Write about an example of communication that could be improved by applying the visual design principles

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8 Social Media LEARNING OBJECTIVES

After studying this chapter, you will be able to

1 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p7001012451000000000000000003480#P7001012451000000000000000003484) Identify seven key points for using social media in business communication.

2 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p70010124510000000000000000034ac#P70010124510000000000000000034B0) Describe the business communication applications of social networks.

3 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p700101245100000000000000000353f#P7001012451000000000000000003543) Explain how information- and content-sharing sites are used in business communication.

4 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p700101245100000000000000000356d#P7001012451000000000000000003571) Describe the role of blogging in business communication today, and explain how to adapt the three-step writing process to blogging.

5 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p7001012451000000000000000003607#P700101245100000000000000000360C) Describe the business uses of Twitter and other microblogging systems.

6 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p700101245100000000000000000367a#P7001012451000000000000000003680) Offer guidelines for becoming a valuable wiki contributor.

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COMMUNICATION CLOSE-UP AT Starbucks www.starbucks.com (http://www.starbucks.com)

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With its portfolio of worldwide locations pushing toward the 20,000 mark, Starbucks has a reputation for being nearby wherever and whenever anybody might be craving a cup of coffee. Not surprisingly, its online communications follows the same strategy of being everywhere its customers might be. Its broadest presence is on Facebook, with more than 50 company-sponsored pages, including local pages in more than 40 countries. Typical posts include contests and other special promotions, enticing photos of various coffee drinks, instructional videos on making a great cup of coffee at home, and updates on community involvement projects. Two of the company’s most popular drinks, the Frappuccino and Pumpkin Spice Latte, even have their own social media accounts.

Starbucks also maintains several dozen Twitter accounts, many of which are country speci�ic and tuned into local interests. In the Netherlands, for instance, fresh pastries are an essential part of the coffee experience, so employees alert customers on Twitter whenever a fresh batch is ready.

The company is active on a wide variety of other platforms as well, including Pinterest, YouTube, Foursquare, and Instagram. Although it is everywhere online, Starbucks takes care not to wear out its welcome. It posts new information relatively infrequently compared with many other major consumer brands. “They’re not cluttering up your newsfeed,” notes one industry observer.

Many companies use social media to offer digital coupons and sponsor online contests, but Starbucks takes things to an entirely new level. Its attention-getting efforts have included an online puzzle/scavenger hunt featuring Lady Gaga and an augmented-reality smartphone app that triggered animated movies when a phone was pointed at specially coded coffee cups.

Alexandra Wheeler, the company’s vice president in charge of global digital marketing, emphasizes that these social media efforts are about more than gaining fans and building awareness. “They can have a material impact on the business,” she says, citing one social media campaign that brought a million customers into Starbucks stores.

Coffee shops are community gathering places, and a team of Starbucks employees use social media to extend that community feel into the virtual realm by connecting with fans and customers on a variety of social platforms.

© Iain Masterton/Alamy Stock Photo

Like many companies still experimenting with social media as new tools and techniques emerge, Starbucks has had a stumble or two along the way. A notable example was a holiday Twitter hashtag campaign in the United Kingdom in which the company used a big-screen monitor at a national museum to display any

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tweet that included #spreadthecheer. Starbucks was embroiled in a public controversy over corporate taxes at the time, and some people used the opportunity of the unmonitored Twitter channel to post angry and occasionally obscene messages about the company.

This episode highlights one of the core dilemmas in social media: How much control should companies exercise over the social media channels they sponsor? If they try to exert too much control, they can sti�le the very aspect of social engagement they’re aiming for. If they exert too little, even well-intentioned efforts can spin out of control and lead to embarrassing public spectacles. As social media continue to reshape business communication, �inding the right balance of conversation and control promises to be a never-ending challenge.1 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p70010124510000000000000000036a8#P70010124510000000000000000037BB)

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8.1 Writing Strategies for Social Media LEARNING OBJECTIVE

1 Identify seven key points for using social media in business communication. Starbucks’s use of social media (pro�iled in the chapter-opening Communication Close-Up) may seem like an obvious move, but these media represent a fundamental shift in the way companies handle business communication. The shift is still taking place, as more consumers adopt social media and more businesses experiment with the best ways to integrate these media and to adapt their internal and external communication practices.

Readers of social media expect to have a more engaged relationship with writers, so creating content for social media requires a new approach to writing.

No matter what media or compositional mode you are using for a particular message, writing for social media requires a different approach than for traditional media. Social media have changed the relationship between sender and receiver, so the nature of the messages needs to change as well. Whether you’re writing a blog or posting a product demonstration video to YouTube, consider these tips for creating successful content for social media:2 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p70010124510000000000000000036a8#P70010124510000000000000000037BD)

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Katie Wagner highlights immediacy, access, connection, and research. Go to real-timeupdates.com/bct14 (http://real-timeupdates.com/bct14) and select Learn More in the Students section.

Remember that it’s a conversation, not a lecture or a sales pitch. One of the great appeals of social media is the feeling of conversation, of people talking with one another instead of one person talking at everyone else (see Figure 8.1 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p7001012451000000000000000003480#P7001012451000000000000000003493) ). For all their technological sophistication, in an important sense social media provide a new spin on the age-old practice of word-of-mouth communication. As more and more people gain a voice in the marketplace, companies that try to maintain the old “we talk, you listen” mindset are likely to be ignored in the social media landscape. People generally join social networks for the chance to interact, and you can help stimulate conversations by asking followers for their ideas, options, and feedback.3 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p70010124510000000000000000036a8#P70010124510000000000000000037BF)

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Write informally but not carelessly. Write as a human being, not as a cog in a faceless corporate machine. At the same time, don’t get sloppy; no one wants to slog through misspelled words and half-baked sentences to �ind the message.

Readers—and search engines—don’t like spending time trying to �igure out clever puns and other wordplay; make your headlines clear and direct.

Create concise, speci�ic, and informative headlines. Avoid the temptation to engage in clever wordplay with headlines. This advice applies to all forms of business communication, of course, but it is essential for social media. Readers don’t want to spend time and energy �iguring out what your witty headlines mean. Search engines won’t know what they mean, either, so fewer people will �ind your content. Get involved and stay involved. Social media understandably make some businesspeople nervous because they don’t permit a high level of control over messages. However, don’t hide from criticism—it can be valuable feedback. Take the opportunity to correct misinformation or explain how mistakes will be �ixed. If you need to promote something, do so indirectly. Just as you shouldn’t impose on people with a sales pitch during an informal social gathering, refrain from blatant promotional efforts in social media. Be transparent and honest. Honesty is always essential, of course, but a particular issue that has recently tripped up a few companies is hiding behind an online persona—either a �ictitious character whose writing is actually done by a corporate marketing specialist or a real person who fails to disclose an af�iliation with a corporate sponsor. Think before you post! Individuals and companies have been sued because of careless Twitter updates, employees have been �ired for inappropriate Facebook posts, vital company secrets have been leaked, and business and personal relationships have been strained. To be safe, assume that every message you post will be read by people far beyond your original audience.

A momentary lapse in judgment while writing messages for social media can cause tremendous damage to your career or your company.

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Figure 8.1 Community Building via Social Media

Customer-af�iliation groups can be an effective way to build stakeholder support for a company and its products. Indian Motorcycles used this Google+ post to spur interest in its rider groups.

Courtesy Polaris Industries. Google and the Google logo are registered trademarks of Google Inc., used with permission.

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8.2 Social Networks LEARNING OBJECTIVE

2 Describe the business communication applications of social networks. Social networks (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p70010124510000000000000000036a8#P70010124510000000000000000036C0) , online services that help people and organizations form connections and share information, have recently become a major force in both internal and external business communication. In addition to Facebook, a variety of public and private social networks are used by businesses and professionals. These can be grouped into three categories:

Business communicators make use of a wide range of specialized and private social networks, in addition to public networks such as Facebook and Google+.

Public, general-purpose networks. Facebook and Google+ are the largest and best-known of these networks. Additionally, regionally focused networks have signi�icant user bases in some countries, such as China’s Renren and Kaixin001.4 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p70010124510000000000000000036a8#P70010124510000000000000000037C1) Public, specialized networks. Whereas Facebook and Google+ serve a wide variety of personal and professional needs, other networks focus on a particular function or a particular audience. The most widely known is LinkedIn, with its emphasis on career- and sales-related networking. Other networks address the needs of entrepreneurs, small-business owners, speci�ic professions, product enthusiasts, and other narrower audiences. Private networks. Some companies have built private social networks for internal use, either as standalone systems or as part of broader collaboration and communication systems (such as Cemex’s Shift, pro�iled in Chapter 2 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p70010124510000000000000000015f4#P70010124510000000000000000015F4) ). The Red Robin restaurant chain, for example, uses the Yammer social network to share information across the organization nationwide and up and down the corporate ladder. While many companies have found success with internal social networks, a recurring problem is getting enough people in an organization to use them. When top executives are visible participants and use the networks to share vital information, employees are more likely to stay active on them as well.5 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p70010124510000000000000000036a8#P70010124510000000000000000037C3)

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Get daily tips on using social media in your business

These brief podcasts focus on marketing applications of social media. Go to real-timeupdates.com/bct14 (http://real-timeupdates.com/bct14) and select Learn More in the Students section.

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Regardless of the purpose and audience, social networks are most bene�icial when all participants give and receive information, advice, support, and introductions—just as in of�line interactions. The following two sections describe how social networks are used in business communication and offer advice on using these platforms successfully.

BUSINESS COMMUNICATION USES OF SOCIAL NETWORKS

MOBILE APP

The social media management app SocialOomph lets you monitor multiple social media sites, schedule updates, and perform other time-saving tasks.

With their ability to reach virtually unlimited numbers of people through a variety of digital formats, social networks are a great �it for many business communication needs. Here are some of the key applications of social networks for internal and external business communication:

Integrating company workforces. Just as public networks can bring friends and families together, internal social networks can help companies grow closer, including helping new employees navigate their way through the organization by �inding experts, mentors, and other important contacts; encouraging workforces to jell after reorganizations or mergers; and overcoming structural barriers in communication channels, bypassing the formal communication system to deliver information where it is needed in a timely fashion. Fostering collaboration. Networks can play a major role in collaboration by identifying the best people, both inside the company and at other companies, to collaborate on projects; �inding pockets of knowledge and expertise within the organization; giving meeting or seminar participants a way to meet before an event takes place and to maintain relationships after events; accelerating the development of teams by helping team members get to know one another and identify individual areas of expertise; and sharing information throughout the organization.

Community building, both within companies and with customers and other external parties, is an important function of social networking.

