Discuss the key components and steps for using social media in relation to a Barclays, Consider any relevant ethical issues concerning the use of online media by brands and discuss the implications for PR.

Barclays is an English bank that began operations in the 17^th century, it now currently operates in over 60 international countries, employs 147,500 people and has countless customers, one of which is myself!  Barclays states it is a bank that “moves, lends, invests and protects money for customers and clients worldwide” I’m sure many of you have seen the famous Barclays water slide advert that focuses on making the life of the Barclays customer easier.  Barclays claims to work with their customers and move with the times. So what are the implications of this in regards to social media? Mayfield (2011) stresses the rising importance of using social media, especially for large corporations, such as Barclays.  Cowles and Crosby (1990) add to this the increasing relevance in interactive media in the service industry. And I would add that banking is a famously competitive industry, so every possible medium should be used to gain competitive advantage, including social media. So the justification for social media has been sculpted so what steps have Barclays taken?

Looking at the Barclays corporate website, it is a rich abundance of information and services including a host of links to all of the Barclays groups, PDF files for download, RSS feeds for Barclays news, branch locator soft wear and the opportunity to sign up for FX text alerts. The site however provides no way for the Barclays customers to interact with the brand. Schultz (2000) warns of this stating  “Lack of interaction between the mass media and their audiences has always been a target for media criticism” Barclays do however interact on a more social level. I could find seven Twitter pages ranging from those aimed at wealthy customers, those who follow Barclays premier league and those interested in such schemes as Barclays cycle. In addition to this a search for “Barclays Bank” on Facebook brings up numerous pages, none of which are substantial or creating any meaningful dialogue with the consumer. One area that Barclays have found useful however is LinkIn.com, the professional network site. Reuters reported in 2010 that the bank used the site to hire laid off staff during the financial crisis. I feel however this is Barclays using the social platform for their own benefit, and not interacting as Schultz suggested.

A suggested improvement for Barclays to step socially forward could be a corporate blog on the company’s site, giving the chance for the customer to comment upon news and happenings at their bank. In addition running an official Twitter page that isn’t isolated to one category of customer but instead evokes discussion with all Barclay’s customers.  A final idea is based on Livingstone’s 1999 idea that people would rather watch videos to learn than read, a Youtube channel or video updates for new services could have the same success that Steve Jobs video for Apple have received. 

However, as public relations officers, we need to look further than the issues within Barclay’s current use of social media and instead look at the possible problems that could occur within social media and banking. In a digital privacy lecture Conor O’Kane used a quote from Facebook creator Mark Zukerberg telling us we live in a new paradigm where “openness is the new social norm”, replacing the old norm of privacy. An openness that could be potentially dangerous in an industry such as banking, that relies on consumer privacy. Pikkarainen et al, 2004 states the acceptance of online banking services has been rapid in many parts of the world. The speed at which people accepted online banking shocked many academics; it can be likened to the speed at which social networking spread. Jin and Cheng argued in 2005 that the acceptance of online banking was down to the “innovation of bank information technology” and that it is our job as public relations officers to handle this image. A task achieved as shown by the table below:

So it is established that the security and privacy surrounding online banking is tight, but can the same be said for social media? In one of the first academic studies of privacy in 2005 (cited by Boyd 2008) 4000 Carnegie Mellon University Facebook profiles were analysed and outlined the potential threats to privacy contained in the personal information included on the site by students, such as the potential ability to reconstruct users’ social security numbers using information often found in profiles, such as hometown and date of birth. The debate over security on social media has ragged since the first profile was made and recent we must relate this to security over banking. Recent reports following a Barclays survey are suggesting that a new style of financial terminology is changing the traditional banking terms.  43% of the Twitter users surveyed, thought that the advent of mobile phone banking is changing the way people talk about money. We must question however is it changing the way people think about money? As PR people has the reputation of money become too social and do Barclays need to implement a campaign to educate people on the risk of tweeting their bank details of social security number? A quote from Sean Gilchrist, Managing Director of Digital Banking at Barclays states:

“It appears that this new banking language is being driven by the phenomenal growth in social media forums, combined with the sheer number of smartphones now available in the market, making the more traditional forms of banking seem outdated for this group of people.”

I would argue that although Barclays should move forward and use social media as a tool to aid their customers, we must not leave behind the security elements of “traditional forms of banking” and forget that a computer can be used for hacking as well as mobile uploads. The handling of ethics, risk management and the reputation of Barclays and money as a whole are all issues that specialist tech PR firm Babel are to face as we step into the predicted more social future. 

Mummy?! Is that an advert or a message?

So we are nearing the end of the assessed blogs, and in a true to life PR way we are looking at ethics. Some innovative ideas and controversial topics have been assessed and just before we get over excited we have to stop.. and ask what are the risks? Both socially and legally. Again I have chosen to look at Disney, not only because you have already reada bit about them, and I am soon to be an employer but also because new legislation brought out approximately one year ago directly effected companies working with children. The legislation introduced on March 1st 2011 entitled UK Code of Non-broadcast Advertising, Sales Promotion and Direct Marketing (the CAP Code) expanded to include online, including the rules relating to misleading advertising, social responsibility and the protection of children. Prior to this only paid for advertising, such as TV ads, were monitored. Now the legislation included messages sent on companies websites and messages sent on social media. According to Advertising Standards Agency Chairman Lord Chris Smith this is following on from 4,500 complaints since 2008 about marketing communications on websites that the ASA couldn't deal with. 

So what does this mean for a company like Disney?  The topic of selling products to children is often controversial and several studies show that children under 8 years old can't distinguish between ads and entertainment. Until then, they don't fully comprehend that advertising is trying to sell them something. Even with its spot less brand, family orientated culture and a list of CSR activity as long as Rapunzel's hair, working with children means the Disney communications team are always under scrutiny. Many people argue that it is unethical to advertise to children at all, Disney however argued in a 2006 ASA case that in many cases they are in fact advertising to the careers and parents of children. This new legislation will especially effect Disney's social site "Club Penguin" in fact we can see from the picture below the privacy policy was changed just days after the new legislation was introduced. 

As well as having their own moderators in place Disney invite any adult to become a moderator of the site and any children can become "secret agents" who "track down and report any penguins that are breaking the Club Penguin rules". This is an example of transparency, a tactic constantly strived for in PR to create a good and trustworthy reputation. As for advertising on the site Disney state they are committed to an ad free club penguin and also stay away from advertising elsewhere. By remaining ad-free, they can provide their users a safe haven from marketing. This means they will not host any advertising on the game or their website for other games and companies. So it appears Disney have the advertising and privacy situation handled. They legally have good ethics. 

Now the only question is are the messages there sending 100% ethical? As with many companies working with children Disney have been critiqued for encouraging pester power. An issue that may have become more scrutinized under the new legislation. However in the modern day our children are surrounded by advertisements for clothes, food, toys and much more. Instead of seeing advertising as an opportunity to create conflict between adults and parents, it could be argued it is an opportunity to teach children to resist the powers of advertising and create boundaries. Johnson argues children learn ethics at a young age and it is the job of parents and teachers to install these, even in a digital age. We are beyond the age of naivety, we must recognize that Disney is a company that cares for, works hard for and safely entertains our children, it is ultimately however is a company and thus has the right to promote itself. The new legislation however does work to protect children and in the case of some less reputable brands will be hugely effective, brands such as Disney could even gain as other companies will be forced to continue at the ethical level Disney have worked at for years. 

Man can not protest by social media alone.

In PR it is our role to communicate with the public. It is also our job to understand how the public communicate with each other. Because of this it is in disputable that the public sphere is important. It is not our job to argue the power of the public sphere but instead analyzing the extent of its power, and whose hands this power lies in.

My mum is not one to worship or even agree with many celebrity statements, there is one message however they both constantly stress. Don't believe everything you read. Not only are uninformed people going online and preaching, but other uniformed people are listening. The internet can be a great information provider of information but often only from legitimate offline sources. For example, Google Scholar can be great source but only as the journals etc are legitimized by sources offline such as publishing houses or universities. The same theory applies for BBC news and The Telegraph online, we believe them as they are legitimate in the "real" non-virtual world. We read online reviews but we trust our friends and family more. There has been a rise in online dating, but many argue its a last resort when the "real world" has let us down. More and more texts are being written on Digital Communications and the introduction of this topic to Bournemouth's PR course shows its increasing importance. As young practitioners it is vital for us to understand the digital, however we must understand that an online campaign is not the answer to all our PR problems.

The public sphere can be a great opportunity for voicing your opinion. But in a community where everyone is shouting their point how can you get heard. This weeks lecture on the public sphere used the example of band "Rage Against the Machine" reaching christmas number 1 in 2009 due to a facebook campaign. I argue however that its success started with a Facebook campaign but was legitimized and discussed through offline platforms which ultimately cemented its success, this is shown by the screen shot below which shows Facebook as a top Google hit followed by The Independant, The Guardian and NME. Showing that people searched else where for the story, most possibly to legitimize it.

With this in mind however the public sphere could be described as the peoples media. Through trending people are now dictating what they want to know which captures the medias attention. So when informed people to take to the internet and generate interest from other informed people or alternatively the masses we see the power of the public sphere take control as it enters the offline world.

