A Matter of Trust

Companies strive to portray their brands as those that can be trusted. Unfortunately, trust levels are not where they used to be.

It takes only a Pew Research Center poll from April, 2010 to shed some light on current views. The poll found that only 22 percent of Americans trust the government in Washington. Corporations don’t fare any better: the poll further confirmed that only 39 percent of consumers trusted messages conveyed to them by corporate spokespeople in 2010, compared to 45 percent in 2009. There are many elements contributing to consumers’ lack of trust: The economic downturn is an obvious indicator, but badly handled scandals, including the former Hewlett Packard CEO’s sex scandal, or the slowly-handled BP gulf oil spill, don’t help.

And keep this in mind; a carefully molded brand impression that takes years to build can go right out the window with a single rumor on a social media or news network. Take a look at the recent headlines that spread like wildfire when WikiLeaks’ Julian Assange revealed he may release damaging private information from a Bank of America executive on his controversial web site. The bank’s stock went down 3 points the following day even though there had been no such information revealed.

Think carefully about how you communicate when representing your company’s brand. Social Media and web content, although a powerful tool to spread great messaging and build impressions, can go sour instantly. Brands need to do more than merely stay on the straight and narrow; they need to develop web content that builds their impression effectively and should rely on experienced resources to create and manage their communications.

Making lemonade – Handling Negative Social Media

On my way to work the other day, I heard an interesting report on American Public Media concerning AT&T and its social media strategy. After posting a letter to customers concerning systems changes and expansions, AT&T’s Facebook page was flooded with responses, most negative, many profane. Rather than delete or ignore the response, AT&T chose to take them head-on and had their social media team working until 4 a.m. responding to each and every post. The fact of the matter is that, whether or not your company is engaging in the conversation is irrelevant; they are happening anyway. It is your choice whether to be a part of it and be heard. AT&T took a PR disaster and attempted to convert it into an opportunity Listen to the full story here.

Why, what’s it cost, and what’s in it for me? Answers to the big questions surrounding social media

It’s pretty obvious these days. Social media is in no way, shape, or form, a trend, but marks a fundamental shift in the way we communicate and connect with others. Just take a look at today’s younger generation. Recent research from the Kaiser Family Foundation indicates that 8 to 18-year-olds are spending more than 50 hours a week with various forms of digital media, a huge chunk of that time a result of Facebook and Twitter. And think about that a little more because in just a few years, these “kids” will most likely become your target audience.

Need more convincing? Look at some of the most recent headlines in the ad world. Pepsi made a bold move on Super Bowl Sunday last month by becoming the first longtime advertiser to sit out the game, instead devoting its resources to a Social media campaign promoting its “Pepsi Refresh” initiative.

More…

Social media efforts soon to pay off big time with Google

One of the most common questions we hear from clients during our discussions about social media is, “What’s the real value?” It’s a good question. Although social media and similar communication channels generally fall into the category of brand building, and though we routinely remind clients that intangibles remain vital to the health of an enterprise, news from Google that social media activity will play a role in search-engine ranking dangles a nice juicy carrot in front of us all.

The idea that Google would gather this type of data makes total sense. The communications ecosphere formed by your threads and dialog on Twitter and Facebook say as much about your company as the content on your web site.

So what does this mean for us agency folk? That our job is to ensure you’re playing in the right sandbox – that the dialogue between you and your community is a reflection of the image you’re seeking to cultivate.

Brand building, yes, nothing new, but the Google initiative should make it a wee bit easier for businesses to recognize the relevance of social media.

A fairly recent article in Website magazine indicates Google not only intends to track and associate the social media connections your organization forges, and dialog with them in searchable data, but potentially use the data to assist it in more accurately ranking your site in the world of search-engine optimization.

As the article suggests, the key is to focus on building quality communication threads, in addition to solid connections with those you trust and value. After all, your reputation is as much about who you associate with as it is about you.