A couple of weeks ago I blogged about how Australian companies may not quite ‘get’ social media quite as much as they should. Two very recent examples sadly seem to prove this to be the case. But all three are a good lesson for any brand in how NOT to ‘do’ social media.
A couple of weeks ago, the University of South Australia got caught out when they ran a series of videos of students talking about how great the uni was. All very off-the-cuff and vox populi. The only problem was, one of the students was part of the uni marketing department! And was clearly identified as so on the uni website. Silly! It didn’t take long for somebody at Crikey to catch on. There’s no hiding from this kind of thing anymore!
This week, Freeview tried to cover up a Youtube video mocking the upcoming digital TV service. They had their lawyers issue a takedown notice to Youtube. Since the video was doing nothing illegal, it was promptly re-uploaded. The result? Huge amounts of press surrounding the takedown attempt, and heaps more people seeing the video that never would have. The lesson? Don’t try to suppress the conversation, it’s like stomping on an ant’s nest – just manage it more effectively!
How many more Australian brands will need to learn the hard way before learning – listen, engage, influence!
