Comments on: B2B’s biggest social media screw-ups

By: wendysoucie

wendysoucie — Fri, 10 Dec 2010 20:11:58 +0000

Mark, I did an quick assessment and blog post of Caterpillar after the announced purchase of Bucyrus International a Wisconsin Based company ( note- I am located in Wisconsin and called on BE as a client in the past). I was curious how CAT was doing with social media – see my post named “Caterpillar Inc thougthfully embraces social media”. They are treading slowly and softly, but answered my Tweet about an interview in less than 1 hour and I got that interview with the newly named Social Media Program Manager. Although I noted many of the problems, @brianstokoe is ontop of the things they need to change from a brand and messaging as well as housekeeping on the what they can and should maintain. I think with this new role, you may see some good things done right by Caterpillar which is not known to be a forward thinking or fast moving company. But slow is good sometimes in social spaces.
Wendy
xeesm.com/wendysoucie

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By: MARK W. SCHAEFER

MARK W. SCHAEFER — Mon, 22 Jun 2009 17:38:20 +0000

Figuring out what works and what doesn't is probably THE question. Connecting social media to traditional measures is difficult. I see this as a huge hurdle to B2B adoption.

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By: B2B Online Mktg

B2B Online Mktg — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 15:47:49 +0000

Great post, Mark. For B2B companies to really understand the potential of social media to help them better connect with customers/prospects and grow their busineses, we need to be actively examining what's really working in B2B social media and what's not.

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By: Big B

Big B — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 14:04:13 +0000

First thanks for the post and providing a different perspective on this topic. 3M actually did begin participating in the social media community a while back with their Post-It brand on YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/postitnotes. It was actually pretty successful. I believe they focus on the product brands and not the corporate 3M brand when it comes to social media or other marketing efforts. Also, I am sure Oracle would jump in if they could tie it directly to sales. They are a very sales/financial driven company.

Anyway, thanks for the post and the thought provoking conversation.

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By: Christa M. Miller

Christa M. Miller — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 01:40:00 +0000

I came here by way of LinkedIn. Interesting stuff – I do a lot in the law enforcement/public safety arena, and was really excited to see TASER establish a social media presence. While I do think they could stand to be a bit less corporate and a bit more personal, compared to these examples, they are doing a GREAT job. LOL

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By: MARK W. SCHAEFER

MARK W. SCHAEFER — Tue, 16 Jun 2009 20:57:40 +0000

John and Sam, thanks for your comments.

I've seen a couple of questions and commentaries about brands getting hijacked — what to do? This might be a blogpost idea in and of itself!

John, I like your insight that companies are reaping what they sow and that social media might provide a way to exepedite change. All interesting insights as usual!

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By: john.bottom

john.bottom — Mon, 15 Jun 2009 20:58:00 +0000

Interesting stuff Mark. I guess that once the hijacking has started, it's almost impossible to stop. But the point is that something is always better than nothing. If Dow explained that they were making honest attempts to have an open dialogue with people about their perceived shortcomings, that would help their image. And if of course they don't do this because they do have something to hide, then so be it: their reputation deservedly gets torn apart in front of a rapidly growing audience. One of the things I love most about social media is that it has the power to really bring about change.

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By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Mon, 15 Jun 2009 17:20:05 +0000

Hilarious. Thanks! — SL

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