Social media, our voice, and the power to destroy
Jan 30th
The ability for all of us to publish on the social web — to have a voice — is among the most profound sociological, economic, and political developments of our lifetime. It gives us the power to elevate a little boy from Canada to an international singing superstar or to unite a group of people to tear down a dictatorship.
This democratization of power is the central theme of my new book, Return On Influence. This new power is breathtaking and beautiful. It is inspirational and revolutionary. And, it can be deadly.
We have all seen how social media can be used to bully and destroy. A few months ago on {grow} Leslie Lewis told the story of how her career was destroyed by a social media stalker. A year ago, a student at Rutgers (where I teach) killed himself after Internet humiliation.
Last week, I was also in a position to use social media power to destroy.
My wife had been admitted to a local hospital for a routine procedure. We experienced the usual delays and administrative foul-ups (had wrong name on her bracelet!) that we have come to expect from the medical profession but nothing prepared me for the horror I was about to experience.
When I was called to her recovery room (where she was still asleep), I could not believe my eyes. The room was filthy. The trash can was filled with tubes and debris from another patient’s procedure. There was trash all over the floor — paper, a used drinking straw, and pieces of some strange green organic material. Worst of all, there were drops of blood (not hers!) across the floor. I was disgusted and outraged. These were like the conditions I have heard about from missionary doctors working in a Third World country.
I took out my phone and took both pictures and video to document the mess … with my wife sleeping peacefully in the middle of it. Nobody would believe this.
I finally was able to flag down an attendant and angrily pointed out the problem. Her response was “Oh … I didn’t see that.”
Perhaps you could overlook a clear drinking straw on a white floor, but certainly not bright red blood drops or a trash can overflowing with used plastic tubes.
When the surgeon came in, I explained how repulsed I was … and I was still feeling ill about the unsanitary conditions even after the blood was wiped up (with a wet paper towel). He said that he would report it and that I would be getting a call from the hospital administration.
Twenty-four hours later I had not received a call and I was still seething. My adrenaline was saying “post the video.” Instead, I posted a query on Facebook and asked the world what they would do. The recommendations ranged from “keep it in-house” to “get the media involved.”
I called the patient advocate and reached a voice recording, notifying me that she was only available during certain business hours. I also tried to leave a request through the hospital website but the form was broken and I just got an error message.
Later that day, I received a return call from the patient advocate. She was professional and apologetic and said she would investigate the situation.
Two days after this discussion, my wife got a call of apology from the head of the department and a letter from the patient advocate. And that’s how it stands.
This episode represented the first time in my life that I had a “social media voice” go off in my head … “DO YOU KNOW WHO I AM? I HAVE A VOICE!” I knew that I could have humiliated this hospital on the evening news … maybe even caused an investigation of some kind. Perhaps I should have.
But whether you agree with my decision or not, I hope you will consider this advice: If you ever get into a situation where you can use your social media power to destroy, don’t let adrenaline make the decision for you. That’s how people are getting hurt and humiliated these days.
When I let the adrenaline subside, I thought about the situation and realized that if I went public with this, the most likely outcome would be that some hourly-wage attendant would lose her job. I would probably be hurting a family more than a hospital. That is not what I’m about. That was not the right decision for me.
Every day I see destruction, hate, and viciousness on the web from people who can’t keep their adrenaline in check. The social web is a place of stunning beauty and terrible darkness … just like the human race I suppose.
I’ll open myself and my actions to public scrutiny because this is an important topic we are all likely to face at some point. Did I do enough as a civic duty in this case? What would you do if you were in a position to use social media to destroy?
Have you become a STOP SOPA lemming?
Jan 17th
Note: If you’re just stumbling on to this post, both bills have been withdrawn at this time but keep reading. The points are still valid. An excellent wrap up of the issue is contained in this New York Times piece: It’s time to put down the pitchforks on SOPA.
The current controversy over the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA), also known as U.S. House Bill 3261, is highly disturbing on several levels, and the actual bill might be the least of our worries, in the long-term.
I am against piracy, but I’m also against this bill. The proposal is so out of touch with reality that it is embarassing. It looks like the opposition is gaining momentum, so that is a relief.
But here is something that is just as disturbing to me. Many people I know became “Stop SOPA” lemmings.
Follow the leader?
Legend has it that a lemming is a little rodent that blindly and unquestioningly follows their leader, even when they follow them over a cliff to their death (they don’t actually do this but that is another story).
