Corporate Social Media Evangelists

Social media is reaching a tipping point inside corporate America. That is as much the product of the wider adoption by individuals who, whether you're in B2B or B2C, end up being your customers or prospective customers, as it is of the tireless work of a new breed of conversationalists. Marshall Kirkpatrick at ReadWriteWeb called them the New Robert Scobles.

It is easy to recognize among the the names listed, those who are doing their work very publicly. I am sure you recognize the names of Jeremiah Owyang from Forrester and Sam Lawrence of Jive Software. Owyang manages to be everywhere and Lawrence manages to be provocative and forceful. I was quite pleased to discover the names of less known evangelists who by all descriptions have earned the right to be called corporate social media evangelists.

New Voices

Daniela Barbosa

Meet Daniela Barbosa - how could I not like someone with an Italian name? You know me too well to think that is the only reason why I would call her out. Having worked for many years in the financial services industry, I am intimately familiar with the conservative nature of that environment. Daniela works at at Synaptica, a division of Dow Jones Client Solutions, as Business Development Manager.

What does Synaptica do? We are all drawing in information and we're all stretched to the max with no time to figure out how that information and our collective knowledge can help us solve problems for our customers - that is especially true inside organizations. Synaptica (perhaps from synapses?) helps you manage all that so it makes sense and can be used intelligently. It looks like Daniela is working with her colleagues from marketing and product to make what the company does more transparent through social media and thus easier to understand.

Information delivery is important. I often say that inside organizations we do not have a communication problem, we have an information problem. Nice to meet you, Daniela.

Linda Skrocki

At Sun Microsystems, Linda Skrocki manages the community venues, that means blogs, forums, media and RSS. External organizations with whom they've shared their experiences include the United Nations (in preparation for their Youth Summit), the DoD, and other tech companies.  I am impressed by Sun because they are a large organization and I suspect that they face many of the issues and challenges of cultural scalability that large companies face.

A recent post on her blog about when to use a wiki caught my attention. She writes:

The thing I love about the online community space is you never really know how people are going to leverage the tools placed in front of them -- especially when the tool is as cross-functional as a wiki. Sure, there are the easy to predict use cases that come to fruition and the easy to predict grey use cases, but observing how contributers approach the grey areas, in addition to the unpredictable super clever user cases, is what interests me.

It was through this post that I discovered some very good advice by Stewart Mader on when using a wiki is appropriate. Many organizations are starting to use wikis as collaborative tools for employees. As a connector, I like the function of cross-pollinating ideas from Web sites and other tools with a collaboration layer. I'll be learning more from Linda, I'm sure.

Which Brings me to Blog Council

The announcement was received by many with mixed reviews. Duncan Reily at TechCrunch asked if it was a bad or inspired idea. Ryan Paul at ArsTechnica said that the new corporate Blog Council misses the point of blogging. Jeff Jarvis at BuzzMachine put his finger on it, the reaction was mostly caused by the name. It's not the blog, he wrote, it's the conversation.

Jarvis puts forth some excellent advice on naming. I've said it in many places here, words matter. It is about listening, it is about customers, and it is about seeing things from their perspective. What my colleague Lionel Menchaca from Dell says (as reported by Jarvis) bears repeating:

It’s also not about control. For me at least, that has been decided—companies don’t control the message, customers do. I hope that Dell (and other companies in the council that have made the leap into digital media) can work together to move companies past the false notion that we are still in control. I’ve talked to folks from other large companies and that reality scares the heck out of them. I think that’s the primary reason why less than 10% of Fortune 500 companies have a blog. That fear makes it a non-starter for many companies. . . .

Good corporate blogs force companies to look at things from a customer’s point of view. That’s why I want more large corporations to blog, and I want them to do it the right way. That means letting real people have real conversations just like individual blogs do. But it’s a bit different from a corporate perspective. Transparency is still key, but the reality for large corporations is that there are some things we can’t discuss. It’s a balancing act, and sometimes it’s a difficult one. But worth the risk? You bet it is.

I also read a very interesting post by Dave Taylor at Intuitive.com on how the business world yawns to Blog Council. I find myself nodding to the challenges - real and perceived - that large organizations face with this initiative and social media in general. I worked in highly hierarchical and regulated industries my whole career. That did not seem to take the passion for conversation out of me, did it?

I find some narrative fallacy in Taylor's post:

Indeed, as has been demonstrated time and again, it's Madison Avenue, specifically the small, nimble, edgy marketing and PR agencies that are really the only hope that large corporations have of getting involved in modern social media and the blogosphere in any meaningful -- and interesting -- manner. These agencies might stumble occasionally (as I have written about many times) but they're trying new things and they can afford to take risks in a way that larger corporations, publicly traded entities, simply cannot.

