The Hello Bar is a simple web toolbar that engages users and communicates a call to action.

WTF is the “true power” of social media?

by tdhurst · 11 comments

We all like to be connected. We all like to share stories. We all like to be included.

Spreading messages through internet networks is NOT the true power of social media. Any idiot can RT a message, blog about it (yes, I know) and pass it along virtually. It takes far more deliberate action to achieve something.

Today’s Horizon Realty fiasco spread like wildfire. It was tweeted about, RTed about, blogged about, emailed and probably involved a few phone calls. Don’t tell me for a second that this was the true power of anything.

This was a mob mentality. One person heard something that made them mad, they passed it on and repeated that over and over until everyone had heard.

There were plenty of comments on blogs about how to fix it and what Horizon should do next. THESE, not the incessant mentions of the incident itself, are where the power of social media lies. Many minds, armed with the same information, putting their heads together to debate a solution best for the problem at hand.

Sure, the popularity and reach made this possible, but not until people gave worthwhile, thought out solutions was anything actually accomplished.

I bet these same “true power of social media” people are the ones that still equate friend/fan/follower counts as actual measure of success.

To those that gave good ideas, fostered fantastic conversation and did more than just pass info along, I applaud you. You get it. Everyone else needs to get it together.

Tagged as: horizon realty, libel in the twittersphere, real estate lawyers are dumb, sued for a tweet

  • http://PhoenixRealEstateGuy.com Jay Thompson

    It is a veritable feeding frenzy.

    If Horizon had done one simple thing when that tweet first went out, this PR disaster would have been avoided.

    What is that simple thing?

    Pick up the TELEPHONE. Call the person that complained on Twitter and say, “We're here. How can we help?”

    Now they've got a social media reputation problem on their hands. What do they do about that?

    Jump in the fray. Fess up, “You know guys, we blew it. We're retracting our law suit” (and then fire the guy that said “We’re a sue first, ask questions later kind of an organization”).

    Their silence is deafening (and telling).

  • tdhurst

    Agreed. So, so simple. Why is this so hard for companies these days?

  • http://twitter.com/jerrythepunkrat Mike Jones

    Agreed. The internet is no longer about merely sharing information but about community building and community starts with communication. Thus posting a link is only as good as the comments and discussion it produces.

  • http://budurl.com/iphoneeconomy Ciaoenrico

    I agree – though in the case of Horizon, it seems they may have been too ignorant to know what social media could mean to them in the first place, to say nothing of proper PR.

    I think the power of social media is definitely in the combined brain power that can be herded towards a single problem. But the mob mentality is certainly a power – a scary one, and the one companies should be the most worried about when things like this happen.

    Certainly the beauty of social media is the public way companies shoot themselves in the foot, saying things that before wouldn't have even made the next day's newspaper. “Sue first and ask questions later?” It's like a line from a comedy about slum lords. Wow.

  • tdhurst

    Now I want to make a comedy about slum lords. Nice comment!

  • http://PhoenixRealEstateGuy.com Jay Thompson

    It is a veritable feeding frenzy.
    If Horizon had done one simple thing when that tweet first went out, this PR disaster would have been avoided.
    What is that simple thing?
    Pick up the TELEPHONE. Call the person that complained on Twitter and say, “We're here. How can we help?”
    Now they've got a social media reputation problem on their hands. What do they do about that?
    Jump in the fray. Fess up, “You know guys, we blew it. We're retracting our law suit” (and then fire the guy that said “We’re a sue first, ask questions later kind of an organization”).
    Their silence is deafening (and telling).

  • http://tdhurst.com tdhurst

    Agreed. So, so simple. Why is this so hard for companies these days?

  • http://twitter.com/jerrythepunkrat Mike Jones

    Agreed. The internet is no longer about merely sharing information but about community building and community starts with communication. Thus posting a link is only as good as the comments and discussion it produces.

  • http://ciaoenrico.com Ciaoenrico

    I agree – though in the case of Horizon, it seems they may have been too ignorant to know what social media could mean to them in the first place, to say nothing of proper PR.

    I think the power of social media is definitely in the combined brain power that can be herded towards a single problem. But the mob mentality is certainly a power – a scary one, and the one companies should be the most worried about when things like this happen.

    Certainly the beauty of social media is the public way companies shoot themselves in the foot, saying things that before wouldn't have even made the next day's newspaper. “Sue first and ask questions later?” It's like a line from a comedy about slum lords. Wow.

  • http://tdhurst.com tdhurst

    Now I want to make a comedy about slum lords. Nice comment!

  • Pingback: Dear Corporate America: Show us that we matter | tdhurst

Previous post:

Next post: