Have businesses and authorities learnt how to handle Twitter and social media?
Posted: Friday 29 October, 2010
Ed Fleming
As one of Punch Communications' avid cricket followers, I noticed recently I know more about the England cricket team's pre-Ashes routine than ever before. Why? Well, Twitter obviously. I learnt that James Anderson has been given video games( by a company) to take with him, I learnt that Graeme Swann lost and then found his passport and that Stuart Broad hates packing - oh and that Kevin Pietersen is launching a new hair product soon.
So what does the Ashes have in store for us? Hopefully lots of England runs and wickets, but I get the feeling there might be some social media faux pas, much like the one Pietersen made when he was dropped from the squad earlier this year. With celebrities being paid to Tweet products and sportsmen being commercially minded, there is room for mistakes to happen.
But what is the correct approach for businesses to take when dealing with social media and itsuse by staff? Luckily at Punch Communications we have a leadership team that embrace technology and social media - in fact, we see digital PR as one of our key strengths. Not every business is so lucky. It might have far more employees to manage, similar to a fast food chain. What do they do to combat any negative online feeling towards their brand?
Punch believes this part of the internal communications agenda is an important one to address and not to sweep under the carpet. The appointment of a member of the team who oversees all digital company avenues is also important - the guru who people can go to for advice; whether that's on how to use Twitter properly to whether they can mention something that happened in their day on Facebook, they know the answers. The business also needs to ensure it has a social media presence and use that as a way to communicate with staff. A more knowledgeable team minimises the risk.
Have the ECB got it right? Only time will tell, but let's just hope the lads are posting a pic of the Ashes urn in the dressing room after a win, rather than addressing the world's media on an cyber spat with a team mate!