I questioned three well-known social media leaders about why they were supporting SOPA and actively encouraging their followers to attach a “Stop SOPA” badge to their profiles. Here is a summary of their responses:
“I’m not what you would call an expert on this. I haven’t even read the bill. I’m trusting what I read from others.”
“To be honest, I don’t know what is in the bill. But based on how people are reacting it must be bad.”
“I have not read the bill and I do not intend to read the bill. What is in the bill is irrelevant. They are taking away our rights.”
You see, on the social web, “Stop SOPA” is not a political issue, for many. “Stop SOPA” has become a meme. This movement was passed from person to person without much independent thought or an educated response. It has become the Keyboard Cat of political statements.
I fully appreciate the importance of “social proof” on the Internet. In the absence of direction, we may look to trusted others for an idea of what to do. But come on folks. This proposed legislation directly affects the very heart of our lives and our livelihoods. There is no excuse in encouraging action from your trusting followers without doing a little homework.
But what about the problem?
The third level of concern this proposed legislation created was the fact that everybody seems to be against SOPA but there has been little intelligent dialogue about the actual issue of stopping piracy. And stealing is “our right” is not a viable answer in my book. Please, take a strong stand … but also help provide some answers.
Here is the problem in a nutshell. I just spent nearly a year of my life writing a book. If there is no hope of getting paid for the difficult work and sacrifice that goes into creating content like this in the future, I will never write another book. And so on.
When you steal content, you’re not beating a greedy corporation. You’re not sticking it to “the man.” You’re sticking it to me, and millions of other writers, filmmakers, musicians, software developers, and other hard-working content creators.
Some claim that alternative monetization models will emerge to allow people to continue to create and prosper in spite of what seems like unstoppable piracy. But we have been stealing legally-protected content for 20 years now. If an easy monetization alternative were available, wouldn’t it have emerged by now? It hasn’t, and it won’t. And yes, I’ve read the book Free
OK, that is enough of the rant. This time it was SOPA. But the next time we “go lemming,” will it be something even more important? And at what cost? I was really disturbed by the herd mentality I witnessed. What about you?
Marketing, Journalism, and Truth as Competitive Advantage
Nov 27th
I had a very interesting question come across my desk from {grow} community member John Bethune:
In the minds of most people, journalism and marketing were once diametrically opposed. Has that changed in the social media era?
A great question! And, in fact, I think the social web has brought these disciplines together in a number of surprising ways.
The ideal of journalism is a quest for truth. Marketing is the quest for a product’s “truth.” By that I mean the best marketers are on a journey to know how their company’s goods and services exist in the hearts and minds of their customers. Then, their job is to express that consumer truth to the best of their ability. So in this way, the disciplines are unexpectedly similar, although the end product is quite different!
But the social web has created an important shift for both disciplines. What does it even mean to be a journalist today? Through blogging and technology like smartphone video cameras, journalism has been democratized. Anybody can report, anybody can publish. Jeff Jarvis of City University of New York recently defined a reporter today as simply somebody who can say, “I was there and you weren’t.”
The democratization of marketing
To a great extent, marketing has been democratized, too. Remember last year when Gap changed their logo and there was such an outcry? I felt empathy for the company because they are probably good marketers who followed a traditional protocol — work with graphic designers, test it, get feedback, and roll. That system has worked for decades and changing a logo is not an easy or flippant decision for a consumer product company to make. I’m sure they had done their homework … or at least they thought so.
But a few vocal people thought the new logo was stupid (perhaps people who were not even customers!). Through Twitter and Facebook, they created an anti-logo movement. and suddenly it became an embarrassing meme. I can imagine the Gap marketers waking up to this one morning and thinking “Wait … what?”
So something as important as an adjustment to your brand image may not even be in the hands of marketers any more. The Gap’s marketing strategy had essentially been crowd-sourced! Like journalism it seems, marketing has also been democratized.
Content as power
The production of content has also been an output of the marketing process, usually in the form of advertisements. But now content is at the very centerpiece of many strategies as companies fight to attract attention on the crowded social web. The journalism schools are full of new applicants. Why? Because content is big business now and the new media channels have an insatiable need for it. Companies need story-tellers as much as marketing graduates.
