According to IBM’s CMO Study, 68% of global CMOs feel underprepared to manage social media. Given the rate things are changing in the social space, this isn’t surprising. It seems like a new network or technology is released nearly every day.
Unfortunately, rather than finding a way to keep up or hiring someone who can, some CMOs have opted for a “hands off” approach to social media. Instead of taking an active role in online conversations about their brands, some companies are choosing to stay silent, believing this decision to be a safe bet for a medium that is tough to control. While this belief might be legitimate in some rare cases, we think that companies should think long and hard before committing to a hands-off social media policy.
As the IBM study notes, some CMOs have learned about the drawbacks of a hands-off approach to social media the hard way.
“The risk is huge, whether you touch it our not,” an aerospace and defense CMO said in an interview with IBM. “Don’t make the mistake of thinking you can reduce the risk by not trying to manage it.”
We think this couldn’t be more accurate. Rather than staying mum, we recommend that you invest some serious time and resources in understanding what people are saying about your brand in social media and developing a sensible strategy for getting involved. If you’re worried about risk, developing a social media policy is a great place to start.
Photo credit: sochacki.info
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