Social Networking:

 

The Good, The Bad, and the Downright Ugly

 

Social networking, it’s something that we all love to hate. It was only six or seven years ago that the online social networking rocket really took off from its platform. Now, we can’t go a day without reading about Facebook, Myspace, and the Twitter in the news. We seem to have mastered personal connections via these sites, but now how do we master these connections professionally? What sites should you be on? Should you stay away from? And which ones can render the most effective results?

 

What do these networks mean for the business world? Their ability to reach so many people at once, and to target certain audiences is second to none.

 

THE GOOD

 

One of the most successful examples of a company that has taken advantage of the Facebook audience is Victoria’s Secret. Their group page markets its Pink line to the college-age female, and offers giveaways on its page as well as discussions. To date, they have over 300,000 group members.

 

Because authors are not selling embellished sweatpants, their professional approach to Facebook or MySpace is different.

 

There are a number of ways in which popular authors have been making use of online communities. The most successful of these ideas are realized because they cater to just that – the community. Some of the following authors have come up with creative and unique uses of social networking that have furthered their careers as well as taught us all the beauty of democratic participation in writing.

 

One Canadian author, Michael Winter, created a Facebook page in which he posted short summaries of each chapter of his book, along with his own thoughts about it (like where he was while writing it, or what he was thinking at the time), every couple of days. In time, he built a fan base of over 230 people that read his synopses regularly and discussed his work through the discussion boards.

 

Josh Martin, another Canadian author founded what has become known as the Plot Party, where fans vote on how the story progresses each week. This kind of online participation, which incidentally also started on Facebook, is an innovative way in which readers are participating in literature.

 

But what can they do for you? Of course, creating professional pages on Facebook or MySpace are effective means of communication with your target audience: readers. These pages can give you a personality. You’re not just a name on a book, and they also show that you are in touch with the ever-changing place technology has within our lives.

 

Being a part of an online community connects a writer directly with their readers, and allows followers and friends alike to hear thoughts, suggestions, comments, and questions from the proverbial horse’s mouth. It also gives other authors a chance to connect with one another and share stories, criticism and advice.

 

But what sites are considered “good” and which ones are not so appropriate for a professional? How can you avoid making mistakes using social media that would hurt your company’s image?

 

For starters, certain sites are considered more “professional” than others. Cosmin Ghiurau, a social media expert, recently presented his ideas at a seminar in New Jersey on just this topic.

“ The websites I recommend every professional to have a profile and a presence on (presence equals participation on a daily, if not weekly level) are:

• LinkedIn.com - To manage your business network, a must for any professional.

• Facebook.com - To manage both personal and professional networks.

And finally,

• Twitter.com. Twitter has exploded this year and will only continue to saturate our culture as a real-time informational source.”

 

These three sites have become the most well known social media with some of the most users in the US. Facebook has over 235 million members, LinkedIn has over 35 million (and growing), and Twitter has around 3.5 million with thousands of people joining every day. One of the appeals of these sites is that they have massive membership rosters, which allow companies to reach as many people as possible with the least effort.

 

On the other hand, some social networking sites that once were popular are now less respected, and not as appropriate for professional use. MySpace is one of these. MySpace’s membership is actually declining in the younger age groups, largely because Facebook emerged as the “new” MySpace, but also because it has gained a certain reputation for being “creepy”. That is to say, many people find MySpace’s privacy settings and disclosure rules to be less secure than other websites. Most of MySpace’s professional appeal now rests in the music industry since it allows for the downloading of materials from profiles, a feature Facebook does not support.

 

These social networks present fascinating new ways for companies to rethink their policies including customer service, troubleshooting, feedback, and more.

 

One company has put these ideas to use with excellent results to its consumer feedback.

 

In response to poor customer service reviews, the high-speed internet company Comcast began using Twitter in 2007 to post real-time updates to Comcast users. The tweets from Comcastcares cover everything from specific troubleshooting (“@[name changed] When did the trouble happen? DM phone number on the account”), information on new features, questions about email servers, and more. As of March 11, 2009, they have 11,401 followers on Twitter, which is a sizeable group of customers with whom to have direct contact. In an article from Business Week, Frank Eliason (the man behind the tweets) said, "This is just one way people have gotten to know us…It's a little more personal. More back-and-forth discussions, and it's less formal. And it gives immediacy to interactions."

 

So how can authors use these technologies to their advantage? Consider making a LinkedIn profile. LinkedIn does not take much upkeep after its initial creation. After joining every possible professional contact you have, your work is done. Then make a Facebook page for your personal use and find friends, old classmates, and fans that want to know the people behind the pen. As Julie Wright, President of Wright Communications, says, “It’s appropriate to show who you are as a person and how you feel. That gives people something to connect to emotionally, which is the basis of establishing a relationship.”

 

Finally, consider joining Twitter and following Comcast’s example. Wright says, “Search Twitter for words that indicate people might share professional interests. Following peers and colleagues will very quickly build your knowledge base.” As it is one of the fastest growing social media sites on the Internet, it can only help your publicity and appeal to have a leg up on the competition.

 

THE BAD

 

If you’re going to get into social media then consider separating yourself from your work self. Use your pages wisely, you don’t want to create a profile for your company on Twitter and write updates just for the sake of writing updates. Through our research we have found many companies use twitter just to say that they use twitter: use the site for a specific, outlined purpose, not just so you can say we twitter. Once example of bad twittering looked something like this:

 

10am marketing meeting

11:30 deciding where to go for lunch

12:00 Going to lunch

5:00 time to go home

 

Next day:

 

12:00 Going to lunch

1:45: meeting with potential client I cannot mention for legal reasons

 

We have all seen the posts, don’t do it! It goes back to the old adage: if you don’t have something nice to say, then don’t say it. In this case, if you don’t have something to say at all that will ad to or further your company, then don’t twitter it! Don’t post information online just for the sake of posting. If you are doing something everyday to market your book and enhance your brand, like you should be doing, then post this news instead. It looks better to post, submitted my book for review to “……”, or contacted a local bookstore today.

