What do senior management executives at CPG companies and retailers think about corporate social media strategies?
Top executives were probed on this topic, along with many others, as part of the research for a just-released 2010 Grocery Manufacturers Association/PricewaterhouseCoopers financial performance report -- and the insights gleaned are more specific and practical than marketers might imagine.
The executives are clearly giving serious thought to social media and its implications. Many expressed keen awareness of the pressing need for a well-honed social media strategy that harnesses the positive power of social media, effectively addresses/turns around potential negatives, and includes ROI measurement.
"If you're going to tell your [brand] story in a world of blogs and streaming video, you better be able to communicate digitally," summed up Hershey CFO Bert Alfonso.
advertisement
advertisement
The many companies working on social media strategies, including Hershey, Sunny Delight and Best Buy, reflect management's understanding that "sitting on the sidelines too long while developing plans could pose a far larger risk than the occasional messaging fumble" and that social media are evolving at breakneck speed, according to the report.
"It's going to be radically different five years from now than it is today, which is radically different from what it was five years ago," observed Steven M. Neil, EVP, chief financial and administrative officer of Diamond Foods.
Some of the experiences/insights shared about finding the right social media approach and right level of investment:
"Social media is a conversation," added Doug Chavez, senior manager of digital marketing at Del Monte Foods. "We listened for a while, and then when there was an opportunity for us to add value to that conversation, we have done that -- and we've been rewarded for that."
More companies are hiring directors of digital media. For instance, McDonald's decided that it was time to have a person dedicated to these media 100% of the time, "rather than someone who's got a day job on top of a day job," said director of external communications/public relations Heather Oldani.
Del Monte measures ROI by focusing on metrics such as the engagement quality/ "richness" of posted comments and numbers of people clicking from its Facebook page to a brand's Web site, rather than raw fan counts, noted Chavez.
Also realize that most people just want to be heard. A simple apology and online coupon in response to a complaint frequently turns a poster's or tweeter's tone around completely, Chavez noted.
Good article, cheers!
It's great to read that top execs are taking social media seriously!
Thanks so much for this great article. I am currently doing social media and PR for healthandsafetysource.com and mercardi.com and this helps tremendously in my quest for better customer service.
Great Post! Social media is gaining so much momentum that so it’s becoming a if you can’t beat ‘em join ‘em scenario. Not to mention there are more benefits from using social networking sites showing every day. Employees are going to find a way around the policy and CIOs or IT departments should try to find a happy medium where some social media apps will be blocked and some left accessible. Palo Alto Networks created a new software that any IT department would be interested in. Here’s a whitepaper they created: http://bit.ly/d2NZRp