My Blog » The Importance of having a Corporate Social Media Strategy

This week, Facebook and Twitter were awash with people voicing their disgust with Nestlé who Greenpeace accused of sourcing palm oil for its Kitkat brand from a company charged with illegal deforestation. Greenpeace drew attention to its message by posting videos of activists in Orangutan suits at the company's HQ - which it distributed widely to broadcast and social media channels.

But wherever you stand on the politics, there is no getting away from the fact that Greenpeace has the upper hand when it comes to getting its message across loud and clear on all of its marketing channels including social media; whilst the conglomerate seems to have a somewhat shakey social media strategy, which according to PR Week, 'quickly became a social media crisis'.

Whatever your point of view, this is a clear lesson of the dangers of embarking on social media without first giving any thought to a strategy, putting the strategy into a plan which is then clearly disseminated to employees who are responsible for social media; and ensuring that it is in agreement with all other marketing and brand messages. After all you wouldn't let a junior address the press would you?

For companies who are scared of dipping their toe in the water as far as social media is concerned. A good way to start is to deploy an enterprise social network - such as Webjam - within the comfort of your own environment, so employees throughout the company can get used to using social media. Its also a great way of opening up conversations and you never know where it might lead ...