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Social media are prehistoric

Possibly as much as 150,000 years ago man developed speech, thereby rendering himself a voice to commu-nicate. The first subtle processes of exchange turned into conversations. Cave paintings evolved through petroglyphs and other symbolic ex-pressions to writing which eventual-ly led to an alphabet. By then tribes and other groups of humans had gathered around fireplaces for many centuries. They exchanged views and thoughts in debates, settled con-flicts, gave orders, spread news and probably they gossiped too.

In fact not much has changed in communications since these ancient times. Man still speaks and reasons in more or less the same way. But what has changed dramatically the breadth of his communication’s im-pact is technology. Paper, printing and especially the electronics revolu-tion leading to the age of computers and telecommunications have lever-aged the power of speech. The speed of proliferation through the internet has increased to such a level that everybody is literally a mere sec-ond away from anybody with almost complete interactivity.

Moreover, not only the words and sound are spread but also moving image no longer experiences bound-aries of any kind.

This phenomenon of powerful, lim-itless communication has become even more clear in the last few years through the emergence of social media. For sure with tremendous positive effects on connectivity with friends, acquaintances and relatives in real-time. In addition the social media have a significant impact on public life as well.

Consumers and voters are given a voice in business and politics which spreads faster, has more emotional effect and is more outspoken than ever before.

Clearly there is no business anymore which can afford not to think about the influence of social media on its activities. This paper deals specifi-cally with b-to-b enterprises. It first investigates the relationship between social media and corporate reputa-tion, then focuses on the key aspects and drivers of social media and fi-nally presents a framework to shape a corporate social media strategy.

Live it or Leave it!A Hands-on Approach to B2B Social Media Communications Strategy Formulation

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THECONVERSATION

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Brought to you byBrian Solis and JESS3

The Art of Listening,Learning and Sharing

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The hives of social media are still partially hyped

The larger part of the tools in the social media spectrum have now passed the peak of inflated expecta-tions. Companies have recognized the possibilities of social media and have started to implement social media tools in their organisation. On the one hand, communication professionals use social media such as Twitter, Facebook or LinkedIn to communicate with their target groups, stakeholders and media. On the other hand, social media can be used as a monitoring tool to remain abreast of things said about the company or sector in the press, on forums, websites or blogs. As these opportunities show, social media are no hype, but an irreversible evolu-tion that will continue to influence the future economy.

Experience shows that the social me-dia opportunities have not been lim-ited to private and public businesses but are also accessed by the media in general. The press have also em-braced social media and appear to be on the up and up regarding the use of Web 2.0 – the evolution of the in-ternet by the rise of interactivity. For example more and more journalists have become active on social media such as Twitter and Facebook as a consequence of the presence of politi-cians who in turn found in social me-dia a direct gateway to their voters.

In this respect the question should be raised if and when social media will enter into the trough of disillusion-ment. In June 2011 vrt journalist Lieven Verstraete stopped twittering saying that he deemed it no longer

relevant for his work. In addition a lot of Twitter accounts and Facebook pages are inactive showing that not everybody is as active in reality as it may seem. Anyhow social media will reach their slope of enlighten-ment and in the end become as natu-ral as the internet is today for busi-ness and private life.

Social media is all about reputation*

Reputation and its characteristics play a vital role when thinking about formulating a social media strategy. Reputation management is in fact the wider framework within which social media leverage can flourish. Therefore we will first study its main aspects.Reputation is the overall company image perceived by all stakehold-ers. Consequently, the organisation’s reputation should be managed at all times. A good reputation will im-prove relationships with the stake-holders, attract employees and create solid partnerships, which will open doors for future business opportu-nities. Reputation is also rated on emotional and rational attractiveness by the stakeholders. It is made in the moments of truth. Although reputa-tion is an asset, a competitive advan-tage and a magnet to stakeholders it cannot be controlled. But luckily it can and should be managed.

“The way to gain a good reputation is to endeavor to be what you desire to appear.”Socrates (Athens, 470 BC - 399 BC)

* Ref. Fombrunn, Charles J. Reputation: Realizing Value from the Corporate Image.

