Social Technology is Inevitable

Have you every used an online platform to write a review about a company? Tweeted at a company to ask when a product is being released? If so, you are embracing the exact reason why companies are utilizing social technology to engage with the Groundswell. In chapters 13 and 14 of Groundswell by Li and Bernoff (2008), they discuss how companies need to learn to evolve to using social technology, and it is a crucial step towards reaching social maturity. They also list the obstacles that companies face while adopting these social technologies, and the different stages to get to social maturity. 

Li and Bernoff state that a key part of the transformation towards social maturity is a "parallel evolution of customer and employee social applications," (p. 255). Meaning that all the platforms that are used externally for customers are also used internally by employees to further understand the groundswell and what needs to change within the organization. An example of this that the book provided was with Home Depot, who began to plummet as they received attention for their decline in supportive employees. They then created a youtube channel, twitter accounts and Facebook account to further connect with their customers and to further expand on their slogan, "You Can Do It, We Can Help," by providing helpful videos. 

Creating a strong social presence comes with obstacles, including cultural issues, perspective issues, organizational issues, and real risks to social applications. These obstacles range from dealing with rude customers and bad reviews, building the social technology plan into already existing marketing plans, and concerns from other departments within the company (p. 256-257). Something that is discussed towards the end of the book is that within a few years, "a company that doesn't engage in this sort of activity will look dated," (p. 278) and I think we can see that clearly today during COVID with the amount of businesses that are falling behind. 

COVID-19 has presented unique opportunities for small businesses. Initiatives are being created globally to help attempt to save these small businesses that are a huge driver of local economies. Small businesses that have failed to build an online presence and that have failed grow social maturity are quickly falling behind. A study found that 35% of small or personal businesses are now offering online services due to the pandemic. Connecting with the groundswell is more important than ever before due to COVID-19, and building and online presence is a crucial way to connect with your customers during this time. In Groundswell, they discuss how embracing the groundswell is the best way to find ways for you business or organization to grow and adapt, and I think this is a prime example. 

Small and large businesses started realizing, due to COVID-19, that they needed to find other ways to serve their customers and to continue their business. Social media has developed different methods for small businesses to connect with the groundswell, so for those businesses that are failing to utilize social platforms are falling behind - as Li and Bernoff stated in Chapter 14 (2008, p. 278). Some examples of the ways that social media has grown to work with small businesses affected during the pandemic include: Shops on Facebook, Pinterest highlighting small brands, Instagram's stickers for small businesses, and many more. 

Connecting with the groundswell and embracing the ways to do this has always been important, but COVID-19 shutdowns has shown the power of social media and how having a social presence can help ones business. As seen in the chart below, one of the best ways to help your business during the pandemic is to stay connected with not only your employees but also your consumers and audience - AKA the groundswell. Already having a social media presence definitely makes this easier, therefore further highlighting the importance of adopting social technologies into your company. As Li and Bernoff state, "when social technology starts to become a part of how a company runs, the ideas come from everywhere," (p. 271).