IR needs more Active Engagement on Facebook

• As IR Web Report blogger Dominic Jones reported, TVI Pacific Inc. has used its Facebook page since Nov. 2009, and its forum was started by retail investors and has received over 200 questions to company responses! The company made their Facebook page the sole source for corporate discussion. The plus side of Facebook? More user privacy. (Source)

• 58% of Facebook users log in from work, but only 1 out of 4 is Facebook friends with their boss (Source)

• Communicate Magazine reported 46% of the attendees at Tuesday night's Investor Relations Society conference said that they don't use social media as business tools EVER! Risks involved with social media engagement include time and limited control, but the benefits of taking advantage of these popular outlets is more evident. This gives investors and shareholders a place to engage with the company through the websites they are already members on. As reported by IR Web Report, companies are putting themselves in risk by not jumping on the social media bandwagon because they aren't monitoring, managing, or engaging. The number of investors/analysts' usage of these sites is increasing, but the accounts are managed by inexperienced employees not aware of all of the rules that regulate IR postings to investors. If IROs cannot fully be involved on social websites, they need to listen to what investors and shareholders are saying and posting (Source).

• Social media is a great outlet for companies to learn more about your fans, and Facebook is engaging with brands in order to do so. Facebook is developing Facebook Questions and trying it out on certain profiles and brand pages. This application would be similar to Formspring.me which allows users or site visitors to anomously post questions privately and answers are shared with everyone. On Facebook, this will allow brands to respond directly and privately, communication not usually linked with brands. I am interested to see users' engagement in this added feature, and if brands can keep up with consumers' and investors' questions and concerns. (Source)

Invest / Voting / Pics / Fail

• Facebook has been in the market for over 6 years and still remains a private company, a company not just limited to investors with a net worth of $1million to buy private shares. An article called "alternative ways to invest in facebook" provides suggestions to invest in companies/funds aligned with Facebook. Companies suggested were: The Neilsen Company, Microsoft (holding a 1.6% stake in FB), Retail companies, SharesPost, and competitors of Facebook. Why invest in competitors? Because you never know when the next big thing regarding social media will be unveiled. The article also tells you to keep an eye out for Facebook's IPO because with its current worth ranking $11.5 billion, its estimated worth is double if it goes public. Once Facebook reaches $10 million in total assets and 500+ shareholders they must disclose their financial information. To indirectly invest in Facebook, buy stocks from those companies' investment groups that benefit when Facebook does; as Facebook grows, the need for new/better/bigger social media aspects grows (Source)
  
  
• Who says nothing good can come from Facebook? When I first read this article about Facebook and voting registration, I was confused about a focused election drive during this time to realize it was for the UK not US. SO, In the UK, Facebook is trying to get unregistered voters to register before the April 20th deadline. Working with the Electoral Commission, when Facebook users visited the site over the weekend, they were asked if they have registered. If "no," the page loads to allow them to enter their info online; then print the page and bring it to their registration office with the address provided on the site. I think that something similar needs to be implemented in America, but it should be held closer to our primaries and provide information after registration about all candidates' positions, because we need educated voters (Source)
  
  
• Facebook purchased Divvyshot, a year-old photo sharing site to add another way for users to share their pictures. Divvyshot allows people to add to the same album. Facebook has more than 3 billion photos uploaded monthly. Divvyshot is no longer allowing new accounts and all existing users will be moved to Facebook within the next month (Source).
  
  
• An article with the view that big businesses are bad at social media, says if youre a company not using social media youre a company viewed as not having a website. Businesses are establishing an identity on social media but not doing so effectively because you can't just simply create an account and move on. The most important element is using these outlets to engage and communicate with your investors or consumers, which is the area where big companies are failing (Source)

Bye Bye Bebo and Microsoft

“PR used to be considered the poor relation of advertising. I think you could argue that word of mouth has always been the most effective form of communication. Digital PR is like word of mouth on steroids.” - Simon Clift, Chief Marketing Officer for Unilever (Source)

• AOL is looking to sell or shut down its social networking site called “Bebo,” which stands for Blog Early, Blog Often. The site has been around for the past 5 years. I honestly have never heard of it. Although, AOL only recently bought the site a few years ago. AOL plans to take action as soon as this May. The major difference from this site in comparison to Facebook, would be interaction; Bebo has polls between users/friends. And the music section is similar to MySpace. (Source)
• Microsoft was an investor in Facebook, and during this month Facebook has stopped using Microsoft’s ads in some international markets; and the VP of US ad sales at Microsoft, Robin Domeniconi feels these ads may also be dropped in the US. Just 2 years ago, Microsoft had invested $240 million in Facebook. Whether Facebook “Unfriending” them is a hint towards their own success with advertising or power to control ads is debatable. I feel that the Facebook vs. Microsoft battle will not be disappearing anytime soon. (Source)

Facebook Future Plans: Advertising & China

Cash Flows into Facebook: Do Users = Profit??
Over the weekend, Facebook’s Chief Operating Officer, Sheryl Sandberg said that Facebook has “been profitable for a long time.” However, the company still has no plan for an IPO, but it is currently making enough money to end the need to raise the capital. To respond to critics claiming Facebook is not profitable, Sandberg said it’s difficult to see because Facebook is private. Facebook is an “ad-based business,” which is how the company affords to remain free. The company is talking with advertisers about how to compete with TV for the primary way to promote brands and products.

