Topping the social media exploration list for many organizations is microblogging phenomenon Twitter, which already has been embraced by the likes of well-known companies such as General Motors, JetBlue and Whole Foods Market.
These and other companies are keeping close tabs on the 140-characters-or-fewer “tweets” which are rising up from among the millions of Twitter users. They are looking to connect with people who happen to mention their brands during the course of daily life, whether it’s “Had a bowl of XX cereal last night. Was soooo good.” or “New XX phone confusing. Tips for programming?” or “Picked up rental car from XX. Woman at desk was rude.”

In response to this chirping, company reps swoop in to try to strengthen their relationship with consumers who have positive things to say. They move even faster to address the concerns of disgruntled individuals before their negative vibes can taint the opinions of others flitting about in the Twitter nest.

Of course, they also provide news and other information to users who actually want to “follow” the company via Twitter.

But in the quest to be on the cutting edge, organizations diving into social media like Twitter without a clear and thoughtful strategy actually can end up doing damage to customer relationships as well as their image. That’s because even if their communication is ultra-brief or seems just plain random, users who embrace applications like Twitter are actually trying to have a meaningful connection with others. And they have extremely low tolerance for what they view as spam disguised as “communication” invading their dialogue.
In a recent posting on his Pop! PR Jots blog, Jeremy Pepper warns of the rise of “Twitteriocy” (Twitter + idiocy) in the corporate world.

“Twitter is the new shiny tool, but that’s not how people should look at it,” says Pepper, who also manages PR and social media for Los Angeles-based Boingo Wireless. “With social media, companies think they need to do everything that’s out there. They think social media is going to be a game-changer. It’s really not.”

Pepper says tools like Twitter, which are hot now until the next big thing comes along, are all about brand reputation management and that, of course, requires strategy.

“Before getting involved, companies really should be asking things like, ‘What is this community?’ and ‘Would this really be a great fit for my brand?’ and ‘What is it exactly that we want to accomplish?’” he explains.

And while social media may indeed be a “cheap” marketing tool for reaching the masses, Pepper emphasizes that users’ “time is not cheap,” and companies must recognize and respect that. “With your Twitter outreach, you really shouldn’t be spamming everyone,” he says. “If you do, you’re going to turn them off.”

Below we’ve listed a few rules Pepper has developed for companies looking to use Twitter, to build rapport with customers who use it and to be accepted by “Twitterati” as a part of the community.

• Don’t outsource. Pepper says Twitter outreach—and really all social media efforts—should be an inside job. Companies should not rely on outside resources, such as PR firms, if they want their social media interactions with users to be authentic.

Those who are knowledgeable about and authorized to speak for the organization and its products or services should be the ones doing the talking.

“How is a PR firm supposed to respond if they have to go back to the client and get the OK first?” asks Pepper. It is also important to have devoted inside resources prepared to interact with users in real time, which is obviously an important aspect of tools like Twitter.

• Be personable and responsive. Pepper says, “There is nothing worse than sending someone a direct message on Twitter and then hearing nothing back.”

In short, if you don’t want to engage directly with users who would like to engage with you, then why bother being on Twitter or other social media outlets designed for person-to-person interaction? You might as well let them try to communicate with your organization through more “traditional,” impersonal and unfulfilling means, like sending an e-mail to a generic corporate customer service address or dialing an 800 number and listening to muzak while waiting for a rep to pick up the line.

• Be real. Pepper says one of his particular pet peeves about Twitter is coming across corporate accounts that do not feature names or bios for those who are doing the twittering for the organization.

“You might as well be talking to no one,” he says. “This is supposed to be a conversation and you want me talking to a person with no name?” He points to companies like Comcast whose director of Digital Care, Frank Eliason, has been twittering with users since last April (and whose efforts have earned the company some positive press), and Dell and Southwest, which rely on teams for their twittering and blogging.

Pepper says, “What you put out there doesn’t have to be grandiose. You just need to be transparent or people will want nothing to do with you.”

While Pepper emphasizes that Twitter may not be the right social media platform for every organization, it does not mean there is no value in paying attention to what customers are saying and doing there or within other online communities.

For companies that do want to monitor such activity, he suggests downloading online media management tools like Filtrbox or Tweetdeck, which can help to break through the communication clutter and hone in on messages they want and need to hear.