Should I mention some of my recent conversations with said award-winning agencies who were found wanting on execution and advice? Where is the list of bloggers and social media "experts" from those agencies? 

On a more conciliatory side, Shel Holtz and Josh Hallet shared their perspectives on the council as well. What seems to have drawn the ire of social media pundits, in addition to the council's name, is the nature of the council's site. It's not a blog, they write, It's filled with marketing speak, It talks at us, etc.

If you take a look at the list of member companies, you may notice that the name of the company where I spend most of my time, SunGard, was added to the list recently. We were welcomed warmly by our colleagues at Dell, for starters.

An Insider's View

In the comments section of Taylor's post (that is where I tend to spend my time when I read posts, BTW), Jon writes something fabulous. Something that is a tonic, music to my ears. "Marketing needs to grow up," he says. Amen to that. He continues:

Consumers are maturing, and we don't respond well to the run-of-the-mill schlock our parents once did. I deal with executives in several reasonably large companies. I actually hear them say things like "We're in business to be in business." By which they mean, "We're in business to make money."

They are missing the point, and a chance at greater earnings. Soon they will be left behind by those companies who are in business to provide something useful to the customer.

I'm confused by the last statement, Jon. Help me out. Is Blog Council missing the point or are large corporations? Never mind, as you said in your latest post, that we connect at all is a miracle - your poetry is a gift, Jon, and it did not go unnoticed.

This past week I participated, as a listener, to the first show and tell and I was blown away by the candor and transparency of my colleagues in corporate America. Many of them have been using social media inside their organizations for years. That takes stamina, poise and the ability to risk your life - your professional life that is - many times a year, possibly a month or a week.

But this is not the point of this post. This post is about corporate social media evangelists. We need more of them, not less. We need the help of the community, all of you, to replenish our resolve and on some days validate that what we do is useful. By far the toughest job a corporate social media evangelist has is inside the organization.

There will be a time when social media is a natural part of the work marketing communications professionals do. Not today. Today they steal time away from the expectations of the many customers they serve - they include outside customers and customer service of course, sales groups, product teams, technical teams, the HR group, legal council, where applicable the regulatory group, the management team, and anyone else in between.

Why You Need to Keep an Open Mind

I need to do that, too. Sometimes it pays to be empathetic and to provide a giving hand. Last weekend at Blogger Social I had a conversation with Marilyn Pratt that was not connective. I was distracted and not feeling well. She was picking a moment that was not ideal for me to put forth the weighty issue of community responsibility and the question of how do you keep things separate? You can't, I should have answered simply, but sometimes you do it anyway.

Marilyn is Community Evangelist at SAP Labs, a Blog Council member. The irony of life had Andy (Sernovitz) introduce us by work email this past week as part of the council's services to help members meet each other. How is that for instant feedback loop or karma?

CK said it best, I don't care that you promote me, I care that you promote the right message. I'm an explorer, just like many of you. I have a day job I am passionate about. You may or may not see the results of my work there immediately. There is much to do and fewer resources to do it with. That does not dampen our resolve to do what's right. It may just take more time. You did not see behind - or should I say beyond? - the Blog Council site and terminology, will you see the individuals who are working on behalf of these companies' customers and communities?

Thank you for listening. My turn now.

Comments

[Dave Taylor]

Very interesting article and a nice job weaving everything together. I agree with you that for better (or worse!) we need more social media evangelists who get both the potential and the online social mores of the different communities so that efforts are smooth, successful, graceful and not ham-handed like so much of Madison Ave's work in this space.

[Sam Lawrence]

Valeria- I love that you fleshed out some of the "new scoble" folks and connected the dots. Awesome stuff and I look forward to learning from them (and more about the Blog Council, which I wasn't aware of).

In terms of Marketing needing to grow up, I couldn't agree more. The problem is there's not a lot of centralized places for Marketing people to learn new skills nor do organizations seem compelled to change the 1940s P&G Brand model we're devolved for so long.

Great post.

[RichardatDELL]

Valeria,

With a blog post like this...how could we not be thrilled to have you join the blog council and continue your corporate social media evangelism there :-)

Thanks -- for this post, among so many and for the contributions you make elsewhere

[Valeria Maltoni]

Dave -

Literally, marketing needs to grow up. Approaching everything as a sale backfires. It was a podcast I did not long ago with Albert Maruggi where he said that marketers want to sell and social media wants to tell, share. That's the disconnect we face today. With more conversationalists on hand, we may begin to bridge to where our customers want us to be: listening and observing.

