Happiness CDXXX

Jun 23, 2013 | happiness

How do we impact our fellow humans?

Happiness? Compassion? Anger? Fear? Animosity? Loathing?

Which will you choose for a lasting impression?

human-touch

Photo Credit: Alyssa L. Miller cc

Behind The Firewall – Multifaceted

May 31, 2010 | blog

'Pastel Beauty' by biggertree Much of what social media is can be viewed differently from different angles.  There’s a marketing side, a public relations side, a technical side, a communications side, and a human side.

It’s these different aspects of social media that combine to confuse what “it” is for.  It’s so easy for people working for an organization to mistake the varying degrees of social media for things that seem frivolous or unneeded.  Instead, focusing on the one facet that appeals to them or their role in the organization without recognizing the opportunities of a fully integrated approach.

Taking a broader view of what social media can bring to an organization is a difficult proposition for many companies due to the differing needs of each department.  Its those internal differences that sometimes conflict with each other and keep progress from happening.  It takes some really special people with multiple talents to keep the idea moving forward.

These people are multifaceted, or better put, multi-disciplinarians.  The people spreading the message in your organization need to be able to talk tech, marketing, and corp-speak to multiple groups.  They’re the ones you need to identify, recruit (especially internally), train and empower.  Give them the leeway and the lines of communication they’ll need, in essence set them up to succeed.  Hamper them in any way and you’ll not have the results that you’re looking for.

I’ve seen numerous organizations that just can’t get around the idea of one spokesperson for the organization, or seeing security vulnerabilities and productivity losses at every turn.  These organizations can’t seem to find consensus on who should “own” (you loose already if that’s the culture) the message, let alone even participate.

At the same time, I’ve seen organizations that “don’t get it” but still end up doing it right.  These are the organizations that not only recognize that they don’t totally understand, but they’re also the type know the world has changed and that they have to embrace new ideas.  Its these types of corporate cultures that end up getting it right for their customers and learning more about how they can best solve their needs.

So understanding the multiple facets of social media and how they can be applied inside a company is crucial.  That’s what the job of a social media strategist, architect, analyst, or other similar role really is.  There’s more to each of these roles of course, but the ability to identify the needs, opportunities and the tools & solutions required to meet them is the key set of knowledge and experience required.

Photo credit: biggertree

What Open Really Means

Apr 14, 2009 | blog

It’s hard to be a medium or large corporation these days.  The demands are not small, with expectations of investors, disappointing market performance, employee needs, government regulations and oversight… there’s almost no time left for the most important part of any business: customers.

Of course, that’s where the current craze around social media comes in.  The expectation is that any company can use all sorts of free tools to stretch marketing and PR dollars, and maybe make the customer feel more welcome picking up your brand at Wal-Mart.

But that whole scenario is bound to bust as surely as your pick of economic bubbles.

The reality is that to really engage using social media and realize honest benefits requires more than a passing interest in new shiny things.  Social media requires real openness, and if you’re not willing to be open, people can tell.

The power of this new ideal comes from the willingness to have an open culture. That means that there are no artificial barriers between departments, positions, business units, or people. It means that interacting with the public is a part of every position, not just the domain of marketing, PR, and an occasional press release from the CEO.

Openness means that the C-level is talking in public forums alongside the shipping department, or accounting, or human resources.  Bringing openness to a culture means that everyone is able to talk about nearly anything.

With that being said, it’s ok to still have intellectual property and protect that.  You’re right in protecting developing business plans, or new products, or several other types of information an organization holds and makes money from.  However, beyond that, an organization can talk openly about the challenges it faces, or hold up a consumer enthusiast group as a model, or any such thing that shows a human side of a company.

Sometimes we, that is companies, worry too much about what the competition may think.  Organizations can get wrapped up in being too professional.  Being open about things doesn’t take away from any of this.  When done from a position of transparency, and honest intention of open interaction, a company can grow a much more loyal consumer base, and open source their own PR army. But that’s another post.

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