Building communities. Social networks are a natural tool for bringing together communities of practice, people who engage in similar work, and communities of interest, people who share enthusiasm for a particular product or activity. Large and geographically dispersed companies can bene�it greatly from communities of practice that connect experts who may work in different divisions or different countries. Communities of interest that form around a speci�ic product are sometimes called brand communities (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p70010124510000000000000000036a8#P70010124510000000000000000036B1) , and nurturing these communities can be a vital business communication task. Some communities spring up spontaneously when product enthusiasts connect online, whereas others are more formal organizations established by companies to help customers use their products more successfully and engage with like-minded individuals. The SAP Community Network, for instance, set up by the enterprise software company SAP, has more than 2.5 million members.6 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p70010124510000000000000000036a8#P70010124510000000000000000037C5)

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LEARN MORE BY READING THIS PDF

Starbucks’s social media guidelines

The coffee giant’s guidelines for its employees offer good advice for all business communicators. Go to real-timeupdates.com/bct14 (http://real- timeupdates.com/bct14) and select Learn More in the Students section.

Socializing a brand is becoming an increasingly important element of marketing and public relations strategies.

Socializing brands and companies. According to one survey of company executives, socialization now accounts for more than half of a company’s or brand’s global reputation.7 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p70010124510000000000000000036a8#P70010124510000000000000000037C7) Brand socialization (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p70010124510000000000000000036a8#P70010124510000000000000000036B4) is a measure of how effectively a company engages with its various online stakeholders in a mutually bene�icial exchange of information. The game and doll maker Mattel engages its Twitter followers by answering product questions, reposting fan videos, and acknowledging enthusiastic praise from customers.8 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p70010124510000000000000000036a8#P70010124510000000000000000037C9) Understanding target markets. With hundreds of millions of people expressing themselves via social media, you can be sure that smart companies are listening. When asked about the value of having millions of Facebook fans, Coca-Cola’s CEO Muhtar Kent replied, “The value is you can talk with them. They tell you things that are important for your business and brands.”9 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p70010124510000000000000000036a8#P70010124510000000000000000037CB) In addition, a number of tools now exist to gather market intelligence from social media more or less automatically. For example, sentiment analysis and reputation analysis tools use advanced language-analysis algorithms to assess the reputations of companies and individuals, measure the emotional quality of online conversations, identify outrage “hot spots” on social media, and uncover trending topics of interest.10 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p70010124510000000000000000036a8#P70010124510000000000000000037CD)

Social networks are vital tools for distributing information as well as for gathering information about the business environment.

Recruiting employees and business partners. Companies use social networks to �ind potential employees, short-term contractors, subject-matter experts, product and service suppliers, and business partners. A key advantage here is that these introductions are made via trusted connections in a professional network. On LinkedIn, for example, members can recommend each other based on current or past business relationships, which helps remove the uncertainty of initiating business relationships with strangers. Connecting with sales prospects. Salespeople on networks such as LinkedIn can use their network connections to identify potential buyers and then ask for introductions through those shared connections. Sales networking can reduce cold calling, telephoning potential customers out of the blue—a

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practice that few people on either end of the conversation �ind pleasant. Supporting customers. Customer service is another one of the fundamental areas of business communication that have been revolutionized by social media. Social customer service involves using social networks and other social media tools to give customers a more convenient way to get help from the company and to help each other. Extending the organization. Social networking is also fueling the growth of networked organizations, sometimes known as virtual organizations, where companies supplement the talents of their employees with services from one or more external partners, such as a design lab, a manufacturing �irm, or a sales and distribution company. Crowdspeaking. Companies, nonpro�its, musicians, authors, and others can use crowdspeaking to “boost a signal.” Crowdspeaking services such as Thunderclap and HeadTalker work in much the same manner as Kickstarter and other crowdfunding sites. Someone with a message to spread sets a campaign goal, such as recruiting 100 supporters to help share the message. If that goal is reached, the message is “triggered” and automatically sent to all the followers in all those supporters’ social networks. By taking advantage of the social reach of their supporters, communicators can reach hundreds or thousands of times as many people as they could on their own.11 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p70010124510000000000000000036a8#P70010124510000000000000000037CF)

BUSINESS COMMUNICATORS INNOVATING WITH SOCIAL MEDIA

Companies in virtually every industry use social media and continue to experiment with new ways to connect with customers and other stakeholders. From offering helpful tips on using products to helping customers meet each other, these companies show the enormous range of possibilities that new media continue to bring to business communication.

Recruiting and Business-Focused Social Networks

Marketo, a developer of digital marketing software, maintains a pro�ile in LinkedIn, as do hundreds of its employees.

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Courtesy of Marketo, Inc. All rights reserved.

Tweetups

A powerful capability of online social media is bringing people with similar interests together of�line. Tweetups, for example, are in-person meetings planned and organized over Twitter.

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Monkey Business/Fotolia

Value-Added Content via Social Networks

Thousands of companies are on social networking platforms, but blatantly promotional posts are not always welcome by fans and followers. Instead, companies such as Whole Foods use social networks to share information of interest, such as recipes and nutritional advice.

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Courtesy Whole Foods Market.

Value-Added Content via Blogging

One of the best ways to become a valued member of a network is to provide content that is useful to others in the network. The Quizzle personal �inance blog offers a steady stream of articles and advice that help people manage their �inances.

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© Quizzle.

Value-Added Content via Online Video

Lie-Nielsen Toolworks of Warren, Maine, uses its YouTube channel to offer valuable information on choosing and using premium woodworking tools. By providing sought-after information for both current and potential customers free of charge, these videos help Lie-Nielsen foster relationships with the worldwide woodworking community and solidify its position as one of the leaders in this market. Animal Planet, Best Western, and Taco Bell are among the many other companies that make effective use of branded channels on YouTube.

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© 2013 by Lie-Nielsen Toolworks, Inc. Used by permission.

Employee Recruiting

Zappos is one of the many companies now using Twitter as a recruiting tool. The company’s @InsideZappos account gives potential employees an insider’s look at the company’s of�beat and upbeat culture.

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Courtesy of Zappos.

STRATEGIES FOR BUSINESS COMMUNICATION ON SOCIAL NETWORKS Social networks offer attractive opportunities for business communication, but they must be used with the same care as other professional media. Follow these guidelines to make the most of social networks for both personal branding and company communication:12 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p70010124510000000000000000036a8#P70010124510000000000000000037D1)

Choose the best composition mode (see Chapter 7 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p7001012451000000000000000003055#P7001012451000000000000000003055) ) for every message type you post on social networks.

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Choose the best compositional mode for each message, purpose, and network. As you visit various social networks, take some time to observe the variety of message types you see in different parts of each website. For example, the informal status update mode works well for Facebook posts but would be less effective for company overviews and mission statements. Offer valuable content to members of your online communities. People don’t join social networks to be sales targets. They join looking for connections and information. Content marketing is the practice of providing free information that is valuable to community members but that also helps a company build closer ties with current and potential customers.13 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p70010124510000000000000000036a8#P70010124510000000000000000037D3) Join existing conversations. Search for online conversations that are already taking place. Answer questions, solve problems, and respond to rumors and misinformation.

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Social shaming in today’s business landscape

See how today’s consumers use the power of social media to get satisfaction from companies. Go to real-timeupdates.com/bct14 (http://real- timeupdates.com/bct14) and select Learn More in the Students section.

Anchor your online presence in your hub. Although it’s important to join those conversations and be visible where your stakeholders are active, it’s equally important to anchor your presence at your own central hub—a web presence you own and control. (Control is important because trying to use Facebook, Twitter, or another service as a hub leaves you at the mercy of changes in design, terms of service, and other variables.) The hub can be a conventional website or a combination of a website, a blog, and a company-sponsored online community, for example.14 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p70010124510000000000000000036a8#P70010124510000000000000000037D5) Use the hub to connect the various pieces of your online “self” (as an individual or a company) to make it easier for people to �ind and follow you. For example, you can link to your blog from your LinkedIn pro�ile or automatically announce new blog posts on Twitter. Facilitate community building. Make it easy for customers and other audiences to connect with the company and with each other. For instance, you can use the group feature on Facebook, LinkedIn, and other social networks to create and foster special-interest communities within your networks. Groups are a great way to connect people who are interested in speci�ic topics, such as owners of a particular product.

Products can be promoted on social networks, but it needs to be done in a low-key, indirect way.

Restrict conventional promotional efforts to the right time and right place. Persuasive communication efforts are still valid for speci�ic communication tasks, such as regular advertising and the product information pages on a website, but efforts to inject blatant “salespeak” into social networking conversations are usually not welcome.

Maintain a consistent personality. Each social network is a unique environment with particular norms of communication.15 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p70010124510000000000000000036a8#P70010124510000000000000000037D7) As a strictly business-oriented network, for example, LinkedIn has a more formal “vibe” than Facebook and Google+ which cater to both consumers and businesses.

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While adapting to the expectations of each network, however, be sure to maintain a consistent personality across all the networks in which you are active.16 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p70010124510000000000000000036a8#P70010124510000000000000000037D9)

See “Writing Promotional Messages for Social Media (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p7001012451000000000000000004a7a#P7001012451000000000000000004AC2) ” in Chapter 12 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p7001012451000000000000000004853#P7001012451000000000000000004853) (pages 344 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p7001012451000000000000000004a7a#page_344) –346 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p7001012451000000000000000004a7a#page_346) ) for more tips on writing messages for social networks and other social media.

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8.3 Information- and Content-Sharing Sites LEARNING OBJECTIVE

3 Explain how information- and content-sharing sites are used in business communication. Social networks allow members to share information and media as part of the networking experience, but a variety of systems have been designed speci�ically for sharing content. Though the �ield is diverse and still evolving, the possibilities can be divided into user-generated content sites, content curation sites, and community Q&A sites.

THE FUTURE OF COMMUNICATION

Augmented Reality and Virtual Reality

Augmented reality and virtual reality (VR) are two intriguing technologies that are starting to change the way employees perform a variety of job tasks, from training to research and development to customer service. Augmented reality provides a layer of digital information that enhances the immediate physical reality a person sees. This information can be as simple as text that displays on a mobile or wearable device pointed at a particular location or item, or as elaborate as 3D graphics that overlay whatever live scene the user is looking at through a device. For example, using an augmented reality app, technicians can point a smartphone or tablet at a machine and get information about its operation and repair. Travelers can use mobile devices to get additional information about environments they’re moving through—everything from reviews of a restaurant they’re walking past to details about the various businesses in an of�ice building.

In contrast, VR creates a simulation in which the person experiences the sensation of being in an environment, even though that environment is entirely computer-generated. (Holograms, in which 3D representations of real people are projected into a physical space, are explored on page 487 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p7001012451000000000000000006018#page_487) .) For training applications, for example, if it is dif�icult, expensive, or dangerous to put trainees in a real-life situation, a VR simulation can let employees experience the sensation of being there and doing whatever tasks are required. VR can also help people experience a product or structure before it is built. Ford uses VR to get feedback from drivers by letting them sit in and experience prototype designs before the cars are manufactured, and Audi lets buyers experience a virtual car with the options they’d like to order. The home improvement chain Lowes uses VR to let customers walk through rooms they want to build or redecorate in their homes. These simulated experiences can communicate much more powerfully than video, photos, or other conventional media.