[Marilyn Pratt]

Hey Valeria,
I'm smiling and thinking I guess there is actually rarely time for "an ideal moment" in our spontaneous engagement cycles. I'll nit pick a bit with my side of your observations. The context of the blogger social conversation we didn't really have transpired when we stood near a number of Miss Liberty look-alikes waiting to board the Circle Line around Manhattan for a fun few hours of social engagement. We also happened to be standing near a rally or protest held across from the Chinese Embassy. You were having a conversation with a fellow blogger about shoes (you have awesome ones and he had outrageous sneakers) and I was photographing them wondering how to sort my emotions around the human rights issues we were confronted with and the fun day we were participating in. Yep, I remember asking how one makes the separation, as it's something I struggle with daily. And no, you didn't appear to share my concern at the moment, and yes, I did a blatantly human thing, I passed judgment. And took a few photos of the protest to post on flickr and proceeded to engage in conversation on the boat and for the rest of the day and evening with a remarkable set of folks like Connie Reece, Heather Gorringe, Anna Farmery, Jane Quigley (and Paul McEnany so as not to neglect the bright men there).
But I didn't "write you off" because, what to do, I was intrigued by your postings and intelligence, so I ASKED Andy (Sernovitz) to make the introductions.
And why is it I have a feeling that you and I would find a great deal of common ground and conversation?
I thoroughly enjoyed this post and want to learn more of how you make separations: personal, corporate, community and I can share why I often choose not to. Although I am a peripheral invitee to the blogger council, I'm thinking that exposure to others within that corporate blogosphere can only expand my horizons. Your voice will be welcome there.

[Valeria Maltoni]

Sam -

It's good for me to discover new voices, especially those who, like us, work in a company environment and walk (sometimes) a fine line. I have been impressed by the individuals representing their companies within Blog Council. You might want to check it out. I see it also as an opportunity to help each other with similar issues.

I am working with the Fox School of Business at Temple University to help international MBA students with marketing as part of their consulting practicum (live projects for actual clients). I am also getting involved with Columbia Business School and potentially NYU. Marketing and business students need to go from what worked yesterday to what is evolved today. The hard part is that we are still finding out what that is, even as we know it's not what it used to be.

[Valeria Maltoni]

Richard -

I am looking forward to the day we will have a round table discussion, around an actual table. Maybe accompanied by some nice delicacies. I find social and food mix well. What say you? Thank you for your kind words, and glad to be able to articulate some of these issues from both sides of the conversation.

[Valeria Maltoni]

Marilyn -

Thank you for setting the story within its context. And thank you for taking the initiative with Andy - I would have remembered you of course from the social.

The biggest separation I chose not to have is with my core values. Those come with me at all times. You hire me, you hire the full force of an engaged, present, passionate, interested, and daring Italian who understands and loves marketing communications.

Yes, I suspect we'd have many points of connection. Steve Woodruff, Paul Soldera, Lori di Magno, Tom Clifford, Nathan Snell, Gavin Heaton and so many more who I had been talking with for 18 months were a joy to meet on the boat. Lots of conversations, and distractions. Geoff Livingston also came around with his video camera to ask about the demonstration and we talked about how that was an example of broken dialogue, lack of conversation...

Well, the shoes end up being a topic even at work. I try to buy in Italy.

[RichardatDELL]

Valeria

I cannot wait!

[Carolyn Ann]

Tell us about the shoes! Never mind the rest! The Shoes! :-)

Why do I suddenly fear this "Blog Council"? I shouldn't - I've worked in big business, and I know what they want.

It's little different to some of the other groups out there; the focus is a bit strange, but, still - it's definitely a step in the right direction. Assuming, of course, that you agree with what the "right direction" is.

I was once asked by a Big Bank to sign a petition, calling for the repeal of some Depression-era banking law; the one that barred the merging of insurance and banking. I was a VP at Big Bank - and it was assumed I'd sign the infernal thing. I annoyed quite a few by refusing to sign it on two grounds: I'm not American, so I will not overtly participate in the political process. And I didn't think it a good idea to repeal the law. I annoyed even more by saying so.

Anyway, the Big Bank I worked for, and other big banks and insurance companies, got together - and figured out how to get the law repealed. A little while later, Citibank bought Travelers. I am fearful, because people don't change, that history might find a way to repeat itself.

That's why I am wary of the Bloggers' Council.

Carolyn Ann

PS And yes, I am quite familiar with the various changes, etcetera. I ignore those in favor of the implications I see from such a repeal. And I must confess to having heard of it just today, here. Which makes me really suspicious of its motives. What is it really about? Forgive the cynicism - it's from experience.

