- [Instructor] There's no way to fully control
the public's opinion of your organization,
but with the support of social media,
you can direct the conversation like never before.
PR professionals have long partnered
with the media to craft the image
of their company, but social media now allows
for many more voices to be heard.
In a sense, a company now has more control
of how they're perceived as they can chime in
and share their perspective whenever they please.
In other ways, they have far less control
as everyone has their own platform to share their opinion
of the company, and potentially shift the conversation.
Using social media strategically allows you
to identify how consumers feel about your organization,
add your opinion to the discussion,
and respond when necessary.
The ability to take a step back and listen
to what customers are saying is a major advantage
of embracing social media,
By reviewing these conversations, you'll be able
to get a stronger sense of how customers feel
about your company, and if their impressions
about the business need to be changed or not.
For instance, if a breakfast bar company wants
to be known as the healthiest breakfast option
on the market, it'd be useful to review social media
to see what people say about the brand.
These insights will give you a sense of the PR work
that needs to be done to either change
or reinforce their impression.
Investing in social media also provides an opportunity
to control the narrative about your organization
by regularly sharing content on topics
of importance to the brand,
like how Nike shares articles written by employees
on LinkedIn about their experiences working
at the company as well as highlights
of the organization's philanthropic work.
Instead of allowing others who explain
what it's like to be a Nike employee
or identify what the company's values are,
the organization is communicating this information directly.
And last but certainly not least,
social media gives companies the ability to respond
to what's being said about them,
whether it's a very serious exchange or something minor.
For instance, responding on social media
can help prevent a company crisis from getting much worse,
preventing a further loss in revenue,
and preserving the brand's reputation,
like how Starbucks recently responded to a racist incident
at one of their store locations.
After reviewing what happened,
the company quickly released a written apology
on social media about the incident as the first part
in the process of addressing the issue head-on.
If they would've remained silent
or not admitted the company's wrongdoing,
then it would've gotten much worse.
In other cases, a response on social media could be
as simple as thanking a customer for their feedback
or cracking a joke when appropriate.
Regardless of the seriousness of the response,
each message has a direct impact
on how the organization is perceived
by the public in real time.
When your organization listens, joins the conversation,
and responds to what's being said on social media,
it better positions the brand for directing its narrative
in the right direction.