Boston, Massachusetts: Harvard Business School. Press, 1996

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Managing a reputation however is not self-evident, because in reality the variables that have an influence on an organisation’s reputation are external as well as internal. One es-sential group to communicate about an organisation have always been the traditional media. Now, with the rise of social media the number of voices has drastically been increased. Whereas communication used to be mainly a one-way street – organisa-tions communicated to the public, which had no really direct means to react – the public now has the ability to respond immediately and often in straightforward and uncut messages. Social media are in fact also reputa-tion gatekeepers.

A social media strategy is therefore highly reputation-driven. Integrat-ing such a strategy should not be perceived as an obligation, but as an opportunity to communicate openly and proactively with stakeholders in order to secure the organisation’s reputation and sustain strong rela-tionships. It’s a chance to engage in conversation with the stakeholders and learn about the company’s per-ception, its strengths and weaknesses. The perception by the stakeholders is after all key, because the company’s market value is often reflected in the image the company pursues.

Additionally, social media allow the organisation to actively involve people, giving them insights in the corporate activities and showing the stakeholders that their messages are heard and taken seriously.

As every coin has two sides, the im-plementation of social media should be carefully applied, because when used inappropriately, it could also backfire. Such a backfire can be diffi-cult to manage, because thanks to the very nature of social media the mes-sage spreads incredibly fast. In social media, stakeholders are even quicker to judge and slower to forgive.

Reputation mainly revolves around trust and respect for an organisation as perceived by its stakeholders. These two elements are vital to a strong reputation and can be obtained and assured by communicating openly and honestly. This is where social media also come in. In contrast to traditional media, social media en-able organisations to interact actively and immediately with their stake-holders, allowing both parties to be almost continuously in the loop of the organisation’s situation. Such access to information on both sides, creates a healthy relationship between the organisation and the stakeholders, re-sulting in respect from stakeholders towards the company.

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Five key aspects of reputation

For a company to be reputable, five elements are key. First of all a repu-tation should be distinctive from all others and stand out. This means that its unique characteristics should be emphasized in order to be per-ceived as positive, strong and trust-worthy by the stakeholders.

Secondly, positive reputations should be founded on transparency. Trans-parency throughout a company allows stakeholders to gain clear insights into the activities. Organisa-tional complexity would only make it hard on people to clearly under-stand the message being sent, caus-ing a lack of confidence and result-ing in a dubious reputation.

Thirdly, the message a company wishes to send and the image it as-pires to should always be consistent. Again, this key element parallels the transparency issue, as a reputation will be based on the consistent mes-sage that is sent.

Consistency creates a flow of trust with the stakeholders, laying the foundation of a durable relationship, which is, after all, the ultimate goal of reputation.

The fourth and fifth key features of reputation are also aligned with the former. The visibility of a compa-ny is of great importance towards a sound reputation. Its distinctiveness has to be communicated visibly by way of showing yourself as an en-terprise. Stress the unique capabili-ties, do not play hide and seek, but be present on the market. Authen-ticity on its part has everything to do with honesty and practicing what you preach.

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TRANSPARENCY

CONSISTENCYVISIB

ILITY

AUTHENTICITY

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Four external dimensions of reputation

The first of the dimensions related to the outside of a company is being known. Although it might be argued that a company is responsible for its own reputation external sources such as opinion leaders, decision-makers and even Joe Public have an important impact too. Another key dimension for reputation building is the size of the company. Oddly enough, size does matter in today’s economy. Large enterprises will be perceived more easily than their small or medium-sized colleagues down the road.

The land of origin is another factor through which companies receive reputation content. The perception of a country, reflects on the reputa-tion of the organisations within that country. When looking at Germany, the country is perceived as industri-ous, highly qualitative and techno-logically advanced.

This overall perception is reflected on the organisations of the country. Italy, on its part, is known for its re-finement in design.

Finally the sector in which an organ-isation is active, also has its influence on the reputation of the organisation.If the sector is thriving, the company can take this opportunity to promote its expertise on the market. Belgian companies such as Jan De Nul Group (Dredging, Civil Engineering), Deme (Dredging, hydraulic engineering), Barco (visualisation), Umicore (mate-rials science, chemistry and metal-lurgy), Solvay (chemistry) and many others have succeeded in becoming world leaders in their field thanks to the synergy between a thriving sector and Belgian expertise.