WHAT’S YOUR PREDICTION?

Research an augmented or VR system that is currently used for business purposes (not games or other entertainment systems, in other words). Write a one- paragraph summary of how this technology is more effective than conventional business media and offer your prediction on whether it will enter the mainstream of business usage.

Sources: Peter Ray Allison, “Augmented Reality Business Applications Start to Get Real,” ComputerWeekly, May 2015, www.computerweekly.com (http://www.computerweekly.com) ; Nicole Laskowski, “Augmented and Virtual Reality Make a Play for the Enterprise,” TechTarget, February 2016, www.techtarget.com (http://www.techtarget.com) ; Leo King, “Ford, Where Virtual Reality Is Already Manufacturing Reality,” Forbes, 3 May 2014, www.forbes.com (http://www.forbes.com) ; Jack E. Gold, “Augmented-Reality Technology May Transform

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Work As We Know It,” TechTarget, June 2015, www.techtarget.com (http://www.techtarget.com) ; Lowe’s Innovation Labs, accessed 23 February 2016, www.lowesinnovationlabs.com/holoroom (http://www.lowesinnovationlabs.com/holoroom) .

USER-GENERATED CONTENT SITES

YouTube and other user-generated content sites are now important business communication channels.

YouTube, Flickr, Yelp, and other user-generated content (UGC) sites (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p70010124510000000000000000036a8#P70010124510000000000000000036C6) , in which users, rather than website owners, contribute most or all of the content, have become serious business tools. On YouTube, for example, companies post everything from product demonstrations and TV commercials to company pro�iles and technical support explanations.

Moreover, the business communication value of sites such as YouTube goes beyond the mere ability to deliver content. The social aspects of these sites, including the ability to vote for, comment on, and share material, encourage enthusiasts to spread the word about the companies and products they endorse.17 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p70010124510000000000000000036a8#P70010124510000000000000000037DB)

Companies can also encourage UGC submissions on their own websites or through other social media platforms, such as Twitter and Facebook. Burberry, Starbucks, and Belkin are among the companies that generated thousands of responses when they invited customers to submit photos and other media.18 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p70010124510000000000000000036a8#P70010124510000000000000000037DD)

The “voice of the crowd,” which is enabled through social media sites, can dramatically in�luence the way businesses are managed.

As one example of the way these sites are changing business communication, Yelp has become a major and sometimes controversial in�luence on consumer behavior at a local level by aggregating millions of reviews of stores, restaurants, and other businesses across the United States.19 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p70010124510000000000000000036a8#P70010124510000000000000000037DF) With the voice of the crowd affecting consumer behavior, businesses need to (1) focus on performing at a high level so that customers reward them with positive reviews and (2) get involved on Yelp (the site encourages business owners to tell potential customers about themselves as well). These efforts could pay off much more handsomely than advertising and other conventional communication efforts.

CONTENT CURATION SITES In many �ields of business, so much original content is already available that sometimes the biggest value a communicator can offer audiences is guiding them to the best of what’s out there, rather than creating new content. Similar to what museum curators do when they decide which pieces in their collection to display, business communicators can �ind and share valuable material with the audiences through content curation (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p70010124510000000000000000036a8#P70010124510000000000000000036BA) .

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Content curation is the process of collecting and presenting articles, videos, and other material on a particular topic in a way that makes it convenient for target readers.

At its simplest, content curation can involve sharing links to useful articles or video via blogs or social media accounts. Companies can also set up dedicated websites that publish links to original content in a variety of topic categories. The authors’ Business Communication Headline News (bchn.businesscommunicationnetwork.com (http://bchn.businesscommunicationnetwork.com) ), for instance, is one of the earliest examples of content curation in the �ield of business communication. As an alternative, a number of websites offer ready-made content curation solutions. Pinterest and Scoop.it, for example, make it easy to assemble attractive online magazines or portfolios on speci�ic topics.

Curating content for a target audience can be a great way to add value and stand out as an expert in your �ield. Not only can you save readers the time it would take to �ind material on their own, but you can use your knowledge to locate and present the most useful articles, videos, and other media on a given topic.

All content curators need to be aware of two key ethical concerns. First, you must not plagiarize, which is presenting someone else’s content as your own. Second, you are promoting yourself as an expert when you curate content, and people will expect you to do a competent job of �inding and �iltering materials. As with any communication task, make sure you understand the needs of your target audience so that you can provide the best material possible to meet their needs.20 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p70010124510000000000000000036a8#P70010124510000000000000000037E1)

COMMUNITY Q&A SITES Community Q&A sites (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p70010124510000000000000000036a8#P70010124510000000000000000036B7) , on which visitors answer questions posted by other visitors, are a contemporary twist on the early ethos of computer networking, which was people helping each other. (Groups of like-minded people connected online long before the World Wide Web was even created.) Community Q&A sites include dedicated customer support communities such as those hosted on Get Satisfaction and public sites such as Quora and Yahoo! Answers.

Community Q&A sites offer great opportunities for building your personal brand.

Responding to questions on Q&A sites can be a great way to build your personal brand, to demonstrate your company’s commitment to customer service, and to counter misinformation about your company and its products. Keep in mind that when you respond to an individual query on a community Q&A site, you are also “responding in advance” to every person who comes to the site with the same question in the future. In other words, you are writing a type of reference material in addition to corresponding with the original questioner, so keep the long time frame and wider audience in mind.

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8.4 Blogging LEARNING OBJECTIVE

4 Describe the role of blogging in business communication today, and explain how to adapt the three-step writing process to blogging. Blogs (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p70010124510000000000000000036a8#P70010124510000000000000000036AE) , online journals that are easier to personalize and update than conventional websites, are a major force in business communication. To maintain a positive connection with target audiences, business bloggers should follow several important guidelines:

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Writing in a personal, authentic voice is key to attracting and keeping blog readers.

Communicate with personal style and an authentic voice. Traditional business messages designed for large audiences tend to be carefully scripted and written in a “corporate voice” that is impersonal and objective. In contrast, successful business blogs tend to exhibit the personal style of their authors. Audiences relate to this fresh approach and often build closer emotional bonds with the blogger’s organization as a result. Deliver new information quickly. Blogging tools let you post new material as soon as you create or �ind it. This feature not only allows you to respond quickly when needed—such as during a corporate crisis—but also lets your audiences know that active communication is taking place. Blogs that don’t offer a continuous stream of new and interesting content are quickly ignored in today’s online environment. Choose topics of peak interest to audiences. Successful blogs cover topics that readers care about, and they emphasize useful information while downplaying product promotion.21 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p70010124510000000000000000036a8#P70010124510000000000000000037E3) These topics don’t need to be earthshaking or cutting edge—they just need to be things that matter to target readers.

Most business blogs invite readers to leave comments as a way to encourage participation among stakeholders.

Encourage audiences to join the conversation. Not all blogs invite comments, but many bloggers consider comments to be an essential feature. These comments can be a valuable source of news, information, and insights. In addition, the relatively informal nature of blogging seems to make it easier for company representatives to let their guards down and converse with their audiences. Of course, not all comments are helpful or appropriate, which is why many bloggers moderate comments, previewing them before allowing them to be displayed.

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DIGITAL + SOCIAL + MOBILE: TODAY’S COMMUNICATION ENVIRONMENT

Community Manager: Keeping a Company Connected to Its Stakeholders

In the narrowest sense, a community manager is the social media interface between a company and its external stakeholders. More broadly, some community managers also plan and manage corporate events and oversee customer support operations. In smaller �irms the community manager might be the sole voice in a company’s social media presence (running its Twitter account and Facebook pages, for example). In larger �irms the job often entails supervising a team of people who carry out a broad range of audience-engagement activities.

Not surprisingly, communication skills are essential for community managers, from handling the nuts and bolts of effectively using social media to fostering a sense of community and inspiring people to be passionate about a company and its brands. In addition, community management is a data-intensive job in many companies; managers are expected to make full use of analytical tools to measure the effects of social interaction and to use those results to plan new initiatives. Community managers also have to be well versed in their company’s product and service offerings.

On a personal level, the job requires high energy, resilience, a thick skin for handling negative comments, and a willingness to be connected far beyond the limits of a 40-hour week. You are “the face of the brand,” as Adobe’s community manager Rachael King describes it, and when major events hit, social managers are expected to respond in real time.

If the attractions and challenges of this job sound appealing to you, be sure to add community manager to the list of career paths to explore as you get closer to graduation.

CAREER APPLICATIONS

1. Would someone with limited work experience but a long personal history of using social media be a good candidate for a community manager position? Why or why not?

2. What are the risks of having a single person be the voice of a company? How should companies address these risks?

Sources: Lindsay Kolowich, “What the Best Social Media Community Managers Actually Do in Their Jobs,” HubSpot blog, 8 July 2015, blog.hubspot.com (http://blog.hubspot.com) ; Don Power, “In Their Own Words: What Community Managers Do Every Day,” SproutSocial, 7 March 2013, sproutsocial.com (http://sproutsocial.com) ; Ryan Lytle, “10 Qualities of an Effective Community Manager,” Mashable, 27 January 2013, mashable.com (http://mashable.com) ; Jennifer Grayeb, “The 4 Pillars of Community Management,” Forbes, 25 December 2013, www.forbes.com (http://www.forbes.com) ; Tim McDonald, “Community Manager: Key to the Future of Business,” Huf�ington Post, 27 January 2014, www.huf�ingtonpost.com (http://www.huf�ingtonpost.com) .

UNDERSTANDING THE BUSINESS APPLICATIONS OF BLOGGING Blogs are a potential solution whenever you have a continuing stream of information to share with an online audience—and particularly when you want the audience to have the opportunity to respond. Here are some of the many ways businesses are using blogs:22 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p70010124510000000000000000036a8#P70010124510000000000000000037E5)

The business applications of blogs include a wide range of internal and external communication tasks.

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Anchoring the social media presence. As noted earlier, the multiple threads of any social media program should be anchored in a central hub that the company or an individual owns and controls. Blogs make an ideal social media hub. Project management and team communication. Using blogs is a good way to keep project teams up to date, particularly when team members are geographically dispersed.

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Big companies that blog well

Explore 10 blogs from such major brands as Coca-Cola and Disney. Go to real-timeupdates.com/bct14 (http://real-timeupdates.com/bct14) and select Learn More in the Students section.