"The actions you take are shared with the people the individual has chosen to share them with - everyone, friends or friends of friends. If I watch a TV commercial and I like it I might tell my husband sitting next to me and that's it.” Sandy Sandberg

Facebook Looking to Enter China Facebook is reportedly increasing its efforts to enter China this year. If Facebook enters China, it could undergo what Google is currently facing.

"We are interested in China, just as we are many other countries, and while we are studying and learning about them all, we have no specific plans for China at this time," a Facebook spokesman said in a statement, Marketwatch reports.

Facebook: Policies, Fan Pages, Rumors, & Dominos

• Facebook's New Policies Fail to Stop Ad Copy Misuse: last month Facebook started a new system to stop ads from using information from users' profiles such as age and location. 2 ads appeared to have slipped through the cracks: Bloomspot.com and the Scooter Store, as well as many others. Bloomspot would not take phonecalls, but emailed ClickZ and asked to not be included in their article. Facebook's ad system is part automatic and part human. In my opinion, I don't mind if Facebook ads target my age or location because that is information that I provided online, so if I am in a company's area and age range, why not have them reach me?? Taking away this advantage will hurt Facebook's advertisers since they will no longer be able to reach their ideal consumers.
• How to Build Engaging One-of-Kind Facebook Fan Pages: This will give you the step by step directions and tips to making a Facebook Fan Page that is successful and engaging. Requirements: time, planning, HTML knowledge, design skill, and imagination. Make your profile picture the full size (200 x 600 pixels); use a Facebook application to create different tabs; link your twitter in one of those tabs; participate in conversations; and spotlight your company's employees.
• Facebook Causes Syphilis and Craigslist Kills People: An article by Matthew Ingram, focuses on how people tend to believe everything they read online is true. Rumors found on mainstream media sites should be verified without sources before claiming them as true. This rumor begain in British papers then online then to social networks. The source of the rumor began with an interview of a British public health official in Teeside who shared his opinion that young people are having unprotected sex with "Facebook romps" aka people they converse with on Facebook. And syphillis rates are higher than before, and some people surveyed has met partners through Facebook and a lot of people in the area are Facebook users. I agree with Matthew, how can you link things? It's kind of funny how quickly social media allows rumors to spread; it's definately a great outlet for sharing news and information, but when information is false, it is difficult to control the info flow.
• New York City Public Relations Firm Offers Tips on Blog Promotion: A blogger from a NYC PR firm offered some insight to reaching blog readers. She reccommends using Facebook and LinkedIn to spread your blog's name. Each time a blog is posted, a link should be shared on social media outlets; everything should remain parallel for maxiumum outreach.
• The ‘Dominos’ Effect: Pay Attention to your Customers, A View from the Brand Perspective: this article follows a journey of a brand- Dominos- through social media. Chris Brandon in charge of PR operations and social media was interviewed. Dominos has been engaging with consumers through social media for a year and a half, and now is using social media more than before. They looked on Twitter/Facebook/Blogs to see what consumers were saying about their pizza, and noticed the need for improvements, so they listened. Chris also points out that social media helps Dominos communicate with customers directly now, which they couldnt before. After 45 mins of the Spring 2009 YouTube posting of an employee unsanitarily cooking, the company knew of the video and immediately distributed still shots nationwide to figure out the culprits in the video. They were found before the day was over and the store was closed, the franchise's owner, the police, and the health department were notified. YouTube wouldn't remove the video because Dominos was not the copyright owner. I find Domino's response a good example of how to react in time's of crisis; I do not understand why YouTube would not remove the video however and understand why the company issued a response on YouTube featuring Domino's PRESIDENT. Domino's still is using social media channels to connect with customers which is helping repair the company's image. They have since told employees that they cant photograph/video anything on Domino's property without permission. Chris believes social media is still young in terms of communcation and marketing tools and will still expand. The brand promotes open and honest interaction with fans. Advice to big brands trying social media is to stay current because social media is always changing. The article and interview end with this is a new consumer-led era; which is true because due to social media, consumers have more control and power.