REPUTATION

BEINGKNOWN

SECTOR

LAND OFORIGIN

SIZE

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Six internal dimensionsof reputation

Reputation is of course also driven by internal factors.

Which measures are taken to reach an emotional appeal with the stakeholders? Emotional appeal is all about credibility and popularity among the stakeholders. If an organi-sation expresses uncertainty or has a dull personality, the reputation is in-clined to be less stable than a popular and appealing company.

Secondly, does the organisation fo-cus on the products and services? Does the quality of the products and services meet the high standards as expected by the stakeholders and is the organisation doing everything possible to ensure the visibility of the products and services? Thirdly, is

the vision clearly expressed and does the organisation have a well-struc-tured management team to guarantee sound leadership? Simultaneously, the workplace environment should be optimal, because it not only in-creases productivity and creativity among the employees, but also adds to the reputation of the organisation, as these employees are important stakeholders and ambassadors to the outside world. Financial perfor-mance also contributes to reputa-tion building. The figures of turnover and profit, evolution and margins, all speak for themselves and reflect the company’s situation and leverage.

The last internal dimension is social responsibility, the importance of which continues to increase with the event of global warming, energy is-sues and the rise of general public opinion, notably via social media.

REPUTATION

EMOTIONALAPPEAL

SOCIALRESPONSIBILITY

PRODUCTS& SERVICES

FINANCIALPERFORMPANCE

VISION &LEADERSHIP

WORKPLACEENVIRONMENT

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Manage your reputation systematically

One of the first options in manag-ing your reputation is conducting an outside-in-audit of the organisation. More specifically, this means posing the question “how are we perceived by our stakeholders?” What is the attitude of our employees on the company, what about public opinion and media, the perception of inves-tors and shareholders? A second op-tion is doing an inside-out-audit on the organisation, in which case the question “what do we say about our-selves?” is central. The organisation has to question itself by asking if it has a good story to tell and if this story is being told well. Storytelling is after all an element of attraction towards the stakeholders and creates a band of trust. The next step in managing your reputation is to carry out a gap analy-

sis, questioning what is real and what is not and finding a way to improve the organisation. When running an or-ganisation, it is imperative to be con-sistent in what is said and done, both across the segments and regions in which the organisation is active.

Furthermore, the organisation should be distinctive in how and what they say and do compared to competitors.Finally, the organisation should try to stand out using its distinctiveness and authenticity, but must also be aware of the reputation risks this entails. Standing out has many ad-vantages, but it is not all fame and glory, however. A good reputation is often accompanied by a great deal of public attention and media cover-age. When it is poorly managed, the (social) media vultures will jump on the prey, possibly affecting years of reputation building.

POSITIVE REALITYNEGATIVE REALITY

POSITIVE PERCEPTION

NEGATIVE PERCEPTION

Change is required toalter negative reality and

minimize reputational risk

Action is required to capitalizeon positive reality and overcomenegative perceptions

REPUTATIONRISK

REPUTATIONOPPORTUNITY

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One element is crucial though in managing a corporate reputation.The underlying reality must be tuned to the external perception of a com-pany’s reputation. Four situations can arise all having different consequenc-es for the way to act. Especially social media will exploit these dichotomies.

The five pillars of social media

The key ingredient for successfully managing social media is under-standing what reputation is all about. It is essential for a company to ap-proach reputation building through the eyes of its stakeholders and learn the value of social media to the users of it.

The first of these five elements is trust. Trust is of paramount impor-tance in today’s society, because it has become scarce. Corporate success is not based on short-term

profit figures, but on the establish-ment of long-term relationships with stakeholders. Simultaneously, social media users attach great value to openness and transparency in the communication of companies. With social media playing more and more the lead role in society’s theatre, the time for organisations to remain si-lent, is over. Communicating openly to build a positive reputation with stakeholders is one thing, but the challenge is to know what to say, when to say it, and how to say it. With social media users being able to react immediately and in great num-bers, communication has now more than ever become an art.