Internal company news. Companies can use blogs to keep employees informed about general business matters, from facility news to bene�it updates. By reducing the need for grapevines to spring up, blogs can enhance communication across all levels of a company. Customer support. Customer support blogs answer questions, offer tips and advice, and inform customers about new products. Also, many companies monitor the blogosphere (and Twittersphere), looking for complaints and responding with offers to help dissatis�ied customers.23 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p70010124510000000000000000036a8#P70010124510000000000000000037E7) Public relations and media relations. Many company employees and executives now share company news with both the general public and journalists via their blogs. Recruiting. Using a blog is a great way to let potential employees know more about your company, the people who work there, and the nature of the company culture. In the other direction, employers often �ind and evaluate the blogs and microblogs of prospective employees, making blogging a great way to build a name for yourself within your industry or profession. Policy and issue discussions. Executive blogs in particular provide a public forum for discussing legislation, regulations, and other broad issues of interest to an organization. Crisis communication. Using blogs is an ef�icient way to provide up-to-the-minute information during emergencies, to correct misinformation, or to respond to rumors. Market research. Blogs are a clever mechanism for soliciting feedback from customers and experts in the marketplace. In addition to using their own blogs for research, today’s companies need to monitor blogs that are likely to discuss them, their executives, and their products. Negative product reviews, rumors, and other information can spread across the globe in a matter of hours, and managers need to know what the online community is saying—whether it’s positive or negative. Brainstorming. Online brainstorming via blogs offers a way for people to toss around ideas and build on each others’ contributions. Employee engagement. Blogs can enhance communication across all levels of a company, giving senior managers a channel they can use to communicate with employees and giving employees the chance to offer comments and ask questions. Customer education. Blogs are a great way to help current and potential customers understand and use your products and services. Doing so can also improve sales and support productivity by reducing the need for one-on-one communication.

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Word-of-mouth marketing. Bloggers and microbloggers often make a point of providing links to other blogs and websites that interest them, giving marketers a great opportunity to have their messages spread by enthusiasts. Word-of-mouth marketing is often called viral marketing in reference to the transmission of messages in much the same way that biological viruses are transmitted from person to person. However, viral marketing is not really an accurate metaphor. As author Brian Solis puts it, “There is no such thing as viral marketing.”24 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p70010124510000000000000000036a8#P70010124510000000000000000037E9) Real viruses spread from host to host on their own, whereas word-of-mouth marketing requires “hosts” to spread messages voluntarily. The distinction is critical because you need to give people a good reason—good content, in other words—to pass along your message. In�luencing traditional media news coverage. According to the social media consultant Tamar Weinberg, “The more proli�ic bloggers who provide valuable and consistent content are often considered experts in their subject matter” and are often called upon when journalists need insights into various topics.25 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p70010124510000000000000000036a8#P70010124510000000000000000037EB) Community building. Blogging is a great way to connect people with similar interests, and popular bloggers often attract a community of readers who connect with one another through the commenting function.

The possibilities of blogs are almost unlimited, so be on the lookout for new ways to use them to foster positive relationships with colleagues, customers, and other important audiences (see Figure 8.2 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p700101245100000000000000000356d#P70010124510000000000000000035C1) ).

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Figure 8.2 Business Applications of Blogging

This Xerox blog illustrates the content, writing style, and features that make an effective, reader-friendly company blog.

Source: Courtesy of Xerox Corporation. Hero Images/Getty Images

ADAPTING THE THREE-STEP PROCESS FOR SUCCESSFUL BLOGGING The three-step writing process is easy to adapt to blogging. The planning step is particularly important if you’re considering starting a blog because you’re planning an entire communication channel, not just a single message. Pay close attention to your audience, your purpose, and your scope.

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Before you launch a blog, make sure you have a clear understanding of your target audience, the purpose of your blog, and the scope of subjects you plan to cover.

Audience. Except with team blogs and other efforts that have an obvious and well-de�ined audience, de�ining the target audience for a blog can be challenging. You want an audience that is large enough to justify the time you’ll be investing but narrow enough that you can provide a clear focus. For instance, if you work for a �irm that develops computer games, would you focus your blog on “hardcore” players, the types who spend thousands of dollars on super-fast PCs optimized for video games, or would you broaden the reach to include all video gamers? The decision often comes down to business strategy. Purpose. A business blog needs to have a business-related purpose that is important to your company and to your chosen audience. Moreover, the purpose has to “have legs”—that is, it needs to be something that can drive the blog’s content for months or years—rather than focus on a single event or an issue of only temporary interest. For instance, if you’re a technical expert, you might create a blog to give the audience tips and techniques for using your company’s products more effectively—a never-ending subject that’s important to both you and your audience. This would be the general purpose of your blog; each post would have a speci�ic purpose within the context of that general purpose. Finally, if you are not writing an of�icial company blog but rather blogging as an individual employee, make sure you understand your employer’s blogging guidelines. IBM, for example, gives its employees 12 speci�ic social computing guidelines, such as identifying their role as IBM employees if they are discussing matters related to the company and respecting intellectual property laws.26 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p70010124510000000000000000036a8#P70010124510000000000000000037ED) Scope. De�ining the scope of your blog can be a bit tricky. You want to cover a subject area that is broad enough to offer ongoing discussion possibilities but narrow enough to have an identi�iable focus. With a clear purpose in mind, you’ll have a better idea of how wide or narrow your subject can be.

After you begin writing your blog, careful planning needs to continue with each message. Unless you’re posting to a restricted-access blog, such as an internal blog on a company’s intranet, you can never be sure who might see your posts or when other bloggers might link to them.

The ideal writing style for blog posts is personal and comfortable—but not careless.

Use a comfortable, personal writing style. Blog audiences don’t want to hear from your company; they want to hear from you. Bear in mind, though, that comfortable does not mean careless. Sloppy writing annoys readers and damages your credibility.

Successful blog content also needs to be interesting, valuable to readers, and as brief as possible.27 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p70010124510000000000000000036a8#P70010124510000000000000000037EF) In addition, although audiences expect you to be knowledgeable in the subject area your blog covers, you don’t need to know everything about a topic. If you don’t have all the information yourself, provide links to other blogs and websites that supply relevant content. In fact, content curation (see page 213 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p700101245100000000000000000353f#page_213) ) is one of the most valuable aspects of blogging.

As with email subject lines, compelling headlines for blog posts are an essential tool to draw in readers. A headline needs to grab the reader’s attention in a split second by promising something useful, surprising, challenging, or otherwise different from what he or she already knows. Headlines should be as short as possible and suggest that the information in the post will be easy to read and use. “List” headlines that cut right to the heart of something readers care about, such as “10 Reasons You Didn’t Get That Promotion” or “Seven Ways to Save Money with Your Smartphone,” are particularly popular among bloggers.

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Completing messages for your blog is usually easy. Evaluate the content and readability of your message, proofread to correct any errors, and post it. Most blogging systems have built-in newsfeed options (often called RSS newsfeeds) so that your audience can automatically receive new posts from you.

Finally, make your material easier to �ind by tagging (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p70010124510000000000000000036a8#P70010124510000000000000000036C3) it with descriptive words. Your readers can then select these “content labels” to �ind additional posts about those topics. Tags are usually displayed with each post, and they can also be grouped in a tag cloud display, which shows all the tags in use on your blog.

“Checklist: Blogging for Business” summarizes some of the key points to remember when creating and writing a business blog.

CHECKLIST Blogging for Business

Consider creating a blog or microblog account whenever you have a continuing stream of information to share with an online audience. Identify an audience that is broad enough to justify the effort but narrow enough to have common interests. Identify a purpose that is comprehensive enough to provide ideas for a continuing stream of posts. Consider the scope of your blog carefully; make it broad enough to attract an audience but narrow enough to keep you focused. Communicate with a personal style and an authentic voice, but don’t write carelessly. Deliver new information quickly. Choose topics of peak interest to your audience. Encourage audiences to join the conversation. Consider using Twitter or other microblog updates to alert readers to new posts on your regular blog.

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8.5 Microblogging LEARNING OBJECTIVE

5 Describe the business uses of Twitter and other microblogging systems. A microblog (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p70010124510000000000000000036a8#P70010124510000000000000000036BD) is a variation on blogging in which messages are sharply restricted to speci�ic character counts. Twitter is the best known of these systems, but many others exist. Some companies have private microblogging systems for internal use only, either as standalone services or as part of broader collaboration systems.

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The mobile app for Twitter helps you stay connected with your followers and the accounts you follow.

Many of the concepts of regular blogging apply to microblogging as well, although the severe length limitations call for a different approach to composition. Microblog messages often involve short summaries or teasers that provide links to more information. In addition, microblogs tend to have a stronger social aspect that makes it easier for writers and readers to forward messages and for communities to form around individual writers.28 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p70010124510000000000000000036a8#P70010124510000000000000000037F1)

The business communication uses of microblogging extend well beyond the publication of brief updates.

Like regular blogging, microblogging quickly caught on with business users and is now a mainstream business medium. Microblogs are used for virtually all of the blog applications mentioned on pages 215 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p700101245100000000000000000356d#page_215) – 216 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p700101245100000000000000000356d#page_216) . In addition, microblogs are frequently used for providing company updates, offering coupons and notices of sales, presenting tips on product usage, sharing relevant and interesting information from experts, announcing the headlines of new blog posts, engaging with customers (see Figure 8.3 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p7001012451000000000000000003607#P7001012451000000000000000003618) ), and serving as the backchannel in meetings and presentations (see page 477 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p7001012451000000000000000005da5#page_477) ). By following top names in your �ield, you can also customize Twitter as your own real-time news source.29 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p70010124510000000000000000036a8#P70010124510000000000000000037F3)

Customer service is also becoming a popular use for Twitter, thanks to its ease and speed and the option of switching between public tweets and private direct messages as the situation warrants.30 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p70010124510000000000000000036a8#P70010124510000000000000000037F5) Even if a company

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doesn’t want to use Twitter as a customer service channel, it should monitor the system to look for complaints or questions from customers, many of whom use Twitter these days to ask for help or publicize their disappointment.

Figure 8.3 Business Applications of Microblogging

Mathews, a small manufacturer of archery products, uses Twitter to foster relationships with customers and other interested parties. Notice how every tweet in this time line is part of a conversation.

Courtesy of Mathews Archery, Inc.

The social networking aspect of Twitter and other microblogs also makes them good for crowdsourcing research questions: asking one’s followers for input or advice.31 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p70010124510000000000000000036a8#P70010124510000000000000000037F7) Finally, the ease of retweeting, the practice of forwarding messages from other Twitter users, is the microblogging equivalent of sharing other content from other bloggers via content curation.

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Tips for ensuring a positive Twitter experience

Twitter offers advice for getting the most from the service while avoiding common blunders. Go to real-timeupdates.com/bct14 (http://real- timeupdates.com/bct14) and select Learn More in the Students section.

