Don’t bring a knife to a gun fight – use your ‘Voice of Authority’
On Nov 11th, I had the pleasure to speak to the NIRI Tri-State chapter outside of Cincinnati, Ohio. The topic of the discussion was about social media and investor relations. During the Q&A portion of the session we focused on dealing with rumors and misinformation on blog posts and social networks.
The initial reaction by many IROs is to ‘not engage’ with these individuals and to simply ignore these tweets or blog posts. This approach is based on policies forged years ago related to message boards and chat rooms. The challenge with these boards is selective disclosure. It is difficult to answer one comment and not another because the non-answer may be seen as acceptance. So companies need to either answer all comments, or none. It’s not surprising that companies choose to not respond to any of the messages.
However, today things are different on the web. Financial blogs and social networks have given the investing public and activists a voice and for many companies there is a constant conversion happening about your industry and your company. The policy of not engaging in this conversation is that it creates a vacuum that is quickly filled by rumor. Also, companies need to use the same channels where this information is being shared. Issuing a press release on its own is no longer enough to deal with an issue and is like bringing a knife to a gun fight. To be effective you need establish your ‘voice of authority’ in the same channels as the rumors are being spread – on Twitter, blogs, YouTube, etc.
During a recent seminar put on by NIRI Silicon Valley, Laura Graves, Cisco’s IRO spoke about the power of using social media to address rumors. Here is a tweet put out by @NIRISV
The concept of ‘voice of authority’ is not based on responding to each and every post or comment written about your company. It is about publishing a consistent stream of content into the social networks and websites that are most important to your business.
Establishing a new channel of communication gives the company a tool to help guide the discussion and to focus on the issues that the company feels is most important. As well, having your voice of authority in the community allows you to address any misinformation or rumors and fill the void with approved messaging. While this may not entirely displace rumors, it does go a long way to influencing the community and how your company should be viewed.
This is the same tactic as dealing with the media. It is better for your company to speak to the media because if you don’t your critics fill the void. This is the same on the web.
How to establish your voice of authority:
- Listen and monitor the conversation to see what is being said about your company and where – not just on Twitter but blogs, wikis and any other social forums
- Adopt the social networks and channels that are used by your stakeholders
- Ensure your IR website is up to snuff. When using social media you’re going to be linking back to your site frequently, so make sure it follows best practices and contains up-to-date content
- Publish (restate) your information to social content networks and embed them on your website:
- Videos on YouTube (or Vimeo if longer than 10mins)
- Key presentations on SlideShare
- Key documents on docstoc
- As you add content to your website or onto content networks use Twitter to announce it is available and link back to your site.
This is not something you can create over night, or in the middle of a crisis. It is important to be proactive and work to establish your company’s voice across various web channels. When the time comes that you need to correct the market or deal with a rumor, you’ll have the tools at your disposal.
With a constant stream of content being published into your primary networks you will establish your voice and be part of the conversation. This is a tactic that is being employed by many companies today and is proving to be an effective way to guide the discussion.
Start establishing your voice of authority today and you’ll be well armed for your next fight!
Related posts:
- Summer ‘09 Preview bring social media and xbrl to IR websites
- NIRI Cleveland – Social Media and IR Wrap Up – Top 5 Take Aways
- How Polycom’s Social Media Strategy has evolved to incorporate Investor Relations
- SlideShare Partners with Q4 Web Systems to help Bring Social Media to Investor Relations
- Trends and Best Practices in Online Communications and Social Media in Corporate IR
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