Where does Social Media live in the organization?
July 22, 2008
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When I first started this social media agency, the question I was asked most often was, “What is social media?” In just a few months, that question morphed into, “What kinds of things can social media do for my organization specifically?”
Today, we’re onto a new most popular question. This one is often asked by people who work in large organizations, and that’s, “Where does social media live in the organization?” One company I talked to had a task force with dozens of people on it. Another had given the lead to CorpComm, but they were meeting regularly with the brand teams. There are lots of opinions on this topic and for a while I struggled with the answer–until now. Here’s the simple truth that is making it so hard for you to come up with the answer for your organization:
Social media is not a tactic. If it were, you could assign it to a department. It’s a phrase to describe a broad array of new tools that let you talk to, and hear from, your constituents in a variety of new ways. Asking who owns social media would be no more fruitful than asking who owns writing.
Each part of the organization needs to re-evaluate the way they communicate and see how social media opens up options for them.
- Brand managers can now use social media as an integral part of marketing campaigns. I lead with brand managers here because getting the right social media marketing plan developed and executed is an art–one that will certainly impact brand perception.
- Product developers can use social media for consumer intelligence. The idea that you have to spend tens of thousands to get limited information from focus groups is becoming outmoded.
- Public relations can look at the messages that they send and figure out how they can make them a) more interesting and b) more easily digested by the blogosphere and the networks. Typically (a) is harder than (b) for many companies.
- Customer service should be using social media to decrease call volume and increase customer satisfaction. Paying $35 per phone call to answer the same types of questions thousands of times isn’t helping anyone.
- Human resources can be using social media to convey what working at the company is all about, and they should certainly be using it to go find candidates with particular backgrounds.
The task force trying to get their “arms around” social media will likely spend a lot of time spinning in circles. The question is too big. Several small groups, each asking how these new tools can help them accomplish a specific objective will get much, much further.
Remember that line, “You can’t control social media?” It has more than one meaning…
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5 Responses to “Where does Social Media live in the organization?”
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I completely agree, Jim. Social media is not just for marketing - it can be used in so many different ways by so many different people within an organization. I think this is why many companies are hiring “social media managers” to direct their social media efforts on all fronts.
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Social media should be integrated into an overall business strategy. While social media mangers are popular now, I fear the job will be tactical in five years and far from strategic. I think the question of where social media belongs is being twisted into a question of control. Forget control…but here should be a guide and stable place for the social media strategy to reside for all users in the business. What better place than public relations…of course, if conducted properly with the right people, at the right time, using the right tools.
Completely agree and will need to reference this post in the future.
I’ve been in a few meetings pitching social media consulting in which everything goes well and everyone in the company is jazzed up to take ownership… until it’s time for budgeting. At this point the responsibility often seems to lie with a different team.
But on a grander scale, the Forrester report is right on in that social media needs to come from the top down, not the bottom up. By this I mean that to have a successful social media strategy it needs to be supported from an executive level and even throughout multiple departments.
It’s difficult for a SM strategy to pick up speed from the bottom, as it will not get the time, dedication, or funding that it needs to thrive.
Lastly: Social Media is everyone’s responsibility and the more universal adoption within a company, the more successful it will be. That’s my view
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In several technology companies there are departments | groups that target market segments instead of product groups. Large Enterprise Accounts, Small Medium Accounts etc.
I think there are social media related content to be shared from these people also, like a thought leadership corporate blog or a customer centric video site.
Same thing applies for Professional Services groups where technical teams talk about their experiences, problems they have solved, architectures they have designed.
In general I believe that there limited people in a company that cannot leverage social media tools and practices. And if we include in the definition Enterprise 2.0 stuff like internal wikis, blogs and RSS servers the list gets even more limited.
Regards and thanx for the post. A really good one!
@Panos. I agree. The list goes on of what types of people can use it. And Enterprise 2.0 opens up even more opportunities.
Good point.