Social Media and Online Marketing = music to our ears. Especially with our background based in Online Communities, I’m excited to focus the next two weeks on social networking sites and media strategies associated with it.
Having Matt Singley speak solo to us in class was a great experience. His prestige and expertise in this industry is something that I’m extremely interested in as a possible career in the future. And as well all know, digital is the future. Matt even said that social media marketing agencies are going to increase as 2010 zooms by.
One of the most interesting topics we discussed in class was the controversial issue of the Audi brand that referenced the Green Police from Nazi Germany. When an angry customer posted a negative blog post about how Audi should be ashamed of themselves, Matt had to fight the fire as the Senior Director of Strategy. But when we were first asked, “What would we do?” I thought of my book presentation What Would Google Do? written by Jeff Jarvis.
According to Jarvis, companies must remedy mistakes fast and give control to the consumer. He would have publicly acknowledged this issue so no secrets are kept from the customers. And he would do so fast. That way, people can see that they acknowledged the issue and are paying attention to their customers individually. Sweeping an issue under the rug is just not smart.
Coincidentally (or not), that’s exactly what Matt did at M80. They publicly addressed the blog post only once and proceeded to settle the issue privately so that the problem does not escalate. By satisfying the original complaint and controlling further negative press from the public, the brand image can be salvaged.
So for all those companies wanting to expand their brand image or have found themselves in quicksand from a simple PR mistake, have no fear, M80 is here.
I'm glad you felt the time was useful in class...I did too! I had a blast, it was great talking with you and the others. Talking about the Audi case was great, and I really liked hearing how others thought to approach it. One thing to note: I was a cog in the wheel for all of that, one of my co-workers Kelly led the charge, and she and her team worked on it around the clock. They did an amazing job handling everything! I enjoyed have convos with them about possible approaches and likely outcomes, but in the end she and the others executed things so well! So hats of to her and the others.
ReplyDeleteI hope I get a chance to speak with your class again sometime, it was excellent! Thanks for having me.