5 New Paradigms for a Socially Engaged Company. Soren Gordhamer is the organizer of the Wisdom 2.0 Conference, which brings together staff from Google, Facebook, Twitter and Zynga with others to explore living with awareness and wisdom in our modern age, at the end of February in Silicon Valley. He is SorenG on Twitter. The age of social media is not just changing our personal lives, but is increasingly affecting how business is conducted. No longer satisfied with strictly top-down models that view employees as cogs in a system, businesses are quickly adapting to a new paradigm that emphasizes connection, collaboration and innovation.
When people in companies and teams feel engaged, the benefits are significant. Towers Watson (formerly Towers Perrin), the global professional services firm, interviewed 90,000 employees in 18 countries, and found “companies with high employee engagement had a 19% increase in operating income and almost a 28% growth in earnings per share. 1. The Old Paradigm: “Force people to do what you want.” 2. 3. 4. Studie mit Mängelliste: Unternehmen fehlt Social-Media-Strategie. Www.sas.com/events/pbls/2010/las-vegas/documents/TheNewConversation.pdf. Www.bitkom.org/files/documents/Leitfaden_Social_Media.pdf. Www.pepperglobal.com/html/de/doc/knowledge/20101122_Ergebnisse_SMM_Survey_v1_0.pdf. ITler und Social Media im Unternehmen: Facebook wichtiger als Xing. Rise of the networked enterprise: Web 2.0 finds its payday - McKinsey Quarterly - Organization - Strategic Organization.
Every new technology has its skeptics. In the 1980s, many observers doubted that the broad use of information technologies such as enterprise resource planning (ERP) to remake processes would pay off in productivity improvements—indeed, the economist Robert Solow famously remarked, “You can see the computer age everywhere but in the productivity statistics.” Today, that sentiment has gravitated to Web 2.0 technologies. Management is trying to understand if they are a passing fad or an enduring trend that will underwrite a new era of better corporate performance. Podcast The rise of the networked enterprise: Web 2.0 finds its payday McKinsey Global Institute senior fellow Michael Chui discusses how leaders can prepare for the new business environment as well as the latest results from McKinsey’s survey of global executives on their use of Web 2.0.
New McKinsey research shows that a payday could be arriving faster than expected. The findings Web 2.0 technologies are now more widely used. Why So Few Tweets from the C-Suite? - Leslie Gaines-Ross - The Conversation. By Leslie Gaines-Ross | 10:12 AM October 12, 2010 Today’s my last day at Sun. I’ll miss it. Seems only fitting to end on a #haiku. Financial crisis/Stalled too many customers/ CEO no more. On February 4, 2010, Sun Microsystems CEO Jonathan Schwartz logged on to his Twitter account and informed the world of his resignation, at the same time nodding to a trend of the moment to tweet Haiku poetry.
That Schwartz would choose to end his tenure not with a formal statement to the press but with a casual, hash-tagged update to his “tweeps” was true to form, since he was one of the few Fortune 500 leaders generally recognized as a “social” CEO — that is, comfortable with and capable of using social media. There are other leaders of multinational corporations who blog, have a Facebook page or Twitter account, or engage with the public using YouTube or their own web sites’ video capabilities — but they are few and far between, especially in non-technology industries. So what gives? 21 Ways Non-Profits Can Leverage Social Media. Like their for-profit brethren, many non-profits understand that using social media can help them reach and engage their audience, create momentum and build community.
However, there’s uncertainty around how to create a sustainable social media campaign, although the tools are plentiful and often free. Here are 21 ways non-profits can leverage social media: #1: Use a blog to tell your story Treat your blog like the digital printing press that it is. Use text, photos and videos to tell stories of the people you’ve helped, those who are still suffering and the impact you’re having on the community or the world. Engage your audience with storytelling on your blog. #2: Make sure your stories are shareable Use tools like the retweet button, Facebook like button, and Share This to allow your blog visitors to quickly share your story with their networks. #3: Make it easy to subscribe to your stories Make your RSS feed impossible to miss by putting it “above the fold” and highlighting it.
How and Why to Launch a Business Presence on Twitter CIO. CIO — In a down economy, it might seem counterintuitive to try experimental mediums such as Twitter for marketing and customer outreach. After all, the more well-established Facebook has a documented 175 million active users, while estimates place Twitter (which doesn't disclose such figures) at around 5 million users.