I have recently been working with the president of one of my B2B customers on a blog and a series of how-to videos to demonstrate their new robotic technologies. I’ll bet five years ago he never would have dreamed he would be in the publishing business!
So this idea of content and storytelling is another way that journalism and marketing have been brought together. For both fields, content that moves virally through the social web represents success and power.
Truth as a strategy
I think expectations of “truth” and transparency is another way the social web have brought journalism and marketing together. For a brand to have integrity and to be successful, it can’t be spinning the truth around any more. There are a million watch dogs out there now and any one of them can sniff out a fake.
A few weeks ago, I was working with some marketers for a hotel chain and we were discussing negative hotel reviews. “We don’t mind them,” they told me. “It makes us more real.”
Interesting. Truth as a marketing strategy.
My hunch is that a few years ago, that is not necessarily what their reaction would have been. In marketing, truth is the new black.
Maybe journalism and marketing are getting closer than we thought? What do you think?
Note: John Bethune’s full interview with me can be found here: “Content is Power: A Q&A with Mark W. Schaefer.”
5 ways corporate culture determines social media success
Nov 25th
A while back I was working with a new client in New York. In the lobby of their impressive building, there was a huge plaque with the corporate philosophies of the company’s founder — a man who had died 25 years ago. In every meeting I attended, his name, and his values, were mentioned at least once. As I learned about this company, it was apparent that this beloved man’s influence extended far beyond the grave into the daily activities of the company life today!
Corporate cultures are a complex amalgamation of executive personalities, external events, and history. Culture affects almost everything … from how employees are treated to how they compete in the marketplace. When I talk about social media strategies, inevitably the conversation turns to cultural fit.
Social media success and failure is not usually determined by resources, vision, or ability. It is inevitably a function of the personality of the organization. Here are five signs that your company culture may be getting in the way of your progress:
Corporate culture mis-match — You need to build your strategy around the realistic capabilities of your company culture. As grandma used to say, you have to deal with what is, not what you wish for. Is your company ready to become a publisher? Are they able to react? Are they truly open to the idea of customer dialogue? If the honest assessment is “no,” move on. That doesn’t mean you can’t be successful, you just have to adjust. Your culture is your culture. Your desire to have a blog isn’t going to change it. But your strategy can probably conform to your situation and still have an impact. You need to think about education, not execution.
Lack of executive sponsorship– On a related topic, if you’re counting on a “grassroots” effort to establish a company social media program that will “change the culture,” you’re setting yourself up for problems. To be successful in the long-term, you must have support from the top. Why? That’s who controls the purse strings and resources! That’s the person setting the strategy. You can’t make this happen alone. Here’s an article on selling your boss on social media that might be helpful.
Lack of executive engagement — To really build a social organization, you need your executives to be involved, as well as sponsoring the initiative. I’m not saying executives actually have to blog or tweet … but they have to be connected to the point that they intimately understand the vast implications and opportunities. Some executives will relish this change. Others will resist it. If your boss is in the second group, you need to lower your expectations and slow down.
Unwieldy politics. Every organization has politics. But when everybody is trying to own a piece of your blog or customer service strategy, watch out. If you find that Legal, HR and the janitorial staff demands to approve every tweet, it might be a sign that your company is just not built for social media. Remember, the beauty of the social web is an ability to be flexible and reactive. Most companies have been conditioned to broadcast. This is a very difficult change to make and it make take re-organization. One large brand I work with has re-invented its approach by creating a new department called Customer Connections. That’s the idea.
Unrealistic expectations — … and her brother “impatience.” It takes time to build a strategy and connect to customers, especially if cultural change has to occur first. It may take YEARS. If your boss is making your employment contingent on Facebook Likes or the number of blog comments you get next month, it might be time to consider another position!
One of my B2B customers is just getting into social media marketing after I have worked with them as their “rented Chief Marketing Officer” for more than two years! Why did it take so long? First, they had other low-hanging fruit to take care of (I’m a marketing consultant, not just a social media consultant!). And culturally, they just were not ready.
But a few months ago, the president approached me and said, “You know, I think we need to begin working on this social media stuff you talk about.” He was beginning to feel expectations from customers and suppliers and, along with a constant drip of education from me, there was a catalyst for change. The transformation is beginning, and we will be doing it the right way — with understanding, executive sponsorship, and cultural readiness … but it took me a long time to get them to that point.
Any of this sound familiar? What are your experiences with corporate culture and social media success and failure?
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