In addition to its usefulness as a standalone system, Twitter is integrated with other social media systems and a variety of publishing and reading tools and services. Many of these make use of the informal Twitter feature known as the hashtag (the # symbol followed by a word or phrase), which makes it easy for people to label and search for topics of interest and to monitor ongoing Twitter conversations about particular topics. As Starbucks discovered, however, hashtags can turn into “bashtags” when members of the public use a hashtag campaign to ridicule or criticize a company32 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p70010124510000000000000000036a8#P70010124510000000000000000037F9) (see page 205 (M11_C08.xhtml#page_205) ).

Don’t let the speed and simplicity of microblogging lull you into making careless mistakes; every message should support your business communication objectives.

Although microblogs are designed to encourage spontaneous communication, when you’re using the medium for business communication, don’t just tweet whatever pops into your head. Make sure messages are part of your overall communication strategy. Twitter followers consider tweets that are entertaining, surprising, informative, or engaging (such as asking followers for advice) as the most valuable. In contrast, the least-valuable tweets tend to be complaints, conversations between the Twitter account owner and a speci�ic follower, and relatively pointless messages such as saying “good morning.”33 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p70010124510000000000000000036a8#P70010124510000000000000000037FB)

Table 8.1 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p7001012451000000000000000003607#P7001012451000000000000000003636) summarizes the advice for successful blogging and microblogging in business.

TABLE 8.1 Tips for Effective Business Blogging and Microblogging

Tip Why It’s Important

Don’t blog without a clear plan. Without a clear plan, your blog or Twitter feed is likely to wander from topic to topic and fail to build a sense of community with your audience.

Post frequently, but don’t overwhelm your readers.

If you won’t have a constant supply of new information or new links, create a traditional website instead. On the other hand, blogging or tweeting too often can overwhelm your followers.

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Tip Why It’s Important

Make it about your audience and the issues important to them.

Readers want to know how your blog will help them, entertain them, or give them a chance to communicate with others who have similar interests.

Write in an authentic voice; never create an arti�icial character who supposedly writes a blog.

Flogs, or fake blogs, violate the spirit of blogging, show disrespect for your audience, and will turn audiences against you as soon as they uncover the truth. Fake blogs that are used to promote products are now illegal in some countries.

Link and retweet generously—but carefully.

Providing interesting links to other blogs and websites is a fundamental aspect of blogging, but make sure the links will be of value to your readers, and don’t point to inappropriate material. Similarly, retweeting is a good way to share interesting content and build relationships with other Twitter users, but retweeting too often can annoy your followers.

Keep blog posts brief. Most online readers don’t have the patience to read lengthy reports. Rather than writing long, report-style posts, you can write brief posts that link to in-depth reports.

Don’t post or tweet anything you wouldn’t want the entire world to see.

Future employers, government regulators, competitors, journalists, and community critics are just a few of the people who might eventually see what you’ve written.

Minimize marketing and sales messages.

Even product enthusiasts and motivated shoppers don’t want to be “sold to” on company blogs. They want information about how products and services will meet their needs.

Take time to write compelling, speci�ic headlines for your posts.

Readers usually decide within a couple of seconds whether to read a post; boring or vague headlines will turn them away instantly.

Pay attention to spelling, grammar, and mechanics.

No matter how smart or experienced you are, poor-quality writing undermines your credibility with intelligent audiences.

Respond to criticism openly and honestly.

Hiding sends the message that you don’t have a valid response to the criticism. If your critics are wrong, patiently explain why you think they’re wrong. If they are right, explain how you’ll �ix the situation.

Listen and learn. If you don’t take the time to analyze the comments people leave on your blog or the comments other bloggers make about you, you’re missing out on one of the most valuable aspects of blogging.

Respect intellectual property. Improperly using material you don’t own is not only unethical but can be illegal as well.

Be scrupulously honest and careful with facts.

Honesty is an absolute requirement for every ethical business communicator, of course, but you need to be extra careful online because inaccuracies (both intentional and unintentional) are likely to be discovered quickly and shared widely.

If you review products on your blog, disclose any bene�icial relationships you have with the companies that make those products.

Bloggers who receive free products or other compensation from companies whose products they write about are now required to disclose the nature of these relationships.

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8.6 Wikis LEARNING OBJECTIVE

6 Offer guidelines for becoming a valuable wiki contributor. As Chapter 2 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p70010124510000000000000000015f4#P70010124510000000000000000015F4) points out, using wikis is a great way for teams and other groups to collaborate on writing projects, from brief articles to long reports and reference works. The bene�its of wikis are compelling, but they do require a unique approach to writing.

UNDERSTANDING THE WIKI PHILOSOPHY

To be a valuable wiki contributor, keep these points in mind:34 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p70010124510000000000000000036a8#P70010124510000000000000000037FD)

Being an effective wiki collaborator requires a different mindset when writing.

Let go of traditional expectations of authorship, including individual recognition and control. Encourage all team members to improve each other’s work. Use page templates and other formatting options to make sure your content matches the rest of the wiki. Many wikis provide both editing and commenting capabilities, and participants should use the appropriate tool for each. In other words, don’t insert comments or questions into the main content; use the “talk page” or other commenting feature if you want to discuss the content. Take advantage of the sandbox, if available; this is a “safe,” nonpublished section of the wiki where team members can practice editing and writing.

Wikis often have guideline pages to help new contributors integrate their work into the group’s ongoing effort. Be sure to read and understand these guidelines, and don’t be afraid to ask for help.

ADAPTING THE THREE-STEP PROCESS FOR SUCCESSFUL WIKI WRITING You can easily adapt the three-step writing process for wikis, depending on whether you are creating a new wiki, adding new material to an existing wiki, or revising existing material on a wiki.

If you are creating a new wiki, think through your long-term purpose carefully, just as you would with a new blog or podcast channel. Doing so will help you craft appropriate guidelines, editorial oversight, and security policies.

Make sure you understand how a new wiki page will �it in with the existing content.

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If you are adding a page or an article to an existing wiki, �igure out how this new material �its in with the existing organization. Determine whether any similar material already exists; it might be better to expand an existing article or add a subpage than to create a new item. Also, learn the wiki’s preferred style for handling incomplete articles. For example, on the wiki that contains the user documentation for the popular WordPress blogging software, contributors are discouraged from adding new pages until the content is “fairly complete and accurate.”35 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p70010124510000000000000000036a8#P70010124510000000000000000037FF)

If you are revising or updating an existing wiki article, use the checklist on page 157 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p7001012451000000000000000002b0a#page_157) in Chapter 6 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p7001012451000000000000000002ade#P7001012451000000000000000002ADE) to evaluate the content before you make changes. If you don’t agree with published content and plan to revise it, you can use the wiki’s discussion facility to share your concerns with other contributors. The wiki environment should encourage discussions and even robust disagreements, as long as everyone remains civil and respectful.

For the latest advice on using social media in business, visit real-timeupdates.com/bct14 (http://real-timeupdates.com/bct14) and select Chapter 8 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p7001012451000000000000000003454#P7001012451000000000000000003454) .

COMMUNICATION CHALLENGES AT Starbucks You’ve joined Alexandra Wheeler’s social media team. Use what you’ve learned in the course so far to solve these communication dilemmas.

INDIVIDUAL CHALLENGE: You’ve written a blog entry describing an upcoming competition in which the small town that submits the most creative “community spirit” video will win a $50,000 makeover of a park or community center. Write a tweet of no more than 140 characters that could serve as a teaser to persuade your Twitter followers to click through to the blog post.

TEAM CHALLENGE: One member of the social media team is retiring, and you’ve been asked to recruit her replacement, whose primary responsibility will be blogging. Your plan is to send an email message to everyone in the company, providing a brief reminder of the blog’s purpose, describing the writing style you’re looking for, and inviting interested writers to submit sample blog entries for evaluation. (This message is for employees only; it won’t be seen by the public.) With a team assigned by your instructor, brainstorm the ideal qualities of writer for the Starbucks blog, then draft the email invitation.

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Quick Learning Guide

KEY TERMS

blog An easily updatable online journal; short for weblog

brand communities Groups of people united by their interest in and ownership or use of particular products

brand socialization A measure of how effectively a company engages with its various online stakeholders in a mutually bene�icial exchange of information

community Q&A sites Websites on which visitors answer questions posted by other visitors or by company representatives

content curation The practice of collecting, �iltering, and republishing material on a particular topic

microblog A variation on a blog in which messages are restricted to speci�ic character counts; Twitter is the best-known example

social networks Online services that enable individual and organizational members to form connections and share information

tagging Attaching descriptive terms to blog posts and other articles to facilitate searching

user-generated content (UGC) sites Websites on which users, rather than website owners, contribute most or all of the content

SUMMARY OF LEARNING OBJECTIVES

1 Identify seven key points for using social media in business communication. Seven key points for using social media are (1) remember that it’s a conversation, not a lecture or a sales pitch; (2) write informally but not carelessly; (3) create concise, speci�ic, and informative headlines that don’t force readers to solve clever wordplay puzzles; (4) get involved and stay involved with conversations that concern your company; (5) promote your company and products indirectly; (6) be transparent and honest; and (7) think before you post to avoid problems caused by careless messages.

2 Describe the business communication applications of social networks. Businesses now use a variety of social networks, including well-known public networks such as Facebook and business-oriented networks such as LinkedIn, as well as a variety of specialized networks, single-company networks for customers, and internal employee-only networks. The business communication applications of social networks are important and diverse; major uses include collaborating, gathering market intelligence, recruiting employees, connecting with business partners, marketing, and fostering brand communities.

3 Explain how information- and content-sharing sites are used in business communication. User-generated content sites such as YouTube allow companies to host media (such as videos) that customers and other stakeholders can view, comment on, and share. Content curation sites allow professionals and consumers with expertise or interest in a particular �ield to collect and republish material on a particular topic. Community Q&A sites give individuals the opportunity to build their personal brands by providing expertise, and they give companies the chance to address customer complaints and correct misinformation.

4 Describe the role of blogging in business communication today, and explain how to adapt the three-step writing process to blogging. Blogs are used in numerous ways in business today, such as for project management and team communication, company news, customer support,

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public relations and media relations, employee recruiting, policy and issue discussions, crisis communication, market research, brainstorming, employee engagement, viral marketing, in�luencing traditional media news coverage, and community building.

The three-step writing process adapts readily to blogging. When planning, be particularly careful in de�ining your audience, identifying the overall purpose of your blog and the speci�ic purposes of each post, and establishing a scope that is narrow enough to be focused but broad enough to afford a steady supply of topics. Be sure to write in a personal, authentic style, without slipping into overly familiar or careless writing. Completing messages involves the usual tasks of proo�ing and revising before posting, along with the particular tasks needed to distribute your posts via newsfeeds.

