Using social media to promote corporate social responsibility

Corporate social responsibility is becoming more important than ever. Customers now expect companies to care about more than just earning profits. And, with the prevalence of advocacy and consumer groups for virtually every interest, companies are now expected to be socially responsible to a standard set by society, whether they agree or not.

The official logo of The George Washington University (www.gwu.edu)

Because of that, a strategy to establish and communicate a company's corporate social responsibility is extremely important. At the same time, the budget that should be granted for this activity should not be too excessive and should blend in with Public Relations and Marketing. Because of the role social media plays in connecting consumers with companies they love, it has become an important place in building trust and portraying the corporate social responsibility to the general public.

Here's how to do it for one of the organization's of which I am currently monitoring on social media, the official Twitter account of The George Washington University's Office of Undergraduate Admissions.

Because an institution's corporate social responsibility may play a role in where prospective students choose to end up studying, the account for the Admissions Office should also tweet about the University's core values. For this example, let us assume that the focus is on a "green" school that is mindful of its carbon footprint and water usage. As it has been shown this year, the University cares about its impact on the world and wants to reduce water usage, as seen with the aggressive marketing campaigns it has had throughout the school, challenging different residence halls to use less water than others.

Here's how it would work. Each week, The George Washington University could share how its water usage was for the week, using the hashtag "#GreenGW." It would include a link to a splash page that went in-depth into this core value and how the University is addressing the problem. It could engage users by asking how they reduce their water usage.

It would be low-cost because it's virtually all through social media, a free medium where anyone can post anything free of charge. Yet, people would understand the University's focus on making sure water is not wasted. It also shows prospective students the focus The George Washington University has before they get on campus. While current students can see the University's push, social media allows prospective students not on campus, and the general public, to see that core belief of the University before they come.

Social media utilization: weekly round-up 4

This is the fourth weekly round-up in which I analyze and monitor three Twitter accounts that I have chosen for their use of social media. The full explanation is here: http://iantangblog.blogspot.com/2013/09/explanation-of-semester-blog.html.

Today marks the end of the fourth week since I have started tracking their utilization, each using Twitter. Again, it was clear that the three entities have very distinct uses of social media, all aiming to contribute to the marketing of The George Washington University.


The George Washington University (@GWTweets)
The official account of The George Washington University focused on two things: the government shutdown (and how it impacted the school and students) as well as events happening around campus. Sadly, the tweets regarding events happening around campus focused on retweets and were not as helpful nor interesting. However, regarding the government shutdown and a few select events, the University thrust itself into the larger picture, and related the University to the entire DC community and problem that the entire country was facing.

Oddly, while the University used hashtags for generic world issues such as "World Bank" and "Global Poverty," it did not use it for the government shutdown. By not using those hashtags, the top tweet about the government shutdown received 4 retweets, 1 favorites while the bottom tweet that used hashtags relating to a bigger picture received 9 retweets, 2 favorites. Both are still low for a University account that has many followers, but it does show the power of hashtags.


The George Washington University Office of Undergraduate Admissions (@GWAdmissions)
The Office of Undergraduate Admissions focused on the School of Engineering and Sciences and the event they were putting on for prospective students. However, they did also tweet about other cool events happening around campus, while putting a marketing spin on it.

The Office of Undergraduate Admissions used @Mentions more than hashtags. When compared to the tweet that the University tweeted, the Office of Undergraduate Admissions added the phrase "One of hundreds of events the @elliotschoolgw hosts..." While students already at the University may know this, the Office of Undergraduate Admissions was smart to add that phrase to attract students by showing the opportunities they may have here. With the fewer amount of followers, the tweet received 3 favorites.

What could be problematic is whether prospective students believe that assertion. There should be a list of other events that have happened in the past.


Peter Konwerski, Senior Associate Provost and Dean of Student Affairs (@GWPeterK)
After the Alumni Weekend passed, Dr. Konwerski immediately reverted his cover photo back to a generic GW banner that promoted the entire school rather than just one event. The immediacy of this helped in preventing problems about confusion as to when Alumni Weekend was for those visiting his profile as well as end the use of the "#GWAW13" hashtag.

Dr. Konwerski's cover photo.

Additionally, his tweets returned back to focusing on events happening around the University. He utilized "quote retweets" to address comments, concerns and questions of users on Twitter. A quote retweet is when you retweet someone's content, but also add commentary. With midterm season in full swing, Dr. Konwerski focused his tweets heavily on addressing midterms, as well as tools the University has in place to assist students.

As can be seen, Dr. Konwerski utilized no hashtags in his tweets, only retaining the one that the original user, @jacqueline_t25 had used. Instead, he @Mention-ed @GWTutors, a resource that can be utilized as a student. Dr. Konwerski's tweet does not require anyone to have prior knowledge and is very short in length. He uses the phrase "you know" to more personally connect with whoever tweeted it.

