Social media shift in business

AS YET another large company feels the heat from social media, marketers are weighing up whether the benefits of being on Facebook outweigh the risks.

Coles, Qantas, Channel Seven and now Target have all been subjected to widespread criticism that began and then snowballed on their Facebook pages.


The social media campaign against Target started with a single complaint over the weekend from mother Ana Amini that the retailer sells clothing that makes young girls ''look like tramps''. The Port Macquarie primary school teacher's Facebook post has since attracted more than 59,000 ''likes'' and almost 3000 comments.


Marketers must be forgiven for asking, why are we here in the first place?

Marketers must be forgiven for asking, why are we here in the first place? Photo: AFP

Last week a landmark ruling threw the responsibility for monitoring the thousands of comments posted on corporate Facebook pages back to companies, which now have to ensure posts are not racist, sexist or inaccurate.
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Marketers must be forgiven for asking, why are we here in the first place?

Because they can't afford not to be, say experts who have detected a shift in the way that companies are handling the social networking behemoth.

''Historically, it's been all about their own content - namely 'What are we going to post on our page?' Now it will be the other way around - what are users going to say on our page,'' said social media consultant Thomas Tudehope.

And how they go about handling it will define people's perceptions of that brand or company.

Channel Seven was widely attacked for deleting a post on its Facebook page from Linda Goldspink-Lord who berated the network for intruding into the family's grief after the death of her daughter, Molly, in a quad bike accident.

Coles was also criticised for removing a letter posted by a New South Wales farmer Jane Burney accusing the supermarket chain of hypocrisy for promoting its support of farmers in its Olympics ad campaign while driving down prices at the farm gate.

Gabriel McDowell of Res Publica, an adviser to corporations on social media strategy, said recent missteps had been compounded by the wrong people running company Facebook pages.

Control should be taken from advertising and marketing agencies, who are used to pushing a message, and handed to public relations people, who are better equipped to deal with fallout.

‘‘Even though the social media process can’t be totally controlled, it needs to be managed. Dealing with journalists on a day-to-day basis means that PR professionals are entirely comfortable with the idea that communication cannot be controlled.’’

One commentator even lauded Target for its response, saying the chain store would win points for not dodging the issue. Adam Vincenzini, head of social media at PR agency Mango said it would hold them in good stead when other challenging situations arise ‘‘as the community will most likely cut them a bit more slack’’.

Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/technology/technology-news/social-media-shift-in-business-20120814-246vp.html#ixzz23cN7V7OA


Source: Social media shift in business