The Control Myth
November 11, 2008
A friend of mine sent me a recent article from The Economist (link is below) about how two companies dealt with social networking issues.
http://www.economist.com/business/displaystory.cfm?story_id=12566818&fsrc=rss
First off, I disagree with the premise of the article. In particular that “firms have been exploiting social networks such as Facebook and MySpace to get their messages to a broader audience”. We know that too many companies are still thinking in broadcasting terms about the use of Social Media. In reality, there is no message to get out. And your audience is not “broader”, it is narrower - as close to one-on-one as possible.
The article goes on to discuss how employees of Virgin Atlantic and British Airways used social media to post negative comments about their respective companies. The solution the magazine prescribes is more control and over-sight. This logic reminds me of gun control legislation where the most regulated city in the US (Washington DC) has one of the highest violent crime rates.
The issue is not control; it is culture. An explanation:
If you are going implement a successful SM initiative, you have several concentric rings in your audience.
- Your employees - of course you need some policies related to confidentiality and appropriateness. If an employee violates either of these, then take appropriate action. Outside of that, I don’t see how limiting or over-regulating participation is a solution. Instead, focus on the off-line issues that may be having an effect on employee morale.
- Your customers - similar rules apply. Not every customer is a happy customer. But don’t you want to know that? And if they are being unreasonable, “fire” them as a customer - and let everyone know why you did. Otherwise, embrace the feedback and listen to your customers.
- Influencers - These are the people your audience may be listening to - the media, bloggers, etc. Reach out to them and invite them to participate in conversations about your brand.
If you do these 3 things effectively, you will see a positive impact on your over-all brand. Keep this simple rule in mind - social media is about inspiring your audience, not coercing them.
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Excellent Article!! Nice analogy, very well done indeed.