Live it or Leave it! by Karel Joos

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

Social media are prehistoric Possibly as much as 150,000 years ago man developed speech, thereby rendering himself a voice to communicate. The first subtle processes of exchange turned into conversations. Cave paintings evolved through petroglyphs and other symbolic expressions to writing which eventually 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 conflicts, 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 communicationâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s impact is technology. Paper, printing and especially the electronics revolution leading to the age of computers and telecommunications have leveraged the power of speech. The speed of proliferation through the internet has increased to such a level that everybody is literally a mere second away from anybody with almost complete interactivity.

Moreover, not only the words and sound are spread but also moving image no longer experiences boundaries of any kind. This phenomenon of powerful, limitless 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 specifically with b-to-b enterprises. It first investigates the relationship between social media and corporate reputation, then focuses on the key aspects and drivers of social media and finally presents a framework to shape a corporate social media strategy.

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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 expectations. 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 evolution that will continue to influence the future economy. Experience shows that the social media opportunities have not been limited to private and public businesses but are also accessed by the media in general. The press have also embraced social media and appear to be on the up and up regarding the use of Web 2.0 – the evolution of the internet 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 politicians who in turn found in social media 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 disillusionment. 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 enlightenment and in the end become as natural as the internet is today for business 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 stakeholders. Consequently, the organisation’s reputation should be managed at all times. A good reputation will improve relationships with the stakeholders, attract employees and create solid partnerships, which will open doors for future business opportunities. Reputation is also rated on emotional and rational attractiveness by the stakeholders. It is made in the moments of truth. Although reputation is an asset, a competitive advantage 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 essential 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 – organisations 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 reputation gatekeepers.

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 implementation of social media should be carefully applied, because when used inappropriately, it could also backfire. Such a backfire can be difficult to manage, because thanks to the very nature of social media the message 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 A social media strategy is therefore perceived by its stakeholders. These highly reputation-driven. Integrattwo elements are vital to a strong ing such a strategy should not be reputation and can be obtained and perceived as an obligation, but as an assured by communicating openly opportunity to communicate openly and honestly. This is where social and proactively with stakeholders media also come in. In contrast to in order to secure the organisation’s traditional media, social media enreputation and sustain strong relaable organisations to interact actively tionships. It’s a chance to engage in and immediately with their stakeconversation with the stakeholders holders, allowing both parties to be and learn about the company’s peralmost continuously in the loop of the ception, its strengths and weaknesses. organisation’s situation. Such access The perception by the stakeholders is to information on both sides, creates after all key, because the company’s a healthy relationship between the market value is often reflected in the organisation and the stakeholders, reimage the company pursues. 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 reputation should be distinctive from all others and stand out. This means that its unique characteristics should be emphasized in order to be perceived as positive, strong and trustworthy by the stakeholders.

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 company is of great importance towards a sound reputation. Its distinctiveness Secondly, positive reputations should has to be communicated visibly by be founded on transparency. Trans- way of showing yourself as an enparency throughout a company terprise. Stress the unique capabiliallows stakeholders to gain clear ties, do not play hide and seek, but insights into the activities. Organisa- be present on the market. Authentional complexity would only make ticity on its part has everything to it hard on people to clearly underdo with honesty and practicing what stand the message being sent, causyou preach. ing a lack of confidence and resulting in a dubious reputation.

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DISTINCTIVENESS

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

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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, decisionmakers 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 todayâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;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 reputation of the organisations within that country. When looking at Germany, the country is perceived as industrious, highly qualitative and technologically advanced.

This overall perception is reflected on the organisations of the country. Italy, on its part, is known for its refinement in design. Finally the sector in which an organisation 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 (materials science, chemistry and metallurgy), 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.

BEING KNOWN

SIZE

REPUTATION

SECTOR

LAND OF ORIGIN

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EMOTIONAL APPEAL

SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY

PRODUCTS & SERVICES

REPUTATION FINANCIAL PERFORMPANCE

VISION & LEADERSHIP

WORKPLACE ENVIRONMENT

Six internal dimensions of 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 organisation expresses uncertainty or has a dull personality, the reputation is inclined to be less stable than a popular and appealing company. Secondly, does the organisation focus 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-structured management team to guarantee sound leadership? Simultaneously, the workplace environment should be optimal, because it not only increases 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 performance also contributes to reputation building. The figures of turnover and profit, evolution and margins, all speak for themselves and reflect the companyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;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 issues and the rise of general public opinion, notably via social media.

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Manage your reputation systematically One of the first options in managing 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 investors and shareholders? A second option is doing an inside-out-audit on the organisation, in which case the question “what do we say about ourselves?” 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 organisation, it is imperative to be consistent 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 advantages, but it is not all fame and glory, however. A good reputation is often accompanied by a great deal of public attention and media coverage. When it is poorly managed, the (social) media vultures will jump on the prey, possibly affecting years of reputation building.

