The power of social media
PR departments in organisations the world over have been using
social media as a means of communicating with their audiences for a
few years now. What started as a few MySpace blogs has burgeoned,
with everyone having their own Facebook, Twitter and YouTube
accounts.
But, while social media can be great for getting lots of eyes and
ears to pay attention to what you want to say, it can also
backfire
spectacularly, which happened last week when a political
blogger secretly recorded Tory MP Alan Duncan whinging about the
conditions members of Parliament now find themselves subjected to
since the expenses scandal. As you would expect, sympathy was
scarce.
David Cameron has worked long and hard to convey a warmer, more
understanding image for the Tory party but comments that are not
"on message" (and Duncan's couldn't be more off
message if they tried) can slip out much more easily and undo all
that hard work. And, with the click of a button, they are on
YouTube for all to see, and conveyed around the world by Twitter
links etc.
From a public relations perspective then, social media is an
absolute blessing, but one that needs to be monitored and handled
with care.
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