5 Describe the business uses of Twitter and other microblogging systems. Microblogs such as Twitter are used for many of the same purposes as conventional blogging, along with digital coupons, sale announcements, one-on-one customer service queries, and customized news channels created by following experts of interest. Microblogs can also serve as the backchannel during meetings and presentations.

6 Offer guidelines for becoming a valuable wiki contributor. To become a valuable wiki contributor, let go of traditional expectations of authorship, including individual recognition and control; don’t be afraid to edit and improve existing content; use page templates and other formatting options to make sure your content is formatted in the same style as the rest of the wiki; keep edits and comments separate by using the “talk page” to discuss content, rather than inserting comments directly into the text; take advantage of the sandbox to learn how use the wiki’s writing and editing tools; and understand and follow the wiki’s contributor guidelines.

MyBCommLab

Go to mybcommlab.com (http://mybcommlab.com) to complete the problems marked with this icon .

Test Your Knowledge To review chapter content related to each question, refer to the indicated Learning Objective.

8-1. Why are straightforward, informative headlines better for social media than headlines with witty wordplay? [LO-1] (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p7001012451000000000000000003480#P7001012451000000000000000003482)

8-2. How have social media tools spurred the growth of communities of practice? [LO-2] (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p70010124510000000000000000034ac#P70010124510000000000000000034AE)

8-3. What does it mean to anchor your social media presence in a hub? [LO-2] (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p70010124510000000000000000034ac#P70010124510000000000000000034AE)

8-4. What is content curation? [LO-3] (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p700101245100000000000000000353f#P7001012451000000000000000003541)

8-5. How can blogs help with so-called viral marketing efforts? [LO-4] (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p700101245100000000000000000356d#P700101245100000000000000000356F)

8-6. Why is it important to have a long-term, sustainable purpose in mind before you launch a blog? [LO-4] (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p700101245100000000000000000356d#P700101245100000000000000000356F)

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8-7. How can Twitter be used to crowdsource research? [LO-5] (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p7001012451000000000000000003607#P700101245100000000000000000360A)

8-8. How does the use of hashtags on Twitter help people �ind information of interest? [LO- (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p7001012451000000000000000003607#P700101245100000000000000000360A) 5]

8-9. Why is it important to abandon traditional notions of ownership when writing on a wiki? [LO-6] (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p700101245100000000000000000367a#P700101245100000000000000000367E)

Apply Your Knowledge To review chapter content related to each question, refer to the indicated Learning Objective.

8-10. Can your company stay in control of its messages if it stays off social media? Why or why not? [LO-1] (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p7001012451000000000000000003480#P7001012451000000000000000003482)

8-11. Is leveraging your connections on social networks for business purposes ethical? Why or why not? [LO-2] (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p70010124510000000000000000034ac#P70010124510000000000000000034AE)

8-12. If one of the bene�its of blogging and microblogging is the personal, intimate style of writing, is it a good idea to limit your creativity by adhering to conventional rules of grammar, spelling, and mechanics? Why or why not? [LO-4] (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p700101245100000000000000000356d#P700101245100000000000000000356F)

8-13. What are some of the ways the president of a hiking equipment company can use Twitter to engage potential customers without being overtly promotional? [LO-5] (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p7001012451000000000000000003607#P700101245100000000000000000360A)

8-14. If you know that most readers of your management advice blog access it on mobile devices, should you switch to Twitter instead so the shorter messages would be easier to read on small screens? Why or why not? [LO-5] (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p7001012451000000000000000003607#P700101245100000000000000000360A)

Practice Your Skills 8-15. Message for Analysis 8.A: Media Skills: Blogging, Creating a Businesslike Tone [LO-4] (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p700101245100000000000000000356d#P700101245100000000000000000356F) Revise this blog post based on what you’ve learned in this chapter.

[headline]

We’re DOOMED!!!!!

[post]

I was at the Sikorsky plant in Stratford yesterday, just checking to see how things were going with the assembly line retro�it we did for them last year. I think I saw the future, and it ain’t pretty. They were demo’ing a prototype robot from Motoman that absolutely blows our stuff out of the water. They

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wouldn’t let me really see it, but based on the 10-second glimpse I got, it’s smaller, faster, and more maneuverable than any of our units. And when I asked about the price, the guy just grinned. And it wasn’t the sort of grin designed to make me feel good. I’ve been saying for years that we need to pay more attention to size, speed, and maneuverability instead of just relying on our historical strengths of accuracy and payload capacity, and you’d have to be blind not to agree that this experience proves me right. If we can’t at least show a design for a better unit within two or three months, Motoman is going to lock up the market and leave us utterly in the dust. Believe me, being able to say “I told you so” right now is not nearly as satisfying as you might think!!

8-16. Message 8.B: Revising Web Content with a “You” Attitude [LO-6] (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p700101245100000000000000000367a#P700101245100000000000000000367E) To access this wiki exercise, visit real-timeupdates.com/bct14 (http://real-timeupdates.com/bct14) , select Student Assignments, then select Chapter 8 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p7001012451000000000000000003454#P7001012451000000000000000003454) , Message 8.B. Follow the instructions for evaluating the existing content and revising it to make it more reader oriented.

8-17. Message 8.C: Improving the Effectiveness of a Wiki Article [LO-6] (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p700101245100000000000000000367a#P700101245100000000000000000367E) To access this wiki exercise, go to real-timeupdates.com/bct14 (http://real-timeupdates.com/bct14) , select Student Assignments, then select Chapter 8 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p7001012451000000000000000003454#P7001012451000000000000000003454) , Message 8.C. Follow the instructions for evaluating the existing content and revising it to make it clear and concise.

Exercises

Each activity is labeled according to the primary skill or skills you will need to use. To review relevant chapter content, you can refer to the indicated Learning Objective. In some instances, supporting information will be found in another chapter, as indicated.

8-18. Media Skills: Social Networking [LO-2] (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p70010124510000000000000000034ac#P70010124510000000000000000034AE) Pick a company in any industry that interests you. Imagine you are doing strategic planning for this �irm, and identify one of your company’s key competitors. (Hint: You can use the free listings on www.hoovers.com (http://www.hoovers.com) to �ind several top competitors for most medium-size and large companies in the United States.) Now search through social media sources to �ind three strategically relevant pieces of information about this competitor, such as the hiring of a new executive, the launch of a major new product, or a signi�icant problem of some kind. In a post on your class blog, identify the information you found and the sources you used. (If you can’t �ind useful information, pick another �irm or try another industry.)

8-19. Media Skills: Social Networking [LO-2] (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p70010124510000000000000000034ac#P70010124510000000000000000034AE) Joining an ongoing social media conversation, such as a comment thread on Facebook, requires a delicate touch if you work for a company that has a commercial interest in the subject at hand. Imagine you work for a company that makes audiophile-quality headphones, acoustic guitars, or electronic drum kits (choose whichever product interests you most). While monitoring a Facebook group for enthusiasts of this product category, you see an active thread in which people are complaining about the quality of one of your competitor’s products. You know that for years this company had a reputation for making high-quality equipment, but after a poorly executed plan to outsource manufacturing in order to cut costs, quality has suffered. A similar product that your company offers is slightly more expensive but has signi�icantly higher quality, according to a recent survey conducted by a respected and impartial industry website. Draft a brief comment that you could use to join the conversation. Decide what information you’ll include and whether you will disclose your company af�iliation. Assume that representatives from various companies do occasionally make posts and leave comments in this group, but overt selling is explicitly forbidden by the group’s moderator.

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8-20. Media Skills: Blogging, Creating a Businesslike Tone; Mobile Skills [LO-4] (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p700101245100000000000000000356d#P700101245100000000000000000356F) The members of the project team you lead have enthusiastically embraced blogging as a communication medium. Unfortunately, as emotions heat up during the project, some of the blog posts are becoming too casual, too personal, and even sloppy. Because your boss and other managers within the company also read this project blog, you don’t want the team to seem unprofessional. Revise the following blog post so that it communicates in a more businesslike manner while retaining the informal, conversational tone of a blog. In addition, break it into smaller paragraphs that are more compatible with mobile devices. (Be sure to correct any spelling and punctuation mistakes you �ind as well.)

[post]

Well, to the profound surprise of absolutely nobody, we are not going to be able meet the June 1 commitment to ship 100 operating tables to Southeast Surgical Supply. (For those of you who have been living in a cave the past six month, we have been �ighting to get our hands on enough high-grade chromium steel to meet our production schedule.) Sure enough, we got news, this morning that we will only get enough for 30 tables. Yes, we look like fools for not being able to follow through on promises we made to the customer, but no, this didn’t have to happpen. Six month’s ago, purchasing warned us about shrinking supplies and suggested we advance-buy as much as we would need for the next 12 months, or so. We naturally tried to followed their advice, but just as naturally were shot down by the bean counters at corporate who trotted out the policy about never buying more than three months worth of materials in advance. Of course, it’ll be us—not the bean counters who’ll take the �lak when everybody starts asking why revenues are down next quarter and why Southeast is talking to our friends at Crighton!!! Maybe, some day this company will get its head out of the sand and realize that we need to have some �inancial �lexibility in order to compete.

8-21. Media Skills: Blogging [LO-4 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p700101245100000000000000000356d#P700101245100000000000000000356F) ] Find a current political issue that could have a direct effect on business, such as immigration law, Internet sales tax, product safety, or international trade policy. Identify a company that is affected by this issue, and assume you are the president or CEO and want to speak out about it. Write a three- paragraph blog post that summarizes the issue, explains how it could affect your company, and urges a particular action from political leaders.

8-22. Media Skills: Microblogging [LO-5] (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p7001012451000000000000000003607#P700101245100000000000000000360A) Busy knitters can go through a lot of yarn in a hurry, so most keep a sharp eye out for sales. You’re on the marketing staff of Knitting-Warehouse, and you like to keep your loyal shoppers up to date with the latest deals. Visit the Knitting-Warehouse website at www.knitting-warehouse.com (http://www.knitting-warehouse.com) , choose any on-sale product that catches your eye, and compose a tweet that describes the product and the sale. (Unless you are working on a private Twitter account that is accessible only by your instructor and your classmates, don’t actually tweet this message. Email it to your instructor instead.)

8-23. Media Skills: Microblogging [LO-5] (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p7001012451000000000000000003607#P700101245100000000000000000360A) Choose a product you purchased recently or something you’re considering purchasing. Compose a three-tweet sequence that (1) introduces the product, (2) lists two or three important advantages, and (3) identi�ies which groups of consumers can bene�it from it. Email your tweets to your instructor rather than posting them on Twitter.

Expand Your Skills Critique the Professionals

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On Twitter, �ind two companies in the same industry and review a dozen recent tweets from each. Considering the tweets from the perspective of a potential customer, which company does a better job of engaging your attention and building your interest in its products? Using whatever medium your instructor requests, write a brief analysis of the two companies’ Twitter activity, and explain why one is using the social network more effectively than the other.

