Some companies and brands avoid social media like the plague.
Listed below are some common reasons – I use the word “reasons” with caution as I don’t quite buy into them as being a justification not to engage in social media, more a means for companies to avoid responsibility or face up to the possibilities of social media. Avoiding social media is no longer an option.
Employees will waste time
If you were to task every individual in your company to update social media networks then certainly you are going to waste time with duplication of efforts and non targeted work. You don’t currently task people with the same processes so social media will not waste your company’s time. Management and moderation is key, so the concept of time wasting is invalid. Social media networks are available through mobiles and if people want to access social media they certainly will.
Consumers will post negative comments about my brand
Consumers are already talking about your brand but don’t always assume it is bad news. Most brand comments are just comments and only about 22% of brand comments on Twitter add sentiment with only a small part of those being negative. It is far better to be informed about your brand in social media than ignore it. By engaging in social media you have the chance to address issues, promote your brand, answer questions and simply champion your cause: your brand.
No control over social media
Yes there is that potential but again look to manage and moderate. Anyone officially using social media networks for your company must be tied to a social media policy that they believe in.
Social media costs
Again true, while social media networks are largely if not wholly free, they cost a lot of time. Again manage and moderate, set budgets and people resources and ensure you have tracking capabilities to measure ROI. Ensure for example that site analytics can measure traffic generated by social media networks.
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