New catch-phrase in marketing and social media is alignment. How to do it.

Alignment seems to be the key word this week. I attended the PR MKTG Camp where the theme was alignment of PR and Marketing because of Social Media. Then I received another email regarding alignment of Sales and Marketing. This is comical and sad. Comical that we need conferences devoted to the topic. Sad that we need conferences devoted to the topic. Key take-aways and suggestions:
 
1) The advent of social media has large and small organizations wondering what department needs to manage social media? Marketing? PR? Customer Service? A comment was made at the conference that the public owns social media. My observation is there is quite a bit of territorial posturing going on in large companies for who 'owns' the customer conversation. Companies wondering how to manage not only the public conversation but employee conversations. Take United Airlines and repercussions of potential negative employee comments.

2) Ryan Evans of Rand Media Group suggested, "The day is coming that all your employees are on Twitter. What is wrong with them discussing your business?" Maybe not such a big deal with small companies, but the large organizations in the room were aghast.

3) Does the customer care who from the organization joins in the conversation if the response is relevant and considerate?

I believe social media has made organization alignment inefficiencies VERY obvious. How many employees of large organizations understand the true mission and tone and are empowered to act accordingly? Studies by Harvard Business School prove people want to have a purpose in their life and jobs. I've experienced organizations treating employees like potential threats instead of partners. If a person doesn't have the skill set for the job, move them. (View the video 'Drive' by RSA referencing the study on motivations http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u6XAPnuFjJc).

Next, social media has made very obvious organizations that do not walk the talk. The world is now transparent.

My suggestion is for senior management to create a mission and tone for employees. Explain to the organization the goals and objectives for the year and future. Align department goals accordingly. Ask for groups to create cross-functional teams able to address customer situations immediately. The most appropriate person able to address the conversation issue should be able to. Then walk the talk (Top down as this can't happen bottom up). Empower the organization to just 'get it done'. Here is the objective, here is what we stand for, and just make it happen. Then monitor, measure, tweak, act, monitor, measure, tweak, act and so on.

One way to do that is have a person or department responsible for monitoring social media. Product issues are routed to product management. Marketing problems routed to marketing and social responsibility routed to corporate communications.

This is easier said than done which is why is isn't being done as proof from thePR MKTG conference .
 
What do you think should be done? Who is doing it well?

Jackie

Posted by Jackie Kuehl at 6/9/2010 8:14 AM
Categories: PR, marketing strategies, social media tactics, organization alignment
Tags: PR tactics socialmedia PR+MKTG Camp marketing
 

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