But while Twitter's user base might seem small, the return on engagement from Twitter fans is substantial, says Jeremiah Owyang (@jowyang), a senior Forrester analyst who researches social technologies and who writes a blog on Web strategy. More Twitter coverage on CIO.com "Most Twitter users are hyper-connected," says Owyang. While Twitter's founders have hinted at charging companies in the future for their participation, any business can get started today for free. Gathering Twitter wisdom from social media analysts and companies that have enjoyed success via Twitter, we've rounded up the key steps your company must take before it can enjoy a viable Twitter presence. 6 Essential Steps for Executing Your Social Media Strategy. The Social Media Marketing Series is supported by Webtrends Facebook Analytics, which provides comprehensive tracking and measurement solutions to help you maximize your ROI. To keep up with Webtrends Social products, follow its blog.
It's easy to plan a squeaky clean social media strategy for your business when it's on paper. But executing all of the day-to-day tasks involved in that strategy can be a different story — and a giant, tangled mess — without implementing processes to manage it. Thankfully, there are plenty of tools and strategies that can help community management teams communicate with each other, stay on the same page, schedule posts and cooperate with other departments.
Before you launch your strategy, consider how you will manage the execution. These six steps can help get you started. 1. Don't start your social media process without thinking about what you're trying to accomplish. "One unofficial guideline is to be real people online. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. Tools to Help Companies Manage Their Social Media. 10 Steps To Kickoff A Social Media Campaign. Respres (via Flickr) When it comes to using social media marketing to build your business, the worst action is no action, and your biggest problem is being invisible, not being talked about negatively. As long as you're part of the conversation on the social Web, you can hear what's being said about you and massage negative perceptions about your business. But if no one is talking about you, you have no chance for growth. That means you need to get involved on the social Web as soon as possible, not only to capitalize on the opportunities that it presents to your business, but also to develop and protect your reputation.
It's a good idea to start with a plan that has goals and an organizing framework to keep you on track. If you start down a path on the social Web and hate what you're doing, you can change things around. Here are 10 steps to get you started. Search Marketers Tap Social to Boost SEO. The majority of search marketers have recognized the importance of social media to their search engine optimization efforts, according to a November 2010 study from search marketing software provider SEOmoz. Nearly 71% of respondents said they use social media as part of their SEO strategy.
Social media marketing can be an excellent driver of content visibility, by helping to keep content fresh and abundant, and also by increasing the number of inbound links a site receives. Improving visibility was the primary reason nearly a fifth of respondents gave for doing social media marketing at all, and link building was behind the efforts of another 13.5% of them. While search marketers also use plenty of nonsocial techniques to gain stature on engines like Google and Bing, several popular tactics have a social basis.
Nearly 53% of respondents had started or grown a blog with SEO goals. Keep your business ahead of the digital curve. Steuerung statt Anarchie: Moderne Unternehmen brauchen einen Chief Social Media Officer (CSMO) - Sympra Public Relations Blog. Aufruhr in den Pressestellen der Nation: Social Media ante portas! Manch Unternehmenskommunikator spürt zurzeit Druck gleich von mehreren Seiten. Seine Zielgruppen formieren sich im Social Web, verlagern ihre Aktivitäten dorthin; die Geschäftsführung meint, „man müsste da jetzt mal was tun …“; die Kollegen werden privat und individuell auf Facebook aktiv und laden ihre Urlaubsbilder auf Flickr hoch; der Wettbewerb ist bereits ins Web 2.0 eingestiegen; die klassischen Printmedien, jahrzehntelang Garanten für Veröffentlichungen, schwächeln; über das Unternehmen wird im Web längst diskutiert; und jetzt kommen auch noch die Fachabteilungen – HR, Marketing, Vertrieb – und einige Auslandstöchter und monieren, dass sie jetzt endlich 2.0-Plattformen nutzen wollen.
Moment mal? Der Werkstudent als Verantwortlicher für den Unternehmensauftritt auf Plattformen mit Millionen Nutzern wie Facebook, Twitter und YouTube? Genau dies. Demnach hat der CSMO folgende Aufgaben: . PS. Can You Measure the ROI of Your Social Media Marketing? - The Magazine - MIT Sloan Management Review. Social Media Marketing 101: In-House Team, Agency or Consultant? The Social Media Marketing Series is supported by Webtrends Apps, which lets you quickly create and publish Facebook, iPhone, iPad, and Android apps. Learn more about it here or keep up with all Webtrends Social products by following their blog. Sadly there's no magic rubric for deciding whether an in-house social media workforce, a social media consultant, or an agency will best be able to meet your particular business needs. Like almost every business decision, it depends on your business's goals, budget and particular situation.
