Editorial

Citation

Bell, G. (2012), "Editorial", Strategic Direction, Vol. 28 No. 6. https://doi.org/10.1108/sd.2012.05628faa.001

Editorial

Article Type: Editorial From: Strategic Direction, Volume 28, Issue 6

Over the past decade, the ways in which we interact – with friends, family, clients and co-workers – have changed dramatically. The development and adoption of Web 2.0 technology, in particular social media, has brought about a communication revolution comparable in significance to that of the nineteenth century. While Samuel Morse’s telegraph may have long since been outmoded (just as Web 2.0 will soon be usurped by Web 3.0) its invention proved a tipping point from which there was no return, only progress.

The purpose of this special issue is to examine the impact these changes have had in the business world, and how we can best harness new and existing technology to succeed in the future.

The ubiquity of social media makes it easy to forget that Facebook was launched a mere eight years ago. Since 2004 it has grown exponentially, and now has over 600 million users worldwide, with a reported worth of around $500 billion. Our first review article, “A more equal footing: how social media have transformed customer relationships”, discusses how the huge captive audience provided by such platforms has encouraged many businesses into this realm, which in turn has rendered traditional approaches to customer relationship management (CRM) all but redundant.

Following the theme of CRM, our second article, “Are big banks engaging their stakeholders in a dialogue?”, investigates the extent to which multinational banks are adopting social media in an attempt to rebuild the trust that was lost after the financial crisis. Our next review focuses on the sports and entertainment sector. Entitled “Harnessing social media strategies”, this article looks at the ways in which venue managers are utilizing social media as part of an integrated marketing and promotional strategy.

Luxury brands are also getting in on the act, as outlined in our next review, “Fine wines and Facebook”. The UK’s leading wine critic has over 24,000 Twitter followers, and wine brand managers are also looking to social media to engage with their technologically-savvy customers. Our next article offers a counter-point to the wide-ranging acceptance of Web 2.0 developments as inherently positive. “Skynet redux: the online war of the future” outlines the threats that exist to businesses who do not keep their online house in order. Managed correctly, however, social media can and should be an important tool for employee empowerment and engagement. The next review, “Making social media join the workforce”, continues in this vein, describing how New Jersey IT firm Cognizant has integrated social media into every aspect of its business.

The penultimate review in this issue addresses the challenges posed to marketers by social networking. “New media needs new marketing” looks at the relationship between social media and opportunity recognition, and suggests that organizations need to re-think the areas in which they spend. Finally, “The connections that link people, products and profits” examines the ways in which Generation C are frequently engaging with consumer review sites, and the implications this can have for the businesses reviewed.

This special issue concludes with an interview with web analytics guru, Marshall Sponder. For over a decade, Marshall has been at the forefront of this growing field, influencing and advising large companies on how to determine ROI from their web-based activity. His book, Social Media Analytics, proffers strategies for getting the most out of social media, as well as predicting the direction this field is likely to take in future, something Sponder is perfectly placed to do. In this interview he discusses at length the importance of a tactical approach to social media, the tools needed for measuring ROI, and emerging trends in social media.

A running theme of this special issue has been interaction, as companies look to open up channels of communication with their stakeholders through social media. With this in mind it seems entirely appropriate to point to our Strategy twitter feed, @emeraldstrategy. Additionally, if you have any questions or comments regarding this issue I would love to hear from you, and can be contacted at: gbell@emeraldinsight.com

Gareth Bell