Comments on: Social media needs to come with new management thinking

By: David Raab

David Raab — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 13:22:54 +0000

Francois, the more systematic approach of company B may add value for the customer if the ‘messy’ process of company C results in some customer queries going unanswered, which may well happen. (In fact, it will probably be the most difficult ones that volunteers choose to ignore.) But, at the risk of being unfashionably corporate, the real goal is to add value for the company. The central, strategic approach of company B is more likely to result in customer treatments that take company goals into account.

By: Barthox

Barthox — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 09:54:19 +0000

Hi,

neat examples!

Eventhough I’m part of the choir, and tend to agree with you, I wanted to react to “What’s wrong if three people try to help you when you have a problem?”

What is wrong is if the three people give you 2 or 3 conflicting answers … sure one of the three probably has helped the customer, but the image of the company is somewhat tarnished, don’t you think?

By: francois

francois — Fri, 03 Apr 2009 23:46:08 +0000

@David – thanks for taking the time to comment on my post. I can see how many would like the approach of company B better, but I am not sure that trying to go from C to B adds any value for the customer. And if it doesn’t, is it worth trying?

@Matthew – thanks for commenting on my post. I agree with you…you cannot help the customer more than by letting your people help them.

By: David Raab

David Raab — Fri, 03 Apr 2009 14:11:59 +0000

I know you feel Company C has the best approach. But I’d vote for Company B as having a better chance of addressing all important issues in a strategic fashion. “Embrace social messiness” and “harness the power of emergence” sound like the first steps in addressing social media, but there should be something beyond that to actually guide the customer conversations in helpful directions.

By: Matthew Quint

Matthew Quint — Thu, 02 Apr 2009 22:42:59 +0000

Nice comparison, Francois.

It seems clear that “strategy C” should be the most honest fit. If a company can implement this, it is also a good indicator, I suspect, that they have created an environment where employees already “live the brand.”