Student Blog Posts

Risky Business: The role of social media in business today

January 30, 2012 by SSM Student in Student Blog Posts with 3 Comments

In a world driven by technology, business and corporations alike are finding each and every way possible to stay connected with the consumer world. With the likes of Twitter and Facebook being adopted by business worldwide, companies are able to connect with the every day customer on a much more personal level than in years past. Receiving positive or negative feedback has never been easier, making the voices of consumers more prevalent to a business’s success day in and day out. Although the benefits of embracing social media has its many upsides, it can also be the death of a business’s image in a matter of minutes. Just ask Papa John’s pizza corporation and their recent social media blowup.

There will always be some inherent risks of engaging in social media even on a personal level. You are allowing your image and reputation to be at the mercy of any individual who might find your web page. This is what a major corporation faces on a much larger scale on a day to day basis. The risks of having a social media account are numerous and never ending. By engaging in social media, corporations are playing with fire and although the benefits are great from a PR standpoint they can also be someone’s worse nightmare. For instance, the perpetuation of business scandals and corporate greed that was unveiled thanks to social media juggernaut Wikileaks.

In early January of last year, Julian Assange, the founder of the Wikileaks organization, vowed to take down a major American bank, which was later revealed as Bank of America. He would do this through the use of social media and creating an internet firestorm. The ramifications of his actions, if completed, would not only have any effect on America’s economic system alone, but on a world wide scale. Assange’s main motor for relaying his information; social media.

The weight that social media carries within our society has reached unfathomable heights sense its creation back in the early 2000s. The power that goes hand in hand with embracing social media could possibly be the next best thing for small business perpetuating themselves to the next level of success. However, with great power comes great responsibility and if a business plans to embark down that road, a picture perfect social media policy is essential to keeping a scot free image.

Written By : Anthony Buckles

Tagged J412, Risks and Responsibilities, strategic social media

3 Comments

Ashley AronsonFeb 1, 2012 at 9:41 am

Social media has the ability to spread unintentional news quickly and it is easy for it to run out of control. I see it like this, if a company would like to be involved in social media, they need a designated person to run it. It is not an area that can be half-done and ignored. Online consumers would wonder if they are being ignored, or if the company is just poor in social media, either of which are bad. Therefore, if a company’s social media will be regularly controlled, I say, go for it!
Hannah LongoFeb 1, 2012 at 2:17 pm

Though a lot can go wrong when using social media, I think companies really need to get familiar and involved with it. Social media is inevitable, and if a company doesn’t have an online presence it is missing a huge audience. I definitely agree that companies shouldn’t start anything until they have someone who understands what needs to be done, and until they have a social media policy. It’s a risk getting involved with social media, but if managed correctly, companies can really benefit from it.
Kelsey KaufmanFeb 4, 2012 at 1:13 pm

The Papa John’s case is terrible, and responding 6 hours after the incident went viral is centuries in the social media world. But in this particular incident, I don’t know if responding any quicker would have calmed the storm by much. On the other hand, Domino’s social media disaster and resolution turned out to work on their favor. Their social media disaster wasn’t nearly as shameful as Papa John’s, but it was extremely embarrassing for the company. Domino’s was able to turn their YouTube incident into a branding tool to reshape the company image. I think every social media disaster is case-by-case, but I am impressed with how Domino’s has been able to reinvent itself despite the crisis.