Social Media: the Good, Bad and Ugly

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by Gwen Moran

Myth: Social Media are the Domain of Angst-Ridden Teens

Bust: Your Customers Are Talking About You Online!

It’s not just the pimple-faced set who like to spew their thoughts in pixelated form. The market-research firm eMarketer estimates that 44 percent of all consumers will use some form of social networking — blogs, podcasts, online-video sites like YouTube and networking sites like MySpace, Facebook and Linked­In — at least once a month in 2008. And the business-to-business impact of social media is only growing.

If you care about your brand, your company had better pay close attention to social media, says consultant Paul Gillin, author of The New Influencers: A Marketer’s Guide to Social Media. Even media figures are posting their thoughts online. After Advertising Age columnist Bob Garfield received shoddy treatment from his cable provider, he launched a blog entitled Comcast Must Die, which became a popular gathering place for disgruntled ­Comcast customers.

Myth: We Shouldn’t Create a Place for ­Negative Feedback

Bust: Negative Feedback Can Be Good

It’s one thing for an unhappy customer to trash your name online. It’s entirely different for you to create a place that fosters customer feedback that isn’t so warm and fuzzy, Gillin says. “If you value honest and direct feedback from ­customers, I don’t know a faster way to get it these days,” Gillin says.

Myth: All CEOs Should Have Blogs and Social Networking–Site Pages

Bust: CEOs Should Use These Tools ­Strategically

Obviously, there are some regulatory concerns, as every word posted will be combed over by investors, customers, competitors and even government officials. However, with the right processes in place, such as compliance review and basic proofreading to avoid embarrassing grammar and spelling mistakes, senior executives who blog get more attention than those who don’t. “There are still relatively few participating,” Gillin says. “In the cases where CEOs do use these channels, you’ll often see tremendous response.”

More important, social media should be part of the company’s overall marketing strategy. “You have to see this as a priority. The marketing people have to understand that this is an important new channel of feedback from your customers,” Gillin adds.