Though Instagram and Twitter's scuffle left Twitter users unable to preview Instagram photos right on Twitter, it is not an area that could be problematic in this instance. The photo certainly adds on to the tweet, but other users do not have to have an Instagram, or even look at that photo, to understand the tweet and Dr. Konwerski's response.

Still, despite the helpfulness of these tweets, Dr. Konwerski receives very little favorites and RT's. Mostly, it is from the original user. Therefore, the knowledge or interest about these services may be very minimal and Dr. Konwerski should continue to try and expand the interaction he receives.

This week, the Office of Undergraduate Admissions actually excelled by tweeting more about events happening around campus instead of just tweeting directly towards prospective students. While tweeting about those events, that could be happening thousands of miles away, it successfully involved those that were not present. However, the Office of Undergraduate Admissions has been typically the worse at social media throughout the time I have been tracking. This is because it typically focuses on addressing student questions instead of promoting the school.

A super-sized McDonald's fail on social media

McDonald's had has its fair share of criticisms throughout its history, especially during recent years. While the company was quick to embrace social media, it has not been all that successful, especially given its reputation amongst Americans. So, it was not too much of a surprise when its Twitter Promoted Trend campaign backfired on itself in January 2012.

It started when McDonald's used two Promoted Trends, #MeetTheFarmers and #McDStories, in an attempt to "raise awareness of the Supplier Stories campaign." After a while, many "customers" on Twitter started twisting what the hashtag was about, posting tweets such as:

So PETA and McDonalds got into it today on Twitter. I was surprised I didn't know there was actual meat at McDonalds. #McDStories (@johngarrettX) 

Hospitalized for food poisoning after eating McDonalds in 1989. Never ate there again and became a Vegetarian. Should have sued. #McDStories (@Alice_2112_)

#McDStories I lost 50lbs in 6 months after I quit working and eating at McDonalds (@JKingArt)

That is a small sampling of the thousands of horrific, and downright disgusting, tweets that flowed through the stream that day, even after McDonald's immediately reacted and took the Trend down.

And it seems like other companies haven't learned from McDonald's mistake, as shown by Microsoft's even worse recent social media fail where it promoted #DroidRage, asking Android users to share their bad Android stories for a chance to win a Windows Phone.

These campaigns were posed to backfire for both companies. Looking at it in hindsight, there are many things McDonald's could have done to prevent the catastrophe from happening.

Twitter: Target for All
First, unlike other networks such as Facebook and Google+, Twitter content (especially Promoted Trends) is available for anyone to see and contribute to, while Facebook and Google+ allow for brands to communicate with and target just those that designated they were a fan through a Like or +1.

Even though they don't have to be a fan to take such action, many people probably would not deliberately go out of their way beforehand to have "Liked" or "+1ed" a page of a brand they disliked. Twitter may not have been the best place to conduct this activity, especially when its known for the legion of users who use Twitter specifically for complaining.

Instead, this campaign may have worked better on Facebook and Google+, where McDonald's could have directed it at their fans, asking them to re-share stories onto loyal fans' individual Timelines.

Specific vs. Vague
Second, the #McDStories trend is generic and vague, allowing Twitter users to use it however they'd like to their own advantage. It doesn't specify what the trend is for and whether it is asking users for good or bad stories.

To fix this problem, McDonald's probably should have marketed the hashtag heavily beforehand, giving Twitter users context as to what it was for. But more importantly, the hashtag should not have been used at all. Instead, a more specific hashtag, that could not be manipulated as easily, should have been used.

Know Your Market Position and Reputation
Third, McDonald's incorrectly gauged how customers, and Twitter users specifically, perceived McDonald's. The hashtag only promoted the skewed view customers have of McDonald's, probably the opposite goal McDonald's had. As a company that is seen as an "inferior good," McDonald's should have crafted its campaign carefully.

Just like Microsoft, McDonald's should not have asked for consumer content when many customers see the company as a joke. It should have tried effectively changing its reputation before asking customers to comment on what they think of McDonald's.


Social media is still a relatively new environment where many companies are just getting started and experimenting with the waters. Still, companies should be more careful and objectively think about how a campaign could be misconstrued and used to the advantage of customers who may have had a bad experience with the company.

Sources
http://www.forbes.com/sites/adriankingsleyhughes/2012/12/05/microsofts-droidrage-twitter-campaign-backfires/

http://www.mashable.com/2012/11/25/social-media-business-disasters-2012/#gallery/biggest-social-media-disasters-of-2012/521295e95198406611001874

http://www.thenextweb.com/twitter/2012/01/24/why-mcdstories-didnt-have-a-happy-ending/

http://www.businessinsider.com/mcdonalds-twitter-campaign-goes-horribly-wrong-mcdstories-2012-1

http://www.therealtimereport.com/2012/01/24/lessons-from-the-mcdstories-promoted-trend-controversy