CNN: How we use social media for collaboration (public call)

Posted by Social Media Business Council Staff on February 28, 2009

Shel Israel: A sneak peek at Twitterville

Posted by Social Media Business Council Staff on February 27, 2009

Public call: How the U.S. Coast Guard puts social media to work; Feb 17, 2 PM (EST)

Posted by Social Media Business Council Staff on February 12, 2009

Rear Admiral Mary Landry and Commander Ron LaBrec will be leading a public conference call, “Always Ready… and Online: How the U.S. Coast Guard Puts Social Media to Work,” as part of our Best of BlogWell series. We’ll discuss how the Coast Guard:

• Improves public safety through social media
• Uses social media both internally and externally
• Develops relationships with military bloggers

When: Feb 17, 2 PM (EST) / 1 PM (CST)

Cost: Free

Register: Click here

About the series: Best of BlogWell is a series of conference calls recapping the corporate social media case study presentations from January 22, 2009’s BlogWell in Chicago. They’re free, to the point, and provide a chance for you to ask questions to some of the world’s biggest brands on their use of social media.

93% of social media users believe companies should be involved in social media

Posted by Social Media Business Council Staff on February 4, 2009

This morning on GasPedal’s You Can Be a Word of Mouth Marketing Supergenius blog, we highlighted some interesting research that we wanted to share with the Blog Council community:

A September 2008 Cone Business in Social Media study concluded that 60% of Americans use social media, and of those, nearly 60% engage with companies on social sites—one in four of which interact with companies more than once per week.

The study goes on to reveal that a whopping 93% of social media users believe a company should have a presence in social media, while 85% believe that a company should not only be present but also interact with consumers.

Other findings:

• 56% of social media users feel both a stronger connection with and better served by companies when they can interact with them in a social media environment
• 43% of users believe companies should use social networks to help solve their problems
• 41% believe companies should solicit feedback on their products and services through social media
• Men are twice as likely to frequently interact with companies online than women

Learn more.

Nike uses its blog to cover sporting events

Posted by Social Media Business Council Staff on February 4, 2009

Corporate Social Media Case Study: Nike

From time to time, Nike will use its blogs to cover upcoming sporting events. In their series of posts, “The Family: Versus,” they highlight match-ups between their “family” of sponsored NBA athletes.

While they don’t cover games with the details you’d expect of an ESPN article, they offer some interesting stats and storylines behind the games.

Here’s an excerpt:

Kobe Bryant and LeBron James, arguably the two best players in the NBA, face off tonight in what will be the most explosive, high-flying, backboard-crashing, ankle-breaking game of the new year.

The last time the two met in January 2008, LeBron put on a show with 41 points in the Cleveland’s close victory over L.A., earning his place at the top of the food chain. LeBron and the Cavs then went on to face Boston in the Eastern Conference semifinals, but fell after 7 grueling games.

See the full post.

Clarifying mainstream news through a corporate blog

Posted by Social Media Business Council Staff on February 3, 2009

Corporate Social Media Case Study: Toyota

Traditional responses to the media (if any at all) often require a press release or a press conference. But a corporate blog allows companies to quickly respond to clear up misinformation or simply state their side of an issue, which is exactly what Jon F. Thompson was able to do through Toyota’s Open Road blog in his post, “MPG Race is Good for Everyone“:

“Ford, Toyota squabble about ‘midsize’ hybrids,” reads the headline in a recent issue of USA Today.

Well, fine, but it’s not exactly a squabble. What’s going on here is that we respectfully and cordially disagree on the definition of a midsize car. This is important when we’re discussing the EPA fuel-economy ratings of vehicles like the Camry Hybrid, the Prius and the Ford Fusion.

Continue reading Jon’s response.

Read the USA Today article.

Facebook in the enterprise

Posted by Social Media Business Council Staff on February 2, 2009

On the Orange Business Services blog, Rob Evans describes how he envisions Facebook playing an integral role in businesses everywhere.

His ideas include:

• Using Facebook’s built-in instant messaging capabilities
• Allowing employees to network through their interests as listed on their profiles
• Sharing business documents (including photos)
• Setting up Facebook groups for team projects and discussions

See the full post.