Brands that won’t need to file a social media lawsuit anytime soon…sorry, Phonedog
Yesterday, I hopped on the “PR needs to stop being so negative about PR” train thanks to Arik Hanson. And while I’m not ready to get off the train, I am going to get off at the next rest stop to buy some beef jerky and gossip a bit with Betty Sue who’s served coffee at the gas station diner for the last 30 years. But it’s just a pit stop.
I really want to be more positive. But Betty Sue just has to know about this Phoendog story I heard today (solid POV’s from friends Zena Weist and Scott Gulbranson). In case you haven’t heard, it goes a little something like this. Phonedog hires Noah in 2006. Noah sets up a @Phonedog_Noah Twitter account and becomes a social media celeb, which benefits Phonedog. That is, until Noah wants to leave Phonedog in fall 2010. Noah bails, changes Twitter account name. Phonedog gets pissed. They both sue each other and try to tell their side of the story.
That’s pretty much it. Oh, except for one more thing. If you read the comments in the story above, you’ll see that most people think this whole issue makes Phonedog and Noah sound like people Betty Sue wouldn’t want sitting at her counter. So a company and it’s former editor are tangled up in a social media lawsuit. And if either side was actually paying attention to social media, they would see that their reputations were being dragged through the mud along with their checkbooks.
But I digress. Time to get back on the train to positivity. And as I reboard and wave goodbye to Betty Sue, here are a few brands that have handled the personal/brand Twitter profile issue with some semblance of tact:
- @ComcastCares. One of the most referenced branded Twitter accounts for a reason. Made famous by Frank Eliason. Originally set up for customer service. Positives:
- Conversational.
- Shows personality behind the brand. Avatar shows a person vs a logo.
- Focused on the brand. When Frank left Comcast, the account stayed.
- @Radian6. B2B Twitter account. Represents the brand; there’s a separate Radian6 customer care account. Positives:
- Account moderators identified by Twitter account in the bio.
- Bio also notes hours account is moderated — 8 a.m. EST to 5 p.m. EST.
- Extremely conversational. Talk with customers, not at them.
- @SleepNumberSara. A client, Select Comfort, that has created a persona for its Twitter account. Different members of the communications team take turns managing it. Positives:
- SleepNumberSara never actually leaves Select Comfort, so the brand gets credit for the tweets and followers.
- Brand avatar always shows a person — the team member who is managing the account at that particular time.
- Twitter background references other Select Comfort social network presences.
What brands would you add to the positive train? What are the most creative ways you’ve heard of managing the personal/brand Twitter account issue?
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Who am I?
I'm a business communications consultant at Fleishman-Hillard. I used to call myself a PR professional, but I don't use that term anymore because people hear PR and they think only media relations.We do a lot more than that at Fleishman-Hillard Kansas City (FHKC). I specialize in social media, but am trying hard to brush up on my measurement and analytics. Every strategic consulting conversation should start with your business goals and how communications can help you reach them. My motto: "Your brand is what your customers say it is." 
I know businesses want to have a personality associated with their Twitter accounts so customers/people interested in the brand know who they are talking to, but it would be a lot easier and a lot less messy to have an account that doesn’t have an employee’s name associated with it.
Comcast does it in a way that gets at the best of both worlds. But that’s a rarity at this point. Businesses are running on a slippery slope when they have a bunch of people all talking on behalf of their company. Too many cooks in the kitchen if you ask me.
@Anthony_Rodriguez Thanks for stopping by, anthony_rodriguez . The counterpoint here, of course, is that people do business with people they like, know and trust. And people trust people much more than brands. Research backs it up.
That said, the key is to find the balance — a playing field where the brand gets credit for the personality behind it. This is something companies that have emphasized customer service and employee relations have long benefited from. Social media has just brought it more to the forefront.
I am a fan of the accounts that exist as the brand name, but ID the people tweeting on behalf of the brand. You?
@JGoldsborough That seems like the best approach to me as well.
Hi Justin, I’m making it one of my missions this year to crow about companies who are doing social media right. I just Googled ‘companies manage twitter right’ and came up with the following story with 7 examples: http://www.chromaticsites.com/blog/impressive-twitter-customer-service-brand-management-cases/. Comcast is mentioned twice. It’s not a very recent article so I’ll look for more contemporary examples and send them your way.