Laura M. Sutherland @AllthingsIC @commschat great discussion – interesting views from some! #commschat
Transcript of #CommsChat on corporate social media strategy
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- #CommsChat on internal comms during the Covid-19 crisis
- #CommsChat on employees as the gatekeepers to brand reputation
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Last week, the @Pontifex account deleted all of the pope’s existing tweets, stating that it reflects the fact that the papacy is currently vacant.
On #CommsChat, we explored the impact of leadership on corporate social media strategy and what role the CEO should take in shaping that strategy.
Some of our choice tweets:
@ruthseeley If a CEO isn’t required to write all his/her own speeches, just deliver them, why do they have to write all their own tweets?
And the full hour:
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@MontseCano I think some senior managers take themselves too seriously and aren’t willing to let guard down in public platform#commschat -
RT
@Communicatemag: take a look at our Facebook pg, &help us decide which cover to go for https://www.facebook.com/CommunicateMagazine … ->crowdsourcing#commschat -
@steve_murg@ncardwell Do you think it could be for lack of time, experience, both?#commschat -
@steve_murg No, I guess Bieber just doesn’t fit!#commschat. -
@AndrewGirdwood@CommsChat and Moneysupermarket#commschat -
Incidentally CommsChatters, take a look at our Facebook pg, &help us decide which front cover to go withhttps://www.facebook.com/CommunicateMagazine …
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Thanks so much for the thought-provoking tweets, tips, etc. Really enjoyable this one.
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@MontseCano@ncardwell Completely, the ability to interact is probably the biggest weakness I see from senior leaders on SM#commschat -
+1 RT
@AndrewGirdwood: How can you be an effective, modern, forward looking CEO if you can’t even handle tweeting?#commschat -
RT
@AllthingsIC:@ncardwell@montsecano there are studies/articles around e.g. http://goo.gl/Uqdoz#commschat -
@steve_murg Content and ability to interact, I’d say.@ncardwell#commschat -
Night all, thanks
@commschat and hello to newbies – do come back again#commschat -
Really enjoyable
#commschat – got ideas, reading material and a few things to ponder! Thanks everyone.#commschat -
@MontseCano Plus, they might not be the right person to be CEO!#commschat -
@MontseCano Depends on the content they’re tweeting. If it’s all Beiber and 1D then you know why they have the high numbers#commschat -
Great
#commschat tonight – some very interesting points and opinions -
@AllthingsIC@ncardwell Thank you for that. I’ll take a look.#commschat -
Thanks
@CommsChat et all. Interesting debate, good topics.#commschat -
@CommsChat Thanks so much to you for hosting & to all the smart & thought-provoking tweeps who participated.#commschat -
@steve_murg Hmm, that might be true. Something like followers on LinkedIn.#commschat -
Good
#commschat tonight, always love a good debate! -
I’m off now, but if yrenjoying yourself feel free to carry on. As always, the transcript will be up on CommsChat site tomorrow.
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@MontseCano@steve_murg Perhaps comes back to quality/level profile and image developed through SM, rather than just raw numbers?#commschat -
@samontheweb Demonstrates relevance and competence. My criteria, of course.#commschat -
There we have it, the big hand is at the top of the hour, which means we’re through fr tonight. A big thanks to all who took part
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@CommsChat Which says…#commschat -
RT
@ncardwell I think both can tweet but different styles needed. Broadly speaking, B2C about engagement, B2B about positioning.#commschat -
@MontseCano If we’re talking in the hundreds of thousands and you’re a CEO then you are doing something right.#commschat -
Will be interesting to see how many brands survive without social media. Can traditional still cut it?
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@ncardwell@montsecano there are studies/articles around e.g.http://www.mediabistro.com/alltwitter/social-ceo-stats_b34975 …#commschat -
@AndrewGirdwood depends why you want to find them there and what they’re doing with LinkedIn. Needs to be purpose#commschat -
@CommsChat Savvy CEOs should create fake social media accounts to test & challenge their own social channels & customer service!#commschat -
@steve_murg@ncardwell Still, that’d be silly. It’s not the quantity, it’s the quality?#commschat -
MT
@JeremySinger1 CEOs should have their own identity on Twitter, yet represent core values & corporate style of their company.#commschat -
@steve_murg@ncardwell Agreed. I doubt there will be many more Tony Hayward-style CEOs.#commschat -
@ruthseeley I think both can tweet but different styles needed. Broadly speaking, B2C about engagement, B2B about positioning.#commschat -
…No hard sell – just take a look at the reviews and ratings on Newsstand or the App Store.http://communicatemagazine.co.uk/onmyipad
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@ncardwell We might find some soon if not now. Might do a little search. Guys, any case studies available?#commschat -
@egwbeard What better than a bio that shows the ability to connect with people. Go Linkedin.#commschat -
Wishing all my tweets had verbs.
