We don’t know what’s worse; having to slog through no less than eight pages just to read one article or having to endure the annoyance of trying to figure out which ad banner was auto-playing audio so we could turn it off the read the article in peace. All of this on a site that should now better: iMediaConnection.
Anyway, distractions aside, marketing consultant BL Ochman has written a concise, illustrative and educational article about social media, the brands that have excelled at it and the brands that have failed miserably. Citing famed failures such as the Edelman-created fake Wal-Mart blogs, Microsoft’s supposed “bribing” pf bloggers with free Vista-equipped laptops and Sony’s fake PSP blog, Ochman slaps brands upside the head for their idiocy.
While many big brands have failed with their social media efforts, all have not and Ochman give credit where credit is due. namely, to Netflix for its $1 million offer to the person who could improve the accuracy of its recommendation system.
In closing, Ochman hits on the primary issue hindering a company’s failure to fully embrace social media, writing, “To get something, you have to give something. But in big companies, people fear for their jobs. They are forced, by the corporate system, not to collaborate with other departments. And many times that means that two departments will be working — and spending money on — a similar system but not know it.”
