developing a social media communications strategy - melcrum social media conference

Abi Signorelli LtdMelcrum’s Social Media Conference


DEVELOPING A SOCIAL MEDIA COMMUNICATIONS STRATEGYAbi Signorelli



A BIT ABOUT ME

Freelance Communications Consultant with over 15 years in senior communication roles

Key specialties…Social media to engage and involve employeesCommunication consultancy and strategyCommunication coaching and trainingCopywriting and message creationEvent management and consultancy

Keeping communication simpleGetting the right message, to the right people, at the right time and in the right way

www.abisignorelli.com



WHAT WE’LL COVER TODAY

• The social media phenomenon

• Social media in the workplace

• Setting your approach

• Making the case

• Getting started



Welcome to the RevolutionWelcome to the Revolution



THE GENERATION FACTOR



THE IMPORTANCE OF GEN Y



ACCORDING TO MASHABLE, WOMEN RULE THE SOCIAL WEB!

Data & images sourced from www.mashable.com



FACEBOOK USERS ARE GETTING OLDER

Largest age group

35-5418-24 only

3rd

largest group

Largest age group

35-5418-24 only

3rd

largest group

Users over 55 up by 513% in 2009

Data & images sourced from www.mashable.com



IT’S A MASSIVELY COMPETITIVE ENVIRONMENT



ROLE OF THE COMMUNICATOR IS CHANGING



TECHNOLOGY IS MOVING- FAST!

"No matter how sophisticated technology gets, we're reminded daily that it's about people…”

Biz Stone, Twitter co-founder and director of communications



“The spread of multimedia communications and its rich ‘menu of options’ might make us think it sufficient simply to be present on the Web, or to see it only as a space to be filled. Yet priests can rightly be expected to be present in the world of digital communications as faithful witnesses to the Gospel, exercising their proper role as leaders of communities which increasingly express themselves with the different ‘voices’ provided by the digital marketplace. Priests are thus challenged to proclaim the Gospel by employing the latest generation of audiovisual resources (images, videos, animated features, blogs, websites) which, alongside traditional means, can open up broad new vistas for dialogue, evangelization and catechesis.” Pope Benedict XVI

“exercising their proper role as leaders of communities which increasingly express themselves with the different ‘voices’ provided by the digital marketplace.”

POPE’S MESSAGE TO PRIESTS: WE MUST BLOG



THE SUBO PHENOMENON

Her first solo album became the most pre-ordered release in the history of Amazon !



“THERE’S A PLANE IN THE HUDSON”

News broke on Twitter 12 minutes before any major news corp



“I’M STUCK IN A LIFT”Read by over 100,000 people and often said to be a major milestone in Twitter uptake



SOCIAL MEDIA IN THE WORKPLACE



ASDA’S GREEN ROOM

“Trust and transparency are key to earning real customer loyalty…

…My ambition for Asda is to actively involve customers in every aspect of the business, to lift the lid on how we do things, and enable our customers to help make decisions that have an impact on what we sell and how we sell it.” Andy Bond, Asda CEO



MCDONALD’S STATIONM“how can we connect all of you with one another”

"It provides us the opportunity to get information to the people who are interacting with our customers day to day. And [it] provides us with a channel back to hear what's on the minds of our crew people, what they're excited about and what questions they have. We can use that information to better handle our future communications.”

“Internal blogging is a great way for employees to feel connected, not just to one another, but also to top management and ultimately the brand itself. It is a positive way for a company to build creditability among its employees by acknowledging and addresses what is happening at any given moment within the corporate community.” Ben Stringfellow, senior director of U.S. communications at McDonald's.

“stationM is…giving you a voice…connecting crew…creating a community…100% pure fun”



“The face of our workforce is dramatically changing. We have the four generations here, and they’re very different in how they use technology to connect in their everyday environment.

The younger generation is expecting that social media tools are available to them. They don’t know any other world; they are totally wired in multiple fashions at the same time.

They expect to find this in the work environment, and if we don’t provide that for them here, they very quickly disengage and leave for other companies that are providing that robust connection.” Laurie Buczek, Intel’s social computing manager

INTEL“the younger generation is expecting that social media tools are available”



MY DOW NETWORK

“The closed, online community allows users to expand their professional networks, renew old friendships, stay connected with the latest Dow information, and explore new job opportunities.

It also keeps Dow connected to a larger talent pool, fuels collaboration and innovation, and facilitates a diverse and inclusive work environment.” Dow press release, February 2008



BT’S MY PAGES

BT wanted every employee to have a place of their own on the intranet, where they could…

•Create web pages and allow others to edit them (wikis)•Share photos and files•Create as many blogs as they wished•Connect themselves with other people in their organisation

“The fact that individuals could manage all this functionality through a single ‘portal’ was incredibly powerful and sent adoption rates through the roof.” Richard Dennison, Senior Manager Social Media, BT

“their killer application”



SETTING YOUR APPROACH



IT’S AN EVOLUTION



AND A BEHAVIOURAL SHIFT



ALIGNMENT IS KEY



MAKING THE CASE



FOOD FOR THOUGHT

• Everyone’s different• Find & speak to

stakeholders early• Work out what

makes them tick

• Identify blockers – and ways to overcome those

• Find allies and friends in high places

• Establish guidelines



IBM



GETTING STARTED



SOME TOOLS TO CONSIDER

• Comments• Blogging• Wikis• Social networks• Discussion forums

• Microblogs• Podcasts• Video• RSS, bookmarks etc• And more…



SOME TIPS TO CONSIDER

• Share the vision and begin the conversation

• Be dogged and repeat, repeat, repeat

• Make it fun and be social• Be patient – it can be

messy• Be tenacious

• There’s no one size fits all• Clarify objectives and

align• Design strategies• Implement the plan• Measure impact• Leverage learning



EUAN’S 10 TOP TIPS1. Social media isn’t for everyone2. Companies don’t do it, people do3. If you come at it from a command and control, risk averse

mentality then it will die very quickly4. These conversations are happening anyway5. IT is the single biggest block to getting social media going6. Corporate systems are like Milton Keynes7. Allow everyone to talk8. The worst thing you can do is ban sites like Facebook9. Create the debate10. Experiment

“You have to trust the users to make the best use of it. Sometimes it’s a bit like letting children fall so that they

realise themselves that it hurts.”Euan Semple, our keynote speaker



THANK YOU

Abi SignorelliCommunications specialist

Tel: 07590 497263Email: [email protected]: www.abisignorelli.comBlog: abi-signorelli.blogspot.comTwitter: @abisignorelli

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