Social Media Relations

Walter Welte, Managing Director, Poster Union GmbH:
“As an online photographic print services company, internet communication is very important to us. Mr. Ziegler of Möller Horcher PR showed us how we can use social media effectively in this context. We especially liked the fact that Twitter et al. were not only explained in general terms but that the content of the workshop was one-hundred per cent tailored to our company and its needs. It was easy to apply what we learned to our day-to-day activities.”

The cocktail party – or: how does social media work?
Sebastian Ziegler, PR consultant and our man for Twitter & Co., likes to compare social media with social events in “real life”. Twitter is like a cocktail party, Facebook resembles a class reunion and a blog can be compared to a digital living room. And, just as conversations at cocktail parties, class reunions and in living rooms will vary, exchanges in different social media platforms also have their own individual characteristics. They do however all have one thing in common: they all involve more than the mere exchange of information. Typical marketing jargon is neither appropriate at a party nor in social media. Dialogue is the focus of the exchange: in other words, sending and receiving as well as listening and responding.

Almost too much to choose from
It is a situation everybody has been confronted with – you have invitations to a meeting, a party and the cinema - all on the same evening. Which event should you attend, where should you join in? Obviously you cannot go to all of these events or get-togethers. The same is true for social media. This is why it is important to know what is going on. Social media analysis and monitoring help you find out where the people are that are important to you and the topics you are interested in. If you want to do things right, you can only really actively participate in a few selected platforms.

The hangover
You decided to go to the cocktail party? Well, as we all know, this kind of event can sometimes develop its own uncomfortable dynamic. The same thing can happen in social media. At cocktail parties, it is often the alcohol that contributes to this dynamic; in social media it is sometimes an inadvertent comment that can lead to so-called flame wars. But no matter how explosive the situation becomes, it important to avoid legal disputes as best as possible, because, in the end this only means more attention for the unruly party guest. Legalese is not meant for cocktail parties. You might be able to shut up one disagreeable blogger – but you will hardly be able to silence the hundreds who will follow and indignantly comment his plight on the web. This is why we think a problem resulting from communication is more likely to be solved through communication rather than by taking legal action and attempting to assume the role of a social media censor.

Gentleman or stage hog?
Of course, selecting a suitable representative is also an option. An agency you trust can help you with this. But be careful when you choose a service provider: you should define the type of topics your representative can address on your behalf, define the tone of what will be said and – last but not least – the frequency. A low frequency that may be inappropriate for a B2C topic could seem like spam when applied to a B2B topic.

Invitation
We would be very happy to provide support for your first steps into the social media room. We can give you advice on choosing suitable meeting points and finding the right words. We can monitor and analyse your social media activities and make recommendations on how to proceed.