When offline issues such as difficulties in Libya go viral, people have the opportunity to obtain information and agree/disagree with the those who are trying to protest virally. Years ago activists wrote their views on banners and buildings, now they can create a Facebook page or a Twitter account.  Its communicating a message, not creating it. The issues in Libya existed offline and were simply typed into an accessible and fast moving tool, in this case Facebook. Following government interference however the activists had to leave Facebook and code message via a dating site. The issue and the activism existed before and after Facebook, Soical media was just a stepping stone. A tool to communicate real issues and real actions. Thus its importance must be noted but not over exaggerated or depended upon. Man can not protest effectively by social media alone. 

www.measuring_pr_and_other_issues_campaigning_online.com

Public Relations prides itself in being innovative and diverse, an industry capable of using all available platforms to achieve its goals. In the past these platforms have consisted of advertising, marketing, events and internal comms to name a few. Since the rise of the internet however PR practitioners have a new opportunity to communicate to the masses, often in the forms of campaigns. Not only is the internet a great communications tool, it is the answer to one of PR's age old questions.... How can we measure PR? Campaigns no longer have to be measured with press clippings or news reports but instead we can see exactly how much online traffic our campaigns are attracting. Steve Rubel's argues that page rank is currently the best measure of a websites influence for public relations purposes in his blog on micro persuasion.

Firstly a couple of my favourite online campaigns, as a dog owner and food lover what could be funnier than letting a dog pick out my food for the day? The online campaign by Burger King called "Quick Pick" allows you to enter the site via facebook and predict which snacks a puppy will pick for the day, if you guess correctly a host of prizes could be yours. Confused? Check out the video below and see Rebel the puppy in action.

Another campaign that caught my eye is by mobile phone provider Samsung.  Following the successful campaign of viral video online advertising and marketing “Hardest Hockey Shot Ever”, Samsung launched viral videos online promoting Vancouver 2010 Olympic Games Campaign “Discover Your Every WOW Moment”. As a basketball player and skier i love the video below which was  produced for Samsung’s Mobile Explorer viral video marketing initiative and succeeded in going viral with nearly 400,00 views on youtube. 

So online campaigns are great? They communicate with the masses and create a huge following. Too good to be true? Of course. Their are still many issues with online campaigning, as discussed it is a great PR tool for measurement but how many of those youtube hits are promoting the brand of Samsung or even the Vancouver games? Is it just a funny video people come across when browsing? And in which case can we as PROs justify it a success? An isssue discussed by many academics such as Thomson in his paper "electronic notes". In addition, companies such as Amazon thrive on having the reputation of a successfully functioning and reliable site. As we can see from last weeks Disney example however this can be easier said than done. A PR campaign could loose all credibility due to a systems error. Finally is the issue of interaction, PR and advertising is moving more into a two way communication model where the producer no longer relays the message to a muted consumer, instead the consumer has been given a voice and this is often an online voice. If people dislike your idea or campaign they have a platform to tell the word and create their own following, for example Rimmel Model Georgia May Jagger was virally ridiculed for a gap in between her teeth with the facebook page "Get the london look...na your alright sort your teeth out" receiving over 230,000 likes.  Although viral campaigns can be a great asset, we as PROs must perform our own issues management because with great rise in importance the rise in room for error also increases. 

Disney, the chosen one!? SEO and Google Adwords

This weeks task is too pick a company of your choice and study how Google analytics and Adwords can  be best applied to the site. In celebration of my new placement at Disney (which I am very excited about) I have decided to look at their search engine optimization (SEO) tactics, failures and successes.

Disney have a huge advantage when it comes to search engine optimization as they are obviously a huge corporation and more importantly a recognizable brand. The word Disney is specific and know world wide. This is unlike many other companies, for example a search for BP will bring up British Petroleum first but also stands for British Pharmacopoeia. Disney have not yet become over arrogant however and still use many SEO tools. As shown in the picture below Disney use their keyword "Disney" 24 times on just their home page. This conquers with the theory that "A good site-wide average keyword density to aim for is 2%" 

Disney also use google Adwords to the max, not only do they pay for advertising. A legitimate tool recognised by many PR practitioners. They also have banner appear on their site, as shown in the image above for Virgin Media. I would argue however that this use of banners could be a risk to the image Disney are trying to portray, as a world class provider of entertainment I question why they are using banners as extra revenue. A tactic avoided by many world class providers such as Apple. Also the ethics of advertising to children is also brought into question. Hosting banners is a clear money making scheme which could be seen as a more negative corporate image of Disney as opposed to the family orientated image we know and love.

In addition one interesting revelation found however was an error disney had with a 503 status in Orlando. During an hour of "downtime" for maintenance they changed their page to express a temporary closure of the page with a message to "please come back later". A message which ended up staying up all weekend as Disney failed to request a "re crawl" by Google. To prevent a problem such as this reoccurring Disney could really benefit from Googles 503 status code which is a flag to google, informing them that work is underway and a re crawl will be required soon. This is also a great tool if a site is overloaded.

