Kaplan’s article about social media and the problems and opportunities that comes with its usage provided useful insight for any person or organization that is using social media in its public relations and communications plan. I found the “ten pieces of advice for companies deciding to use Social Media” section to be especially interesting. Although I am sure that most companies and organizations see the benefits of using social media and realize that it is not something that is going to go away anytime soon, I think it can be an intimidating task for some organizations depending on their structure.
From my experience working with a non-profit organization, I was able to see first hand how it could be challenging to use social media. When an organization is short-staffed or dependent on interns that come and go, it can be extremely difficult to ensure message consistency and regular posting activity. Despite these challenges, social media is an important tool, especially for organizations with little to no budget for advertising, public relations and communications. It is especially important for these organizations to have a set plan of how social media will be used for the organization. A good plan will address what the policy will be for responding to posts from other people or organizations, what the messages will be, how often posts will be made and making sure a staff member is responsible for social media accounts during times when no intern is available.
http://prnewmedia.pbworks.com/w/file/fetch/44898094/Kaplan.pdf
It is definitely a struggle for a lot of companies right now to figure out if they should hire a person specifically for social media or if they should train their current staff in its uses. This day and age, most people are doing the work of 3 different positions, but still getting paid for one. Many middle-aged adults are concerned with the younger generation taking all of their jobs because they are more tech-savvy and we will work for less because we are so willing to just get our foot in the door. It really is true and I'm curious to see how this plays out in this economy.
ReplyDeleteI have definitely had similar experience with nonprofits and other companies that I've worked with. I think that often the problem is that top management does not actually understand the medium or the technology. Consequently we're left with CEOs giving directives to develop social media presence without creating one for themselves. From my experience I've found that the best way to begin phasing in social media is from the top down. By getting the buy-in of top execs the social media becomes a part of the organizational culture and grows organically through its use.
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