User Generated Content

In general, how should organizations deal with issues posed by user-generated content and other information spread over social media?    

           I have come to learn that one of the most important forms of advertising is through word of mouth advertising.  People tend to follow recommendations from their friends, family, and those who tend to like similar experiences.  We have already seen several examples in this class of businesses which thrived mostly through word of mouth and other limited marketing techniques.  One great example of this is the Taxi Magic application. 

                Having said that, social media can be a great, inexpensive, medium for advertising and creating awareness for many companies.  However, companies must be aware of the consequences that can also occur.  It is just as easy for consumers to promote their negative feelings and experiences as it is for them to advertise the positive experiences.

 User generated content and other information spread over social media allows for consumer knowledge and experiences to be shared with vast amounts of people, on a much large scale than traditional word of mouth regardless of whether the information is positive or negative.  The case for today’s class is a great example of this.  United lost $180 million dollars as a result of one customer’s unhappiness with the company.  Companies must be aware of the dynamics that has resulted from social media and develop strategies in order to counter balance many of the negative and consequential aspects which can occur. 

United airlines and other companies like Comcast which have suffered detrimental social media encounters can learn from their past mistakes.  And other companies which have not faced the negative impacts should follow suit before they suffer from similar problems like 10% decreases in their stock.  In order to protect themselves, companies today must focus on their customers.  We are in a service based economy and the ultimate goal should be to cater to customers.  Mistakes happen and companies can’t please customers 100% of the time, but when a complaint is made it is now more important than ever for companies to take action and make amends.  As mentioned in both readings for today’s class, many companies are developing search techniques which find complaints and comments made on a number of social media sites which either positively or negatively affect a particular company.  This can be used to their advantage! Companies should used these techniques and reach out to those unhappy consumers before damage is done.  Not only is this a way for companies to make amends with unhappy customers,  it is also a way for them to poll information to see where they need improvements and how they can ultimately provide better services for their customers.  Social media seems like a great way for companies to listen, take ideas, and interact directly with the people they are trying to please.