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@ncardwell Think there will be a strong case. If you have huge followers on twitter you’ll be more attractive prospect than none#commschat -
@jeremysinger1 true! My point was re: choosing what’s right for their style 🙂#commschat -
@CommsChat CEO’s should tweet about industry issues too to reinforce rep as strong, knowledgeable, finger-on-the-pulse leader.#commschat -
With 5 minutes to go – a quick word from Communicate magazine, tonight’s sponsors, on their iPad edition….
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@CommsChat depends how 45 mins is used. could be really valuable. You wouldn’t ask that about 45 mins spent on the shop floor#commschat -
@steve_murg Will be interesting to see if next generation of CEOs move into roles at least partly based on their SM profiles….#commschat -
RT
@ruthseeley: Subset of Q5: is there a difference between a B2B CEO shld tweet vs a B2C CEO? Silly to have duelling corp. accts#commschat -
@steve_murg I look forward to reading the transcript, sounds juicy!#commschat -
@AllthingsIC Agreed! However CEO’s should be able to devise 140 character tweets if they can sign off on million pound budgets!#CommsChat -
@CommsChat I’d expect CEO’s of the future to be SM experts so will have a bigger interest and more influence.#commschat -
@samontheweb I would – most of the time, depending on the company/industry.#commschat -
Subset of Q5: is there a difference between a B2B CEO should tweet vs a B2C CEO? Would be silly to have duelling corp. accts.
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@AllthingsIC Evening, you missed all the pope chat. We didn’t get started on any religious debates thankfully#commschat -
#commschat right platform, right message for right audience – 3 in the recipe – conversation works both ways -
Other sectors e.g. finance require more discrete image, with customers seeking reassurance rather than affinity.
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@CommsChat For the next few years they need to be included, onboard + supportive. Not necessarily part of it, if not appropriate#commschat -
@AllthingsIC They could be. I’d still ask my question, though. There’s nothing to Twitter that a CEO who gets Facebook can’t do#commschat -
Erm – absence. See – that’s a tweet I should delete to correct a typo. But I won’t.
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#commschat also that many brands use twitter as part if their customer service offering -
@binxyLJG maybe depending on their style but also allows staff access to them which can be good for engagement#commschat -
How a CEO tweets can be linked to sector. Some e.g. gambling, mean CEO can tweet same experiences as customers, build affinity.
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@CommsChat Ha – I hadn’t even noticed absent of guest. 😉 And I promised to be quiet and mostly observe this time around – oops.#commschat -
@CommsChat I wondered where he was…poor show! Thank god we’re such a chatty bunch!#commschat -
Topic 5 What role should CEOs take in their company’s social media strategy in the future?
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@andrewgirdwood They could be dire at Twitter but awesome at Facebook – key is to choose what suits their natural comm style#commschat -
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@steve_murg yes. If the cheekiness is a conceit to get attention for a dry subject (case I am thinking of is public sector)#commschat -
But we are into the last ten minutes. so let’s go for our final topic.
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@AndrewGirdwood I ask myself that Q all the time as it relates to politicians – mayors are the CEOs of their cities.#commschat -
@laurafromaura@CommsChat That’s what I meant.#commschat -
@Helenw7@commschat definitely – learning curve,helps focus on the real issues, sometimes hidden or too scared to be told to CEO#commschat -
Our guest hasnt turned up, but I’m loving it tonight – you folks are more than making up for it. You’re all such great value.
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Great topic today over
@CommsChat – How much of a role should top-level leadership play in social media?#commschat -
A4) Not one size fits all approach as depends on CEO + nature of the org. Worst idea is to shoehorn them. Channel choice is key
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@MontseCano@commschat brands need to be humanised for people to engage with them#commschat -
RT
@AndrewGirdwood: How can you be an effective, modern, forward looking CEO if you cant even handle tweeting?#commschat -
@JeremySinger1 there are plenty of examples of corporate accounts doing that too#commschat -
How can you be an effective, modern, forward looking CEO if you can’t even handle tweeting?
#commschat -
(I’m thinking of cos like
@Vodafone (?) that have 24-hour, ID’d service accounts and are doing a great job at that aspect of SM.)#commschat -
A4) Would encourage personal account for CEO (in case they leave). Should be authentic, reflect their style + orgs values
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@laurafromaura@CommsChat I think that show is a great example of the gap often found between CEOs and front line staff#commschat -
@CommsChat they should do what works best for them/org. There’s merit in both, social media doesn’t conform to set rules#commschat -
Let’s say CEO has account but only does some tweets. Corp tweeters can use acct to direct service inquiries to service acct.
