Social Media Is Gaining Ground, Slowly

U.S. corporations are getting with the social media program, but the pace of change is about as slow as dial-up.

According to Fortune magazine’s 2011 Global Social Media Check-up, 79% of the 10 largest companies are using at least one of the leading media platforms (Facebook, Twitter, YouTube) or a corporate blog. There’s also a growing trend toward more interactivity with consumers. Last year, Fortune found that most companies were using online channels mostly for one-way communications: to get their brands and messaging out into the mainstream. Now companies are answering posts on Facebook pages and retweeting as a matter of course.

This capability is ideal for handling consumer issues (product and service complaints, for example), but it’s especially important to have a social media skill set already in place when a crisis hits. Only one-third of companies have a digital media crisis communications plan, even though 81% of business leaders believe that managing new media is key for reputation management during a crisis, according to the 2011 Crisis Preparedness Study.

It's essential for companies to develop a social media crisis plan that includes guidelines for all employees as well as training for them. In any crisis, employees can be strong advocates and can help calm the waters in online exchanges.

–Chris Meyer-Oertel