There are, however, definite pros and cons to each approach. We've highlighted some of the most important factors to consider for each style of social media team. If your business has gone through the process of deciding which type of social media team to instate, let us know about the factors you considered and how you came to your final decision in the comments below. In-House Team But it's a big job.
Social Media Consultant Agency Hybrid Approach. Social Media Increases Small-Business Exposure. According to the American Express OPEN fall 2010 “Small Business Monitor,” small-business owners have dramatically upped their usage of social media for marketing in the past year. While just one in 10 business owners reported using social networking for marketing last year, 39% indicated they did in September 2010. The impetus is driving sales by connecting with consumers. Facebook was the clear leader among small-business owners, with 27% using the site to attract new customers, vs. 9% using LinkedIn, 8% using Twitter and 5% maintaining a blog.
American Express found that among businesses that use social media marketing, 39% said it increased the exposure of their business. But the second most common response, selected by 17%, was that social media tools had not helped them. “For business owners, social media ultimately should be a two-way street. But many small businesses still feel social media marketing has nothing to offer them. Keep your business ahead of the digital curve. Social Media in 2011: Six Choices You Need to Make - Alexandra Samuel. By Alexandra Samuel | 10:00 AM January 4, 2011 2011. This is the year that will shape the future of our lives online. After all, 2010 was the year we woke up and started asking the tough questions about our always-on, connected lifestyle. Questions like “What kind of brain is the Web giving us?” And does “juggling e-mail, phone calls and other incoming information..change how people think and behave”? In the big picture, this was a reasonably quick wake-up call; we’re already examining the social web’s effect on us and most of us have only been on Facebook for 3-4 years, have carried an iPhone for 2-3 years (and a Droid for less), and have been on our BlackBerries for, at most, 8 years.
Here are the 6 most important choices for you to make this year — the choices that will determine both the quality of your life online and of your relationships offline: What am I choosing to do on the Web? Who am I choosing to be online? What problems am I choosing to fix with the help of the Internet? 10 Steps to Getting Started in Social Media Marketing. Like it or not, you need social media to develop and protect your reputation, and to grow your business.
When it comes to using social media marketing to build your business, the worst action is no action, and your biggest problem is being invisible, not being talked about negatively. As long as you're part of the conversation on the social Web, you can hear what's being said about you and massage negative perceptions about your business. But if no one is talking about you, you have no chance for growth. That means you need to get involved on the social Web as soon as possible, not only to capitalize on the opportunities that it presents to your business, but also to develop and protect your reputation. It's a good idea to start with a plan that has goals and an organizing framework to keep you on track. Here are 10 steps to get you started. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. This article is an edited excerpt from 30-Minute Social Media Marketing by Susan Gunelius (McGraw-Hill, 2010). Small Businesses Change Social Media Expectations.
After climbing steeply, according to research from Network Solutions and the Center for Excellence in Service at the University of Maryland’s Robert H. Smith School of Business, small-business adoption of social media marketing has plateaued at 24%. The study of US small business found that those that do market via social media primarily use Facebook (82%), and that the most common activities are maintaining a company page on a social network and posting status updates or links to interesting content. About half of businesses that used social media also monitored brand chatter on social networks. As small businesses have gained experience with social media, some have realized their expectations for the channel did not line up with the reality of the social web.
Small businesses have found other frustrations as well. Keep your business ahead of the digital curve. Learn more about becoming an eMarketer Total Access client today. Using Social Media to Engage People. CEOs at the World’s Biggest Companies Still Social Media Averse [STUDY] While numerous CEOs use social media in a wide variety of ways, those atop the world’s biggest corporations remain largely on the sidelines, according to a new study. "Socializing Your CEO: From (Un)Social to Social,” prepared by global PR firm Weber Shandwick, found that 64% of CEOs at the world’s 50 largest companies aren’t engaging with social media.
But even for the 36% that do “go social,” most of that activity falls into the realm of fairly traditional web activities, like posting a letter to a corporate website, which 28% of the sample had done. YouTube had the most traction among social networking tools with 18% usage –- a trend we’ve been noticing with some CEOs –- though Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn all had less than 10% penetration within the group. Why such low social media activity? Leslie Gaines-Ross, Weber Shandwick's chief reputation strategist and online reputation expert, does see value in CEOs embracing social media, however. Here's the executive summary of the report: 5 Important Social Media Questions from Small Business Owners.