 

Along the same lines, the content of your updates can get you in trouble. Twittering during a particularly boring presentation about the speaker’s ugly tie can pop up in unfortunate places later. It is best to keep your unflattering opinions to yourself, at least for the time being.

 

Another mistake companies can often make is to simply “sell” their products on social media sites. While this is the overall intent behind companies on social media, the average user does not want to shop on Facebook or Twitter. “People don’t want to be sold to. They want to be connected with. So, don’t send an automated Direct Message via Twitter with a sales message,” says Julie Wright. If they want to buy your product, they will visit your online website, or find a store.

 

Basically take advantage of the good that social networking can do for you professionally, don’t get into the bad stuff, bad content, badmouthing other people, and it won’t get ugly.

 

However, some people didn’t have the benefit of reading an article on social media etiquette, what you should and shouldn’t do (lucky you have this one), which led to some downright ugly and embarrassing situations.

 

 

THE DOWNRIGHT UGLY

 

In the same way that we all learned about the dangers of clicking “Reply All” in an email, many people are now experiencing Social Media Backlash.

 

One good example is of a recent episode that played itself out rather publicly on Twitter.

 

The Deed: A VP of Ketchum,James Andrews, was giving a presentation on digital media in Memphis, Tennessee and was unimpressed by his surroundings upon his arrival. He left an unflattering tweet on his Twitter account about the city: "True confession but I'm in one of those towns where I scratch my head and say 'I would die if I had to live here!'"  The tweet was found shortly thereafter by someone to whom he was presenting at the Fed-Ex office in Memphis.

 

The Reaction: The FedEx employee then wrote an email to Mr. Andrews, and carbon-copied the FedEx Corporate Vice President, Vice President, Directors and all management of FedEx’s communication department along with every major higher-up at Ketchum.

 

“…Many of my peers and I feel [your comments were] inappropriate. We do not know the total millions of dollars FedEx Corporation pays Ketchum annually for the valuable and important work your company does for us around the globe. We are confident however, it is enough to expect a greater level of respect and awareness from someone in your position as a vice president at a major global player in your industry. A hazard of social networking is people will read what you write…”

 

Mr. Andrews went on to explain that his tweet was "the emotional response to a run in I had with an intolerant individual."

 

He then wrote an apology on his website, TheKeyInfluencer.com:

"As many of you know there has been a lot of online chatter around a recent situation that has unfortunately spiraled. As an active practitioner in the space, I felt the need to both address the situation and offer my perspective on the practice of social media… Everyone knows that at 140 characters Twitter does not allow for context and therefore my comments were misunderstood. If I offended the residents of Memphis, TN. I’m sorry. That was not my intention. I understand that people have tremendous pride in their hometown."

 

What We Can All Learn: Think of posting any personal thoughts on any social media like putting your diary on the supermarket bulletin board. There is no way to control who sees it. As Julie Wright, social media expert and President of Wright Communications, says, “A good rule of thumb with social media like Twitter that it is visible to anyone who follows you (unless you protect your updates). Don’t post anything that you wouldn’t say at a professional cocktail mixer.” Remember that whatever you post can be seen by millions more people than the people on your “friends” list.

 

 

 

THE BOTTOM LINE

 

The bottom line is you have to be careful what you write.

 

Do not let this discourage you from participating and utilizing all that social media has to offer. Anthony Dicembre (E-Business Development Manager for Chapin International) says that getting involved in these sites has become a necessity. “In reality there is no choice whether or not to participate in social media.  Anyone can and will, if they haven't already, express their opinion and discuss their experiences about a company online to a potentially unlimited audience… People are talking about your company online.  People are reading what those people are talking about online. Don't you think that's a conversation you should be involved in?”

 

Even Google CEO Eric Schmidt feels Twitter is worth the effort as well:

 

"Speaking as a computer scientist, I view all of these as sort of poor man's email systems," Eric Schmidt said. "In other words, they have aspects of an email system, but they don't have a full offering. To me, the question about companies like Twitter is: Do they fundamentally evolve as sort of a note phenomenon, or do they fundamentally evolve to have storage, revocation, identity, and all the other aspects that traditional email systems have? Or do email systems themselves broaden what they do to take on some of that characteristic? … Twitter's success is wonderful, and I think it shows you that there are many, many new ways to reach and communicate, especially if you are willing to do so publicly."

 

An October 2008 survey regarding the benefits of professional social networking found that 85.4% experienced better customer engagement, 59.9% experienced speedier feedback, and 59.1% said they were more in touch with what customer’s desires were.

 

It is apparent that social media cannot be left out of mainstream business any longer. Companies scrambling for extra funds will find that social media expands the possibility of sales exponentially for free.

 

Steve Prentice of Bristol Morgan Inc. sums up this idea well: “People who dismiss Facebook or Twitter as mere child's play are the same ones who dismissed the cell phone, the fax machine, the TV, the Beatles, and probably if you go back far enough, they probably asked what good fire was, given that everything we eat is served raw. We are in an age of interaction where both customer and supplier (including writers) are empowered, so long as they're willing to sharpen their spears a little.”