Social Media for Executives

You wouldn’t believe who is on Twitter these days.  According to an article in today’s Economist, members of the US Congress are now twittering happily to each other and their constituents.

Everybody and his neighbour is blogging and one hears complaints about too many professional social networking websites like LinkedIn.  Even the most skeptical naysayers agree, social media are now ubiquitous and an integral part of business communication channels.  Frankly, I’m glad we’re past the acceptance stage when evangelists hyped social media almost as much as they did the Internet in the late 90s.

I recently asked a social media-savvy corporate lawyer, “Would you let your CEO write his own blog?”  “About as much as we would let him write his own speeches and press releases,” she answered.   You may argue that the need for disclosure would make CEOs’ blogs less “personal,” but the same argument may apply to their speeches.  Most CEOs spend time with their speechwriters to make sure that they actually talk their walk.

What is even more critical for businesses is social media monitoring.  Nothing can organize your customers and adversaries as effectively and quickly as social media.  Company boards should be especially advised of any changes in the online chatter because they have been increasingly targeted for perceived transgressions.

By the way, the Economist article also notes that Republicans twitter more than Democrats.  I called my friend in California to get her take: “Twitter can only take 140 characters.  When they expand it to two pages, dems will take over.” Right.