Think Media » social media

Change What’s Wrong, Not What’s Right!

alex — Fri, 19 Feb 2010 16:39:39 +0000

In this day and age, the big trend is to experiment in the ways we communicate and market to our consumers. While this change and reinvention is most definitely necessary (due to the changing nature of consumers and the evolving media landscape), many companies don’t seem to understand why they are doing it; and this is a major issue. Companies shouldn’t simply alter the way they do things because it’s the trend. In fact, they need to have a reason to believe that the change will induce positive returns. Changing things (even if they’re small) without properly understanding the context and situation might leave them unpleasantly surprised.

Before altering their practice, companies should ask themselves a few simple questions: What is the problem and is it really a problem?, Where does this problem come from?, how will the envisioned changes help resolve the situation? What is in it for their customers? Doing this could save them from taking decisions they may regret.

Dean Markadakis from Fast Company cleverly exposes a situation where precipitated changes didn’t actually solve a problem, in this video interview produced in association with Google and the Wharton School of Business. Enjoy!

Companies, Public Relations and The New Media Landscape Part.3

alex — Tue, 26 Jan 2010 02:32:59 +0000

Several companies have realized the importance of these new opportunities and have slowly started joining the conversation. Paradoxically though, many forget the most important step: listening. The Oxford English dictionary defines ‘conversation’ as an “informal exchange of ideas spoken by words”. Organizations must ensure that this ‘exchange’ happens and that they aren’t simply spreading their own messages. Remember what Ivy Lee said: PR is a “two way street”. The ability to hear what customers and stakeholders have to say is one of the great benefits of the new ecosystem; companies might as well be taking advantage of it. They should use each bad comment, complaint or protest as an opportunity to learn from their mistakes and improve. By doing so, they will be rewarded. Their consumers will feel valued, appreciated and acknowledged and will trust them increasingly in exchange (and in the current situation they could use some extra trust). Not only will this improve the relationship they share with their community it should also increase their revenues as they will technically have produced a product or service that better suits their stakeholders needs. It becomes a win-win situation.

As Andy Marken states in the Public Relations Quarterly, when facing consumer complaints and questions companies should aim to: “Calm that individual down, help him get the right assistance/answer and the company has not just saved a sale but more frequently has gained another company/product advocate who will speak favorably about the firm and experience with others”. Remember that every consumer they convert will potentially help the PR team do their job by praising the company’s actions. And knowing that consumers place so much trust in what they hear online, companies should capitalize on the situation. There was never any good reason not to listen to customers!

Last but not least, I firmly believe that public relations should increasingly become part of the management strategy. It has too frequently been used to resolve problems instead of preventing them. Having a PR counsel work as a part of the management team would help companies make the appropriate choices and decisions to maintain a proper image and preserve stakeholder trust. Edward Lordan states in one of his Public Relations Quarterly articles: “Public relations should be integrated into the strategic decision-making process in an organization, not exclusively as a reaction to events inside and outside the company.” I must say that I totally agree. Many scandals could have been prevented if their management system had been organized in such a way. In fact, The PR counsels could have helped the companies take appropriate ethical decisions, maintain high levels of transparency and preserve employee and stakeholder relationships.

Blatant misconceptions of the field, plummeting consumer trust and the new media ecosystem should all be reasons for companies to readapt their PR goals and strategies. Although it is already late, it’s better to reform now than never. Moreover costs shouldn’t be an issue because it will cost less to adapt now than to compensate for the failure to do so. As Gerald Kane states in The Harvard Business Review: “companies as diverse as Kaiser Permanente, Comcast Domino’s and Amazon have learned that not having a social media team can cost far more than having one [...] each learned it’s lesson the hard way.” So here is my advice to companies: embrace the new media landscape, listen to your stakeholders, build your corporate practice and guidelines off of their advice & opinions and remain open to suggestions. You will rapidly see the return on investment, as you won’t be on your own anymore. You will be a better company backed by better customers. Do yourself a favor, and take the opportunity while its still here!

Clay Shirky on Social Media

alex — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 21:02:14 +0000

This is a fascinating video about how the media landscape drastically changed at the end of the 20th century. While analyzing the 20th century’s most popular media (print, radio, telephone, television), Clay Shirky strives to demonstrate how media is becoming increasingly “human”, by pushing the limits of interactivity and collaboration. This brilliant piece looks deep into media’s past but gives tremendous insight for the future. This Yale graduate and New York University professor has created many astonishing pieces of work that have commonly been published in places such as: ‘The New York Times”, “The Wall Street Journal”, “Wired magazine” and “The Harvard Business review”. He has produced some must read’s for anybody interested in new media. Enjoy!