Although Disney show us many examples of how to be a leader in SEO they also act as a warning, even the best can make mistakes.

Brand O'Connor? and other thoughts on seamless branding.

 The graph below from the Business Resource Centre shows an astronomic increase of the phrase “branding” a key element for Public Relations as stressed not only by lecturers and academics, such as Clifton and L'Etang but increasingly by the masses.  Companies, sports clubs, political parties and even countries are now seeing themselves as brands. This weeks guest lecturer Mike Crossman from EMC Consulting took this relatively new idea even further into the future, discussing the idea of the seamless brand. 

To put this idea into a human perspective lets consider myself, Amy Lauren O'Connor, as a brand. In PR terms my brand is what I am trying to portray to the masses or selective audiences to create a reputation. So to portray myself as an intellectual, fun loving and ambitious student I work hard, enjoy many sports and activities such as skiing and always try to promote these qualities to my audience. To make myself a seamless brand however more details must be added, using Mike's theory of seamless branding I have the basics right but have I layered on the experience?? He used the example of the common 404 error page and how some companies such as River Island use this page to promote their brand and others miss out on this opportunity by using an unspecific template. Now, I don't have a website but it doesn't mean I cant apply this same theory of using a negative (such as a 404) and stamp a personal and positive brand to it. This is why I have created a simply bounce back message to emails that I am unable to reply to, thus adding some personality and enhancing the professional reputation I am trying to promote. 

So the idea of creating a seamless brand is simple, get the basics really right, then layer on the experience . The implementation raises a few issues. To demonstrate a key issue I am going to continue from a previous blog and use the example of my workplace Chilli White Bournemouth. Chilli can be described as a brand, it promotes a high end club and bar experience targeted for a fun yet classy night out. When comparing it to clubs such as The Ministry of Sound however we begin to see the brand is not as seamless as it could be. The Ministry of sound it is all about the music experience, CDs, festivals, fragrance and dvd workout videos. Along with these products, franchises such as the Ministry of Sound Digital Radio which broadcasts daily live shows we can see why it is the publics number one choice of venue. How could a small nightclub compete with this huge corporations. The funding is simply not there and this is a key issue with creating a seamless brand, not everyone can afford to design an iphone app or host a radio show. I argue however that without a pot full of cash at your disposal your imagination and creativity must come into play. For example a really interesting blog on music and events in the Bournemouth would draw people to the brand. In addition the brand could be more visible online with social media, for example a successful twitter page. A final idea is simply being open to change, as we can see the Ministry of Sound brand has expanded at every opportunity to make itself seamless so weather its moving with new social media or bringing out new products we must remember to promote the core values of a brand and add to the experience at every available opportunity.

Removing the barrier between in store and online.

I am a self confessed mobile addict, I sleep with my phone under my pillow and at this exact moment in time i have 71 apps on my phone. So it is no surprise that a lecture on mobile communications would capture my imagination, I had a weak understanding of what QR codes are but was naive to their colossal presence in Asia. Seen as a gimmick in the UK, a blog by Cliffano Subagio shows the presence of them in Japan. I particualrly love this video below showing the interest Disney has generated using these QR codes in the advertisements, notice how people are crowding around these ads whilst other more traditional advertising is being ignored. 

After researching the phenomenon of QR codes i can hardly believe how uninvolved the UK are. On a personal note I work in Bournemouth nightclub Chilli White and we, like many venues, offer a guest list pass which at the moment is an email, easily forged and time consuming to upload, it is then up to a member of staff to read and validate it. Think of the efficiency and time saved if we could implement QR codes. According to our lecture, customers who attend Chilli are the perfect category to use such a tool, living in a country with a high GDP, most of them are students thus fit into the both appropriate age categories and (arguably) have the education to understand such a concept, so why aren't they being used?  In addition in seminar discussions we worked on how to make Waterstones a relevant online brand, again QR codes were our answer. The idea of placing QR codes under the books which instantly connect to a reviews and ratings, a need that most consumers fulfill using sites such as Amazon would be done in store. Removing the barrier between in store and online.

I can't help but wonder however when or if  such a technique will be viable to smaller companies such as bars and book shops? Or will the Disney's and McDonalds of the world always dominate? At the moment main stream UK QR codes seem like a impossible future, however we can't be naive, the first mobile phone call was only 38 years ago. As students we are constantly described as "The Future" so surely upon graduation or even in our placement years what our now hypothetical solutions could evolve into real life promotion. Maybe not such an impossible future after all. Of perhaps technology will beat us to our graduation ball and we should all keep an eye on our app stores and wait for the day we can scan the commercial world.