Sharpening Your Career Skills Online

Bovée and Thill’s Business Communication Web Search, at websearch.businesscommunicationnetwork.com (http://websearch.businesscommunicationnetwork.com) , is a unique research tool designed speci�ically for business communication research. Use the Web Search function to �ind a website, video, article, podcast, or presentation that offers advice on using social media in business. In a brief email message to your instructor, describe the item that you found and summarize the career skills information you learned from it.

Cases For all cases, feel free to use your creativity to make up any details you need in order to craft effective messages.

SOCIAL NETWORKING SKILLS

8-24. Media Skills: Social Networking; Media Skills: Microblogging [LO-2] (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p70010124510000000000000000034ac#P70010124510000000000000000034AE) [LO-5] (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p7001012451000000000000000003607#P700101245100000000000000000360A) Foursquare is one of the leading providers of location-based social networking services. Millions of people use Foursquare for social engagement and friendly competition, and many business owners are starting to recognize the marketing potential of having people who are on the move in local areas broadcast their locations and share information about stores, restaurants, clubs, and other merchants.

Your task: Review the information on Foursquare’s Merchant Platform at business.foursquare.com (http://business.foursquare.com) . Now write four brief messages, no more than 140 characters long. The �irst should summarize the bene�its to stores, restaurants, and other “brick-and-mortar” businesses of participating in Foursquare; the next three messages should convey three compelling points that support that overall bene�it statement. If your class is set up with private Twitter accounts, use your private account to send your messages. Otherwise, email your four messages to your instructor or post them on your class blog, as your instructor directs.

SOCIAL NETWORKING SKILLS

8-25. Media Skills: Social Networking; Online Etiquette [LO-2] (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p70010124510000000000000000034ac#P70010124510000000000000000034AE) , Chapter 2 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p70010124510000000000000000015f4#P70010124510000000000000000015F4) Employees who take pride in their work are a priceless resource for any business. However, pride can sometimes manifest itself in negative ways when employees receive criticism—and public criticism is a fact of life in social media. Imagine that your company has recently experienced a rash of product quality problems, and these problems have generated some unpleasant and occasionally unfair criticism on a variety of social media sites. Someone even set up a Facebook page speci�ically to give customers a place to vent their frustrations.

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You and your public relations team jumped into action, responding to complaints with offers to provide replacement products and help customers who have been affected by the quality problems. Everything seemed to be going as well as could be expected, until you were checking a few industry blogs one evening and discovered that a couple of engineers in your company’s product design lab have been responding to complaints on their own. They identi�ied themselves as company employees and defended their product design, blaming the company’s production department and even criticizing several customers for lacking the skills needed to use such a sophisticated product. Within a matter of minutes, you see their harsh comments being retweeted and reposted on multiple sites, only fueling the �ire of negative feedback against your �irm. Needless to say, you are horri�ied.

Your task: You manage to reach the engineers by private message and tell them to stop posting messages, but you realize you have a serious training issue on your hands. Write a post for the internal company blog that advises employees on how to respond appropriately when they are representing the company online. Use your imagination to make up any details you need.

SOCIAL NETWORKING SKILLS/TEAM SKILLS

8-26. Media Skills: Social Networking [LO-2] (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p70010124510000000000000000034ac#P70010124510000000000000000034AE) Social media can be a great way to, well, socialize during your college years, but employers are increasingly checking the online activities of potential hires to avoid bringing in employees who may re�lect poorly on the company.

Your task: Team up with another student and review each other’s public presence on Facebook, Twitter, blogs, and any other website that an employer might check during the interview and recruiting process. Identify any photos, videos, messages, or other material that could raise a red �lag when an employee is evaluating a job candidate. Write your teammate an email message that lists any risky material.

BLOGGING SKILLS

8-27. Media Skills: Blogging; Compositional Modes: Tutorials [LO-4] (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p700101245100000000000000000356d#P700101245100000000000000000356F) Studying abroad for a semester or a year can be a rewarding experience in many ways—improving your language skills, experiencing another culture, making contacts in the international business arena, and building your self-con�idence.

Your task: Write a post for your class blog that describes your college’s study abroad program and summarizes the steps involved in applying for international study. If your school doesn’t offer study abroad opportunities, base your post on the program offered at another institution in your state.

BLOGGING SKILLS

8-28. Media Skills: Blogging [LO-4] (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p700101245100000000000000000356d#P700101245100000000000000000356F) Comic-Con International is an annual convention that highlights a wide variety of pop culture and entertainment media, from comic books and collectibles to video games and movies. From its early start as a comic book convention that attracted several hundred fans and publishing industry insiders, Comic-Con has become a major international event with more than 130,000 attendees.

Your task: Several readers of your pop culture blog have been asking for your recommendation about visiting Comic-Con in San Diego next summer. Write a two- or three-paragraph post for your blog that explains what Comic-Con is and what attendees can expect to experience at the convention. Be

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sure to address your post to fans, not industry insiders.36 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p70010124510000000000000000036a8#P7001012451000000000000000003801)

BLOGGING SKILLS/MOBILE SKILLS

8-29. Media Skills: Blogging; Compositional Modes: Tutorials; Mobile Skills [LO-4] (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p700101245100000000000000000356d#P700101245100000000000000000356F) Tumblr has become a popular “short-form” blogging platform by combining the simplicity of Twitter with the ability to share photos and other media easily.

Your task: Write a 300- to 400-word mobile-friendly post for your class blog that explains how to set up an account on Tumblr and get involved in the Tumblr community. The help pages on Tumblr are a good place to get more information about the service.

BLOGGING SKILLS

8-30. Media Skills: Blogging [LO-4] (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p700101245100000000000000000356d#P700101245100000000000000000356F) Credit card debt can be a crippling �inancial burden with myriad side effects, from higher insurance rates to more expensive loans to dif�iculty getting a job or a promotion. Unfortunately, credit debt is also frighteningly easy to fall into, particularly for young people trying to get started in life with limited cash �low.

Your task: Write a three- to �ive-paragraph blog post that warns college students about the dangers of credit card debt. Be sure to cite the sources you �ind in your research.

MICROBLOGGING SKILLS

8-31. Media Skills: Microblogging; Compositional Modes: Summaries [LO-1] (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p7001012451000000000000000003480#P7001012451000000000000000003482) [LO-5] (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p7001012451000000000000000003607#P700101245100000000000000000360A) A carefully constructed series of tweets can serve as a summary of a blog post, video, or other message or document.

Your task: Find any article, podcast, video, or webpage on a business topic that interests you. Write four to six tweetables that summarize the content of the piece. Restrict the �irst tweetable to 120 characters to allow for a URL. Email the series to your instructor or publish them on Twitter if your instructor directs. If you quote phrases from the original directly, be sure to put them in quotation marks.

MICROBLOGGING SKILLS

8-32. Media Skills: Microblogging; Compositional Modes: Teasers [LO-5] (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p7001012451000000000000000003607#P700101245100000000000000000360A) Twitter updates are a great way to alert people to helpful articles, videos, and other online resources.

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Your task: Find an online resource (it can be a website quiz, a YouTube video, a PowerPoint presentation, a newspaper article, or anything else appropriate) that offers some great tips to help college students prepare for job interviews. Write a teaser of no more than 120 characters that hints at the bene�its other students can get from this resource. If your class is set up with private Twitter accounts, use your private account to send your message. Otherwise, email it to your instructor.

MICROBLOGGING SKILLS

8-33. Media Skills: Microblogging; Compositional Modes: Updates and Announcements [LO-5] (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p7001012451000000000000000003607#P700101245100000000000000000360A) JetBlue is known for its innovations in customer service and customer communication, including its pioneering use of the Twitter microblogging system. Nearly 2 million JetBlue fans and customers follow the company on Twitter to get updates on �light status during weather disruptions, facility upgrades, and other news.37 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p70010124510000000000000000036a8#P7001012451000000000000000003803)

Your task: Write a message of no more than 140 characters that announces the limited-time availability of �lights and travel packages—�lights plus hotel rooms, for example—at JetBlue’s store on eBay. The key selling point is that travelers may be able to purchase �lights they want at steep discounts. If your class is set up with private Twitter accounts, use your private account to send your message. Otherwise, email it to your instructor.

WIKI SKILLS

8-34. Media Skills: Wiki Writing; Evaluating the Work of Other Writers [LO-6] (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p700101245100000000000000000367a#P700101245100000000000000000367E) Evaluating existing content is a vital step in making improvements to a wiki.

Your task: Find an article on Wikipedia that needs to be updated, corrected, or otherwise improved. You can use an article that has been �lagged by Wikipedia editors or �ind an article on a subject you are familiar with, such as the pro�ile of a favorite musical artist. To keep the project at a manageable size, feel free to select a portion of a longer article (roughly 500 to 1,000 words). Using the guidelines on page 157 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p7001012451000000000000000002b0a#page_157) for evaluating the work of other writers, evaluate the quality of the article and identify the steps you would take to improve it. Revise the piece and post your version on your class blog or email it to your instructor. Include a brief summary of the changes you made and your reasons for making them. (Do not edit the Wikipedia entry as part of this assignment.)

MyBCommLab Go to mybcommlab.com (http://mybcommlab.com) for Auto-graded writing questions as well as the following Assisted-graded writing questions:

8-35. Why is “viral marketing” a misleading description? [LO-4] (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p700101245100000000000000000356d#P700101245100000000000000000356F)

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8-36. Why does a personal style of writing help blogs build stronger relationships with audiences? [LO-4] (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p700101245100000000000000000356d#P700101245100000000000000000356F)

Endnotes 1 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p7001012451000000000000000003454#rP70010124510000000000000000037BB) . Starbucks website, accessed 11 February 2016, www.starbucks.com (http://www.starbucks.com) ; “How Starbucks Social Media Team Captures the Personality of a Beverage,” Starbucks news release, 6 May 2015, news.starbucks.com (http://news.starbucks.com) ; David Moth, “How Starbucks Uses Pinterest, Facebook, Twitter and Google+” Econsultancy, 6 March 2013; Melissa Allison, “Starbucks Presses Social Media Onward,” Seattle Times, 27 April 2013; Bethany Simpson, “3 Insane Starbucks Campaigns,” iMedia Connection, 29 March 2012, www.imediaconnection.com (http://www.imediaconnection.com) ; Starbucks U.S. and U.K. pages on Facebook, accessed 14 June 2013; Margaret Rhodes, “Most Creative People 2013: 12. Luz Muller,” Fast Company, 13 May 2013.