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@laurafromaura@CommsChat Plus there is the ‘bonding’ nature.#commschat -
@wobable If the brand is ‘cheeky’ and the CEO isn’t comfortable with that is he the right CEO?#commschat -
RT
@binxyLJG: Interested to see CEO tweet from personal a/c from two competitive brands (following role change) –> any examples#commschat -
We’re concentrating on CEOs sending first tweet, how active are they expected tobe in replying?Thinking in terms of time/resource
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@CommsChat@wobable I’d be more concerned of turrets….#commschat -
@CommsChat so think that the messages come from the top down, being transparent and open to engagement#commschat -
@mattlawrence@jeremySinger1@commschat Is that why Michael O’Leary isn’t on twitter?#commschat -
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@CommsChat e.g if brand is “cheeky”, audience expect certain way of talking to boss which boss may not be comfortable with. 2/2#commschat -
@CommsChat they should be encouraged to take part – it’s like ‘undercover boss’ – they learn from the experience#commschat -
Interested to see a CEO tweet from a personal a/c from two competitive brands (following role change) and how conflicted it was
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@ncardwell I believe it’s more about profile, image where that value would lie.#commschat -
RT
@JeremySinger1: They should have their own identity on Twitter, yet represent core values & corporate style of their company.#commschat -
@wobable I think I’d start getting quite worried if my CEO started showing signs of schizophrenia. Or even mild sock puppetry!#commschat -
I’m now in
#commschat. Come and join in using the hashtag for the last 20 mins. Full info: http://www.commschat.com#commschat -
@JeremySinger1@CommsChat agree, personal account shld mirror message of corporate.Humanizes cei, but shldn’t create controversy.#commschat -
RT
@jeremysinger1: CEO should have their own identity on Twitter, yet represent the core values & corporate style company.#commschat -
@binxyLJG@SmileArcade Paid to write 140 characters? What would the pay per word be for that!#commschat -
@CommsChat both for full transparency but the 2 must align.#commschat -
RT
@josymcox: CEOs should tweet in support of org initiatives/strategy in their own words. Quality not quantity#commschat -
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@CommsChat If there are accounts for both CEO and brand, there is also an interesting dynamic when they talk to each other. 1/2#commschat -
Evening all, will read transcript tomorrow but here for the final 20 minutes. Great topic from what I can see so far…
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CEOs should tweet in support of org initiatives/strategy in their own words. Quality not quantity
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@MontseCano I know, I think I posed a question I don’t have an answer to. One that fascinates/worries me in equal measure!#commschat -
@CommsChat They should have their own identity on Twitter, yet represent the core values & corporate style of their company.#commschat -
Another saying to a senior journalist, ‘So who watches this show anyway, housewives?’ You can’t hit CEOs, you can only cringe.
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@ruthseeley Hate it when senior leaders show apathy and lack of interest, you immediately lose other people as they don’t believe#commschat -
@CommsChat I take it from all the references to ‘they’ it’s assumed CEOs don’t pay attention to#commschat? -
@ruthseeley Yep, totally agree.#commschat -
@CommsChat shld do it from both. Company Acct is for company news, personal for own views but w some supervision from comms#commschat -
@ncardwell God SEO rankings is just a tiny bit of the whole thing…#commschat -
I remember new CEO saying sarcastically after end of last-minute telecon, ‘Thanks to all 5 of you who bothered to dial in.’ Eek!
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@ruthseeley If that’s the case, then just don’t have them on Twitter. Don’t have to be, use a senior leader who is more natural#commschat -
@ruthseeley@MontseCano I guess youcould argue that in future it’ll be required skill of CEOs-otherwise they’re not right for job#commschat -
@SmileArcade@steve_murg People employ speech writers. Tweet writers just seems wrong#commschat -
@agencyseven Sometimes it’s worth sticking up for minority opinions 🙂#commschat -
@SmileArcade Twitter is too short and immediate to do that#commschat -
@ruthseeley@MontseCano most companies that have CEOs/Execs tweet do so with comms ppl in the room#IMO#commschat -
@SmileArcade Because if I write a speech for the CEO, s/he sees it makes suggestions and amends to their style.#commschat -
Topic 4 Should CEOs tweet from their companies accounts? From their own? Have both? etc
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We’ve semi-covered Topic 4 already. But let’s put it out there anyway.
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@steve_murg I’d prefer to work w/a CEO who gets comms too, but one isn
Steven Murgatroyd 
CommsChat 
Montse Cano 
Abigail Harrison 
Andrew / Communicate 
Ian Daniels 
Rachel Miller 
Neil Cardwell 
Helen Deverell 
laurajayne 
ruthseeley 
Andrew Girdwood 
Sam Thomas 
Jeremy Singer 
Mark Woodrow 
Shula 
Andrew Fielding 
b2ecomm 
mattlawrence 
Aimee Carmichael 
Int. Comms. Trends 
Jo Samuel 
Amanda Boyle 