[Valeria Maltoni]

Carolyn Ann:

So far I participated in one session, and I found the group extremely helpful to me - as a professional, as a blogger inside an organization, as a peer to the participants.

Day in day out, I get sales calls and solicitations from consultants, agencies and vendors to buy their solutions. Many of those vendors turn out to be most unhelpful and at times quite clueless on social media, frankly. Rarely they even inquire about what we need - it's usually about their capabilities.

This group is made up of professionals who face my same reality at work. They are working to engage with their companies in social media on behalf of customers and communities. I know I can learn a lot from them.

I mentioned in my post I worked in highly regulated industries. Even doing that, I continued to think with my own head - a gift. I asked that we keep an open mind... let's not jump to conclusions from assumptions.

[Gavin Heaton]

Great post and great discussion, Valeria. With the increasing focus on corporate blogging, there is bound to be plenty more discussion around the blog council and the role and expectations of those who straddle the corporate-personal divide.

One of the things that I like about the blog council is that some companies have taken the time to identify blogging/social media as a cross-industry challenge (disclosure: although I am not involved, my company is also a member). This is major step forward. But one of the good things is that there are already some experienced "personal" bloggers who are part of the blog council. And while this is a closed group -- there are some strong, reasonable and respected voices onboard.

[Jon]

First of all, thank you so much for including me here. I am flattered to be mentioned in a post alongside so many great writers, bloggers and thinkers.

To clarify (or muddle further) what I was trying to get at in the comment you quoted: Whether a product is produced or not, all businesses exist because of the service perceived by the consumer. So in a way, all businesses are service businesses. An ACME rocket sled provides the service of allowing Mr. Coyote to move faster. When ACME, reveling in their high sales conversions and profit margins, stops providing the service, but still provides the product (sans speed), the perception of quality disappears and soon, so does the company that built the product. There will always be another company struggling to make that great 1st impression, providing similar products with better or greater service.

My criticism of the Blog Council wasn't so much which platform they used. I've used Wordpress myself to design sites which were not blogs. But I never used the word "Blog" in the site name either. I just think that if a group is going to be "The Blog Council", then for reasons of consistency it should adhere to what we, as bloggers and as blog consumers, think is a blog. On the other foot, I applaud their efforts and I'm sure that if they are sincere about dialogue, their success should be phenomenal.

I plan to write more on this and other marketing topics @ Wordout. I am sorely dissatisfied with the way marketing is being employed on the web. I don't just dislike it; I think it is being done wrong, incorrectly, inefficiently, stupidly. I believe there's a better way, a more profitable way, a less intrusive way. If you'd like, I'll send you a note as I publish each one?

[Valeria Maltoni]

@RichardatDELL - you're on!

@Gavin - I was impressed by the council's willingness to invite us even though most of our initiatives for now are internal. I do like dipping my toes in the challenges faced by CGCs, for example. Reasonable is good ;-)

@Jon - Welcome to the conversation, Jon. Thank you for taking the time to contribute here. I tried replying to you by email, but it bounced back. I'm with you on the marketing aspect(s) and ideas you put forth in the comment. And I really did like those poems and your writing.

From the inside, participating in the activities, I could care less what the site looks like, as I am getting the service I signed up for. I can see how from the outside, looking in and seeing just the site, that it looks like everything you do not want in how marketing should be done. My new mantra has become "marketing needs to grow up" ;-)

I know I hit a nerve. I know that we should be rallying around substance more than looks - I won't even talk about looks, I'm Italian! But looks, alas, matter. My writing and research is around the future of marketing as I spend so much time executing on the past - admittedly sneaking in the future in concept and feel without calling it "future". We do what we can, and sometimes that is closer to the end goal than we think.

My point is also that we can harness all this great brain power and goodness to be connective and help each other. Observations can be gentle and kind even as they are effective. In fact, I find that when I move myself more towards the "measured" side of the scale, my advice is easier to take. Magic!

Thank you so much for joining in. I've enjoyed your take and will continue to do so. Finding you and the other talented people cited here was the best part of my day in writing the post.

[Jon]

Hopefully you won't have that email bounce again. Thanks for calling my attention to it.

Change seems to come so slowly, doesn't it, until something comes along that everybody agrees is great. Take Google for example. In less than 10 years their very existence has changed, dare I say, evolved, the way the web is used. And we all welcomed the change, consumers and businesses alike.

Sometimes, something is so much obviously better, that the whole "Us versus Them" thing disappears. We are all on the same side here. One day we'll realize it.