In the last couple of years, Social Media has evolved from staying in touch with friends to being the most widely used medium to manifest news, information and resources. The hype transformed business communication into a new avenue to extend their reach to the public and build awareness about their brand. Thus creating and redefining the structure within the corporate entities to conform to social media and adopt it within the marketing, PR and/or communications departments. Not sure that all businesses have determined where social media should exist within the corporate walls, but they do know that it must take shape to remain competitive in today’s market.
Here’s a list of a few of the corporate heavy hitters using Twitter:
@BoeingCorporate provides followers with status updates of their plant operations, including assembly production, industry news and executive conference coverage.
@Ford has over 31K followers and has a number of employees involved in the twitter verse to bring the organization’s news to the people. Ford is not only ingrained in Twitter but also a number of the top social media channels used today (i.e. Facebook and Twitter).
@McDonalds is lovin it on Twitter! With exhibiting a presence in Twitter, McDonald’s not only tweets out what it serves but also uses the channel to interact with its customers. What’s not to love about it! Oh and for the coffee lovers you can get in on the McCafe love with @McCafeYourDay.
@Target where else can you expect more! Target jumped into the twitterverse and amassed over 20K followers with just over 400 tweets. Peeps want to know where the deals are so by following Target, they can get the low down on daily deals without have to hunt for them!
The above is a mini list of the corporate heavy hitters on Twitter who have aligned themselves with social media. For the most part if you can find them on Twitter, you are more than likely to also to channel up with them on YouTube, “I Like” them on Facebook and view their latest activity on LinkedIn.
Giving you a sample of who to find in social media doesn’t mean that it is only for the heavy hitters. The platforms are built to be used by everyone across the globe, big or small and anything in between. Businesses without a PR or Communications department can still dive into the social media arena and learn the ropes just like the corporate giants. It’s not the size of the company that determines the success in social media, it’s the values and targeted strategy that returns greater results. If an organization does not exhibit transparency when interacting/engaging with people or portraying a confident mission, they will not amass a social media presence like those who understand humanity.
To wrap it up, there are no concrete rules in social media other than respect. The platforms provide opportunities for people and businesses to grow, build and communicate across the globe. And the good news, with every new tool there are resources! For a list of social media networks and resources, go to Social-Media-Help, in particular for the ladies in business browse through DownTown Women’s Club for an array of connections and networks to learn from. Then there’s social media training to fit any budget and because not one size fits all there are options to attend on your own or in a group – check out Giovanni Gallucci’s course offerings. If you are not able to find what you are looking for from the above options, then you may be in need of a social media champion to form a foundation to get things off the ground and immersed into the social media frenzy!
Stay tuned for the next post with tips to help extend your reach and understand the need to adopt a social media policy.
Enterprise Social Media Help 