POSITIVE PERCEPTION

Change is required to alter negative reality and minimize reputational risk

REPUTATION RISK

NEGATIVE REALITY

POSITIVE REALITY

REPUTATION OPPORTUNITY

Action is required to capitalize on positive reality and overcome negative perceptions

NEGATIVE PERCEPTION

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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 companyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s reputation. Four situations can arise all having different consequences for the way to act. Especially social media will exploit these dichotomies.

profit figures, but on the establishment 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 societyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s theatre, the time for organisations to remain siThe five pillars of social media lent, is over. Communicating openly to build a positive reputation with The key ingredient for successfully stakeholders is one thing, but the managing social media is underchallenge is to know what to say, standing what reputation is all about. when to say it, and how to say it. It is essential for a company to apWith social media users being able to proach reputation building through the react immediately and in great numeyes of its stakeholders and learn the bers, communication has now more value of social media to the users of it. than ever become an art. The first of these five elements is trust. Trust is of paramount importance in todayâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s society, because it has become scarce. Corporate success is not based on short-term

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

TRUST

OPENESS

RESPECT

VALUE TO USERS

INTEGRITY

JUSTICE

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alike to listen to the general opinions and be honest in their communication. As seen in Belgium individual 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, integrity has great merit for social media users, and could be anticipated by companies. Managing a reputation can be facilitated by showing integrity in the communication with stakeholders. The final pillar of social media is respect. An organisation that respects its stakeholder environment, 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 because of one main reason: they are all fundamental elements in everyday life and form the same values people strongly adhere to in personal relationships.

Drivers of Social Media Success The main driver of social media success is the credibility of an organisation. Does the organisation have the face to establish a solid reputation, meaning if it is modern and cool instead of dull and old-fashioned. 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 produce meaningful content in a limited amount of words? These are all questions that an organisation should pose and are all aspects that establish credibility when the answers to the questions are positive. Anyhow the classical stakeholder influence sources also apply in the realm of social media. Stakeholders want to personally experience the company and its activities, they perceive what the company says and what others say about the company.

PACE

Can we keep up with the rythm?

FACE

Can we feel the pulse?

CREDIBILITY

SPACE

Can we be concise?

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In fact these are the three sources on which they build their view. Especially the last factor is one of the fundaments of social media as communities arise of people sharing the same interest, 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 communication 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 â&#x20AC;&#x201C; different kinds of media with again regulations and hierarchies to respect â&#x20AC;&#x201C; 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, organisations 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

Listen very carefully to what social media stakeholders express about the organization

Be transparent but clearly set the boundaries beyond which you do no longer share information

LEARN

By creating and sustaining meaningful relationships based on dialogue

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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 strategy, 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 defined: “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 Technographicstm 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 knowledge 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 organisation’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 value proposition fits the target group’s level of expertise.

Secondly, when all abovementioned steps have been considered, the organisation 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 media crisis preparedness plan?”. When the budget has been set, a monitoring system will have to be set up to stay abreast of what is said about the organisation. Additionally, the organisation’s identity and intention should be streamlined: “Are the actual online communication tools fit to be used as background information to social media users? Is the corporate storytelling on social media 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 sharing 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 sharing 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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THINK

PREPARE

APPLY

CHECK

CAN WE FEEL THE PULSE?

WHAT DOES IT TAKE?

WHERE DO WE GO FROM HERE?

ARE WE GETTING THERE?

Start sharing content

Measure results

Engage

Adjust

Make calls to action

Calculate return

Set goal

Define target group

Set budget

Set up monitoring system

Analyze target group position Analyze own image with target group Analyze online value creation

Streamline identity & intention

Set up publication system

The last step in the application phase is to act and exert the opportunities of the organisation. The organisation 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 followup 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 necessary, the organisation will have to adjust the strategy. The critical success factors then must be found and be acted upon. Apart from that it is of paramount importance to calculate the return. Therefore, a selection of calculation elements should be defined, weighed and utilised.

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Live it or Leave it Any enterprise but especially b-to-b Therefore thinking and preparing becompanies should think twice before applying and acting is necessary. fore really engaging in the realm of Companies should force themselves social media. It may seem obligato go through a structured step-bytory to set up a Facebook account step process of asking questions and because everybody else does but it finding answers in order to carefully is not necessarily a wise thing to do prepare a go/no go decision about from a corporate strategy point of setting-up and implementing a soview. A company may have the street cial media strategy. Only then this credibility for social media but if it strategy will prove fruitful for the lacks the ability to communicate in companyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s activities. And should the a concise manner about its services outcome of the decision process be or products while at the same time is negative then the company will be unable to keep up with the frenetic sure that it is for the right reasons it pace of the Web 2.0 it should reis not engaging in social media. consider. In any case it has to listen, share information and learn whilst In social media there are no in-beshowing openness, trust and honesty tweens. They have to fit with the to its stakeholders. It may prove too corporate dna. Companies should live social media or simply leave big a challenge for the company to them to others. make that happen.

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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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