Social media is also about justice for the users, enabling them to raise is-sues and lodge complaints on every possible topic. This public power forces organisations and companies

VALUE TOUSERS

TRUST

OPENESSRESPECT

JUSTICEINTEGRITY

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alike to listen to the general opin-ions and be honest in their commu-nication. As seen in Belgium indi-vidual complaints can be strongly intensified via social media, causing political debates on a national level, merely because of the displeasure of an individual. On the other hand, in-tegrity has great merit for social me-dia users, and could be anticipated by companies. Managing a reputa-tion can be facilitated by showing integrity in the communication with stakeholders. The final pillar of so-cial media is respect. An organisa-tion that respects its stakeholder en-vironment, will earn respect as well. Respect is a two-way street that can be rewarded with trust and positive perception when managed properly, but can also be severely punished when managed poorly. All these elements are of such importance be-cause of one main reason: they are all fundamental elements in every-day life and form the same values people strongly adhere to in personal relationships.

Drivers of Social Media Success

The main driver of social media suc-cess is the credibility of an organi-sation. Does the organisation have the face to establish a solid reputa-tion, meaning if it is modern and cool instead of dull and old-fash-ioned. Can the company keep up with the pace of communication? Can it assure to be around all day? Is it able to react within the hour? Does the organisation respect the limited space it has, to communicate in a concise manner? Is it able to pro-duce meaningful content in a lim-ited amount of words? These are all questions that an organisation should pose and are all aspects that estab-lish credibility when the answers to the questions are positive.

Anyhow the classical stakeholder influence sources also apply in the realm of social media. Stakehold-ers want to personally experience the company and its activities, they perceive what the company says and what others say about the company.

FACECREDIBILITY

FACECan we feelthe pulse?

PACECan we keep upwith the rythm?

SPACECan we beconcise?

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In fact these are the three sources on which they build their view. Especial-ly the last factor is one of the funda-ments of social media as communities arise of people sharing the same inter-est, e.g. the cars produced by bmw.Of course they would highly regard the views of like-minded and would value them possibly more than what the company says.

Behaviour is Key in Social Media

In social media there is one main rule: there are no real rules. Social media is an open way of communi-cation without any hierarchy. This is the beauty, but at the same time also the danger of social media. Whereas offline communication runs through a set of rules – different kinds of media with again regulations and hi-erarchies to respect – social media is almost free of rules and hierarchies.

Essentially users say what they want, when they want and to whom they want in uncut messages and without the need to pass various channels.

Behaviour is indeed key in social media and it is up to organisations to listen very carefully to what social media stakeholders express about the organisation. Simultaneously, or-ganisations have to be transparent in their communication, but clearly set the boundaries beyond which they no longer share information.

Finally, companies have to learn from this medium by creating and sustaining meaningful relationships based on dialogue.

Listen very carefully to what social media stakeholders express about the organization Be transparent but clearly

set the boundaries beyondwhich you do no longer share information

By creating and sustaining meaningful relationships based on dialogue

LISTEN

SHARE

LEARN

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Shaping a social media strategy

Strategically using social media, is not self-evident. Implementing social media as an effective and efficient tool requires a well-thought-out strat-egy, which comprises several steps before being able to be rolled out.

First of all, an organisation needs to think by asking itself “do we really need this?” To find the answer to this question several steps must be undertaken. The first step is to set a goal: “Is it about image building? Is it an experiment? Is it a strategic choice?”. When the goal has been set, the target group has to be de-fined: “Is the target group already online? Are they active in social media?”. Subsequently, the target group position should be analysed: “Which networks do they share? Who are the key opinion leaders? Are other organisations similar to ours already into social media? Who is where on the Social Technograph-icstm Ladder which classifies people according to how they use social technologies”. Simultaneously, the organisation should conduct an analysis of its own image with the target group: “What is the knowl-edge level of the target group about the organisation? What is their view on the organisation?”. Finally, an analysis of online value creation should be made to see if the organi-sation’s presence in social media is of use to the target group, to see for whom the organisation will create value and how, and to see if the val-ue proposition fits the target group’s level of expertise.

