just as the first oil began washing ashore in

Pensacola, Florida the oil giant spent time and

resources trying to stifle the satirical twitter account

@BPGlobalPR from sending sarcastic messages.Rather than spending time trying to shut down the

parody tweets, the oil giant could have done far

more to protect its image if it had done a better job

containing the gushing oil well (and their own

statements such as claims that the oil plume existed

only in very minute quantities") that were not only

The NewWorld of Social Media

The conversation is happening, and will

continue, whether or not you choose to

participate.

Social media offer a window on how your

actions are being perceived by the public.

It can be an effective early warning

system, but only if youre listening.

The internet is neither benevolent nor

malicious it is an open forum for people

to express themselves. What people say

about you is an outgrowth of how they

feel about their interaction with you and

your company.

Your employees can be your greatest

asset to share and spread truthful and

positive information about your company.

o Other than the matter of scale, there is

no difference between what your

employees are saying about you on

Twitter and Facebook and what they

are telling their friends and neighbors

every day.

o If theyre saying negative things, your

problem is not social media and wont

be solved by attempting to prevent

them from expressing themselves.

Aligning your company actions with a

culture based on the principles of

corporate responsibility (ethics, integrity,

environmental stewardship, etc.) is the

best way to protect and enhance yourimage.

o Because issues incite emotion, the

internet (blogs, social networking

sites, etc.) are natural places for

people to share their thoughts and

feelings and to find an audience.


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fueling the comments, but also giving them a

receptive audience.

Rather than accepting the role that

social media can play as an effective

feedback mechanism that can alertthem to potential problems and

vulnerabilities, some companies

engage in misguided attempts to

stop the conversation.

Social media provides a forum and community

where comments about companies and

organizations are shared much as they would be

during regular face-to-face interactions. People

share their experiences, both positive and negative,

just as they would if they were to meet over coffee,

a backyard fence, or in l ine at the supermarket.

Companies have never tried to prevent those

interactions.

Trust and Empower Employees

Employers often give out logoed company apparel

without concern about what employees might say

while wearing the shirts and yet, companies often

seek to prevent their own employees from engaging

in social media activities, or regulate what theypermit employees say. This is a missed opportunity

because an empowered, satisfied and engaged

workforce is a strong asset that can and should -

be leveraged.

If your employees have resorted to complaining

about you on the internet, chances are good they

dont think that their concerns are being heard

through mechanisms at work.

Contrast this to the image and story of Southwest

Airlines, where employee/owners are recognized for

their role as brand ambassadors. Within the FAA

guidelines they are free to modify staid safety

announcements in a manner that not only keeps

them engaged, it increases the effectiveness of the

announcements as passengers pay more attention

to the non-rote patter which now serves to combat

rather than contribute to boredom.

A values-based company that empowers, trusts and

listens to its stakeholders (including employees and

customers) and conducts its business in accordance

with its articulated values (safety, respect, trust,

teamwork, quality) has little to fear and much to

gain from social media. Even when anomalies

happen, the reputational capital that the company

has earned through the way it conducts its business

will serve as a platform for stakeholder loyalty that

will also help prevent negative attacks from gaining

traction. After all, social media is a multi-person

dialogue. If most participants in the conversation

view you favorably and are empowered and

passionate about your company, the few detractors

will not find a receptive audience to their messages.

John Friedman, CSR-P has more than 20 years' experience in internal and external communications and a decade in

corporate responsibility and sustainability. He is senior director of PR for Sodexo, Inc. and also a co-founder and

serves on the board of directors for the Sustainable Business Network of Washington. In 2010 he was recognized

as one of the leading voices in CSR on twitter by Fast Companys BRANDfog blog.

Twitter: @JohnFriedman email: [email protected] mobile: 703.405.0200

abcs of social media: authenticity, boldness and credibility

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