Businesses are increasingly using social media to connect with consumers and enhance brand awareness. However, according to a 2009 global study sponsored by technology giant Cisco, few businesses have formal processes and policies in place to govern social media use, and this lack could lead to improper disclosure and misrepresentation.
The Cisco study, the first of a two-part series, is based on in-depth interviews with 105 participants from 97 organizations in 20 countries. It was carried out by IESE Business School in Spain (an operating partner of the Institute for Media and Entertainment), the E. Philip Saunders College of Business at the Rochester Institute of Technology in the U.S., and the Henley Business School in the United Kingdom.
According to the study, social networking tools like Facebook and Twitter are becoming a key part of business initiatives in areas like marketing and communications, human relations and customer service. However, only one in seven of the surveyed companies had a formal process to implement social media tools, and only one in 10 involved their IT departments in their social media strategies. What’s more, respondents admitted that they find it difficult to create and adopt policies that strike the right balance between the personal nature of social networking, and proper corporate oversight.
As companies integrate social media in their operations, the study suggests that the following issues be addressed: When, how and what initiatives are to be launched (and not launched); how the enabling technologies should be managed; and how employee use of these technologies should be managed.
For study highlights and additional information, you can read the full Cisco news release here.