Secondly, when all abovementioned steps have been considered, the or-ganisation should prepare and find out what it takes to realise a social media strategy. For this preparation a budget will have to be set: “How much does the organisation want to invest? What will be the recurring costs? How are they going to define and manage these costs? How are they going to invest in a social me-dia crisis preparedness plan?”. When the budget has been set, a monitor-ing system will have to be set up to stay abreast of what is said about the organisation. Additionally, the or-ganisation’s identity and intention should be streamlined: “Are the actual online communication tools fit to be used as background infor-mation to social media users? Is the corporate storytelling on social me-dia consistent with the rest?”. Once the previous steps have been taken, a publication system should be set up to see which tools the organisation needs to partially automate its online presence and which input and output systems should be used.

Once prepared, the organisation has to apply the strategy and start shar-ing content. It is however essential to decide on which information will be shared, how this can be of use to the target group, and where and when the information will be published. Applying a social media strategy does not merely mean shar-ing information, but really engaging proactively with the stakeholders. As already said earlier proactively can be defined as inviting stakeholders to participate in the communication, by listening and reacting to remarks and entering into dialogue interactively.

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The last step in the application phase is to act and exert the opportunities of the organisation. The organisa-tion has to see how it can leverage its influence in social media and how it can use reciprocity, commitment and consistency, social proof, authority, scarcity, liking, etc.

When the strategy has been thought out, prepared and applied a follow-up on its effects certainly will not be a luxury. The final phase, typically to be taken the first time after six months and with regular intervals afterwards, is to check the outcome. Here, the organisation should meas-

ure the results by using predefined key performance indicators. If nec-essary, the organisation will have to adjust the strategy. The critical suc-cess factors then must be found and be acted upon. Apart from that it is of paramount importance to calcu-late the return. Therefore, a selec-tion of calculation elements should be defined, weighed and utilised.

THINKCAN WE FEEL THE PULSE?

Set goal

Definetarget group

Analyze targetgroup position

Analyzeown image

with target group

Analyze onlinevalue creation

PREPAREWHAT DOES

IT TAKE?

Set budget

Set upmonitoring

system

Streamlineidentity &intention

Set uppublication

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APPLYWHERE DO WE GO

FROM HERE?

Start sharingcontent

Engage

Make callsto action

CHECKARE WE

GETTING THERE?

Measureresults

Adjust

Calculatereturn

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Live it or Leave it

Any enterprise but especially b-to-b companies should think twice be-fore really engaging in the realm of social media. It may seem obliga-tory to set up a Facebook account because everybody else does but it is not necessarily a wise thing to do from a corporate strategy point of view. A company may have the street credibility for social media but if it lacks the ability to communicate in a concise manner about its services or products while at the same time is unable to keep up with the frenetic pace of the Web 2.0 it should re-consider. In any case it has to listen, share information and learn whilst showing openness, trust and honesty to its stakeholders. It may prove too big a challenge for the company to make that happen.

Therefore thinking and preparing be-fore applying and acting is necessary. Companies should force themselves to go through a structured step-by-step process of asking questions and finding answers in order to carefully prepare a go/no go decision about setting-up and implementing a so-cial media strategy. Only then this strategy will prove fruitful for the company’s activities. And should the outcome of the decision process be negative then the company will be sure that it is for the right reasons it is not engaging in social media.

In social media there are no in-be-tweens. They have to fit with the corporate dna. Companies should live social media or simply leave them to others.

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About Interel

Interel Belgium is a full-service communications consultancy, focusing on the delivery of expert strategic communications and public affairs services to a variety of clients in the private as well as public sectors. Interel assists companies and organisations in defining, anticipating and managing all aspects of their strategic communication through professional counsel aimed at developing or safeguarding their business interests.

Over the years, we have built a substantial reputation in crisis communication, issues management, brand & consumer communication, corporate communications and Belgian public affairs thanks to a proven track record for a varied range of public and private companies, as well as professional associations and public administrations.

Our services are performed by a team of over 35 highly experienced professionals with strong sector expertise and a broad contact network going all the way up to the highest hierarchical levels of the Belgian business, media and political circles. All our consultants speak three languages (French, Dutch, English) at minimum, are educated to Masters degree level or above and have a wide-ranging experience in business, politics, lobbying, media and communications.

Interel Belgium is part of Interel Group, an independent international consulting group headquartered in Brussels, specialising in public affairs, strategic communications and association management.

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Notes

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