Fear and loathing in Social Media – Tips to help your organization overcome the initial fear social media
I’m amazed that we’re still hearing about a lot of fear in organizations when we talk to them about social media. It’s not uncommon to hear from an internal communicator that they’re facing some resistance from management and can’t do everything they would want to. A lot of that fear comes from not seeing the value in the channel, fear of losing control of the corporate message and not knowing what to do with feedback once they get it.
So I’ve put together a list of tips that can help someone looking to make a case for social media within their organization. It acts as a good reminder that we don’t all have the same comfort level and since social media implies people being active and having input we should try to get everyone on the same page.
- Do some homework. Spend some time listening to what people are saying and gathering some information to show management examples of what’s happening this can make a compelling case.
- Training. Give everyone an overview of the tools tell them what they are, how they’re used and how they can help the organization reach their goals.
- Internal champions. Some people will already be aware of these tools and may already be using them. Use these people to help give others one on one training and guidance.
- Examples. Show relevant examples and tell them “what’s in it for them”. People need to see the value is something to adopt it.
- Take it slow. If this is new in your organization and you’re not sure how it will be accepted, start slowly then monitor and measure the impact of your efforts.
Feedback is welcome. This is a basic approach I’m sure many of you have some insight into this issue.
EAVB_TKCHCAUHCR