2 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p7001012451000000000000000003480#rP70010124510000000000000000037BD) . Catherine Toole, “My 7 Deadly Sins of Writing for Social Media—Am I Right?” Econsultancy blog, 19 June 2007, www.econsultancy.com (http://www.econsultancy.com) ; Muhammad Saleem, “How to Write a Social Media Press Release,” Copyblogger, accessed 16 September 2008, www.copyblogger.com (http://www.copyblogger.com) ; Melanie McBride, “5 Tips for (Better) Social Media Writing,” Melanie McBride Online, 11 June 2008, accessed 16 September 2008, melaniemcbride.net (http://melaniemcbride.net) .

3 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p7001012451000000000000000003480#rP70010124510000000000000000037BF) . “Tips for Effective Social Media Writing,” MBO Partners, accessed 12 February 2016, www.mbopartners.com (http://www.mbopartners.com) .

4 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p70010124510000000000000000034ac#rP70010124510000000000000000037C1) . Renren website, accessed 11 February 2016, renren-inc.com (http://renren-inc.com) ; Jon Russell, “Why ‘Going Global’ Makes No Sense for China’s Social Networks, for Now,” The Next Web, 14 May 2012, thenextweb.com (http://thenextweb.com) .

5 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p70010124510000000000000000034ac#rP70010124510000000000000000037C3) . Charlene Li, “Why No One Uses the Corporate Social Network,” Harvard Business Review, 7 April 2015, hbr.com (http://hbr.com) .

6 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p70010124510000000000000000034ac#rP70010124510000000000000000037C5) . Patrick Hong, “10 Exceptional Examples of Brand Communities,” Momentology, 15 January 2015, www.momentology.com (http://www.momentology.com) .

7 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p70010124510000000000000000034ac#rP70010124510000000000000000037C7) . Todd Wasserman, “What Drives Brand Socialability?” Mashable, 12 October 2011, mashable.com (http://mashable.com) .

8 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p70010124510000000000000000034ac#rP70010124510000000000000000037C9) . Michelle Manafy, “Stop Acting Like a Robot and Start Socializing Your Brand,” Inc., 29 June 2015, www.inc.com (http://www.inc.com) ; Mattel Twitter account, accessed 12 February 2016, twitter.com/mattel (http://twitter.com/mattel) .

9 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p70010124510000000000000000034ac#rP70010124510000000000000000037CB) . Muhtar Kent, “Shaking Things Up at Coca-Cola,” Harvard Business Review, October 2011, 94–99.

10 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p70010124510000000000000000034ac#rP70010124510000000000000000037CD) . Evolve24 website, accessed 10 February 2016, www.evolve24.com (http://www.evolve24.com) .

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11 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p70010124510000000000000000034ac#rP70010124510000000000000000037CF) . “The Top 20 Social Media Trends in 2016, According to the Experts,” Bitly, 16 December 2015, blog.bitly.com (http://blog.bitly.com) ; HeadTalker website, accessed 12 February 2016, headtalker.com (http://headtalker.com) .

12 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p70010124510000000000000000034ac#rP70010124510000000000000000037D1) . Christian Pieter Hoffmann, “Holding Sway,” Communication World, November–December 2011, 26–29; Josh Bernoff, “Social Strategy for Exciting (and Not So Exciting) Brands,” Marketing News, 15 May 2009, 18; Larry Weber, Marketing to the Social Web (Hoboken, N.J.: Wiley, 2007), 12–14; David Meerman Scott, The New Rules of Marketing and PR (Hoboken, N.J.: Wiley, 2007), 62; Paul Gillin, The New In�luencers (Sanger, Calif.: Quill Driver Books, 2007), 34–35; Jeremy Wright, Blog Marketing: The Revolutionary Way to Increase Sales, Build Your Brand, and Get Exceptional Results (New York: McGraw-Hill, 2006), 263–365.

13 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p70010124510000000000000000034ac#rP70010124510000000000000000037D3) . Sonia Simone, “What’s the Difference Between Content Marketing and Copywriting?” Copyblogger, accessed 4 June 2012, www.copyblogger.com (http://www.copyblogger.com) .

14 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p70010124510000000000000000034ac#rP70010124510000000000000000037D5) . Matt Rhodes, “Build Your Own Community or Go Where People Are? Do Both,” FreshNetworks blog, 12 May 2009, www.freshnetworks.com (http://www.freshnetworks.com) .

15 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p70010124510000000000000000034ac#rP70010124510000000000000000037D7) . Brian Solis, Engage! (Hoboken, N.J.: Wiley, 2010), 13.

16 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p70010124510000000000000000034ac#rP70010124510000000000000000037D9) . Zachary Sniderman, “5 Ways to Clean Up Your Social Media Identity,” Mashable, 7 July 2010, mashable.com (http://mashable.com) .

17 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p700101245100000000000000000353f#rP70010124510000000000000000037DB) . Vanessa Pappas, “5 Ways to Build a Loyal Audience on YouTube,” Mashable, 15 June 2010, www.mashable.com (http://www.mashable.com) .

18 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p700101245100000000000000000353f#rP70010124510000000000000000037DD) . Eric Siu, “10 User Generated Content Campaigns That Actually Worked,” HubSpot blog, 12 March 2015, blog.hubspot.com (http://blog.hubspot.com) .

19 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p700101245100000000000000000353f#rP70010124510000000000000000037DF) . “About Us,” Yelp, accessed 10 February 2016, www.yelp.com (http://www.yelp.com) ; Lisa Barone, “Keynote Conversation with Yelp Chief Operating Of�icer Geoff Donaker,” Outspoken Media, 5 October 2010, outspokenmedia.com (http://outspokenmedia.com) .

20 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p700101245100000000000000000353f#rP70010124510000000000000000037E1) . Ben Betts and Allison Anderson, “Diamond in the Rough,” TD: Talent Development, January 2016, 30–34.

21 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p700101245100000000000000000356d#rP70010124510000000000000000037E3) . Amy Porter�ield, “10 Top Business Blogs and Why They Are Successful,” Social Media Examiner, 25 January 2011, www.socialmediaexaminer.com (http://www.socialmediaexaminer.com) .

22 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p700101245100000000000000000356d#rP70010124510000000000000000037E5) . Debbie Weil, “Why Your Blog Is the Hub of Social Media Marketing,” Social Media Insights blog, 12 January 2010, debbieweil.com (http://debbieweil.com) ; Ross Dawson, “A List of Business Applications for Blogging in the Enterprise,” Trends in the Living Network blog, 7 July 2009, rossdawsonblog.com (http://rossdawsonblog.com) ; Fredrik Wackå, “Six Types of Blogs—A Classi�ication,” CorporateBlogging.Info website, 10 August 2004, www.corporateblogging.info (http://www.corporateblogging.info) ; Stephen Baker, “The Inside Story on Company Blogs,” BusinessWeek, 14 February 2006, www.businessweek.com (http://www.businessweek.com) ; Jeremy Wright, Blog Marketing (New York: McGraw-Hill, 2006), 45–56; Paul Chaney, “Blogs: Beyond the Hype!” Radiant Marketing Group blog, 26 May 2005, radiantmarketinggroup.com (http://radiantmarketinggroup.com) .

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23 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p700101245100000000000000000356d#rP70010124510000000000000000037E7) . Solis, Engage!, 314.

24 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p700101245100000000000000000356d#rP70010124510000000000000000037E9) . Solis, Engage!, 86.

25 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p700101245100000000000000000356d#rP70010124510000000000000000037EB) . Tamara Weinberg, The New Community Rules: Marketing on the Social Web (Sebastopol, Calif.: O’Reilly Media, 2009), 89.

26 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p700101245100000000000000000356d#rP70010124510000000000000000037ED) . “IBM Social Computing Guidelines,” IBM website, accessed 10 February 2016, www.ibm.com (http://www.ibm.com) .

27 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p700101245100000000000000000356d#rP70010124510000000000000000037EF) . Joel Falconer, “Six Rules for Writing Great Web Content,” Blog News Watch, 9 November 2007, accessed 14 February 2008, www.blognewswatch.com (http://www.blognewswatch.com) .

28 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p7001012451000000000000000003607#rP70010124510000000000000000037F1) . Dion Hinchcliffe, “Twitter on Your Intranet: 17 Microblogging Tools for Business,” ZDNet, 1 June 2009, www.zdnet.com (http://www.zdnet.com) .

29 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p7001012451000000000000000003607#rP70010124510000000000000000037F3) . B. L. Ochman, “Why Twitter Is a Better Brand Platform Than Facebook,” Ad Age, 1 June 2012, adage.com (http://adage.com) .

30 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p7001012451000000000000000003607#rP70010124510000000000000000037F5) . Leon Widrich, “4 Ways to Use Twitter for Customer Service and Support,” Social Media Examiner, 12 April 2012, www.socialmediaexaminer.com (http://www.socialmediaexaminer.com) .

31 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p7001012451000000000000000003607#rP70010124510000000000000000037F7) . Paul André, Michael Bernstein, and Kurt Luther, “What Makes a Great Tweet,” Harvard Business Review, May 2012, 36–37.

32 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p7001012451000000000000000003607#rP70010124510000000000000000037F9) . Tom Hays and Jake Pearson, “Bashtag: NYPD Twitter Campaign Back�ires,” Seattle Times, 23 April 2014, www.seattletimes.com (http://www.seattletimes.com) .

33 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p7001012451000000000000000003607#rP70010124510000000000000000037FB) . André et al., “What Makes a Great Tweet.”

34 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p700101245100000000000000000367a#rP70010124510000000000000000037FD) . “Codex: Guidelines,” WordPress website, accessed 10 February 2016, wordpress.org (http://wordpress.org) ; Michael Shanks, “Wiki Guidelines,” Traumwerk website, accessed 18 August 2006, metamedia.stanford.edu/projects/traumwerk/home (http://metamedia.stanford.edu/projects/traumwerk/home) ; Joe Moxley, M. C. Morgan, Matt Barton, and Donna Hanak, “For Teachers New to Wikis,” Writing Wiki, accessed 18 August 2006, writingwiki.org (http://writingwiki.org) ; “Wiki Guidelines,” Psi, accessed 18 August 2006, psi-im.org (http://psi-im.org) .

35 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p700101245100000000000000000367a#rP70010124510000000000000000037FF) . “Codex: Guidelines.”

36 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p70010124510000000000000000036a8#rP7001012451000000000000000003801) . Comic-Con website, accessed 27 February 2016, www.comiccon.org (http://www.comiccon.org) ; Tom Spurgeon, “Welcome to Nerd Vegas: A Guide to Visiting and Enjoying

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Comic-Con International 2014,” The Comics Reporter, 25 May 2014, www.comicsreporter.com (http://www.comicsreporter.com) ; Rebecca Winters Keegan, “Boys Who Like Toys,” Time, 19 April 2007, www.time.com (http://www.time.com) .

37 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p70010124510000000000000000036a8#rP7001012451000000000000000003803) . JetBlue Twitter page, accessed 3 February 2011, twitter.com/JetBlue (http://twitter.com/JetBlue) .