揭秘社交媒体的9大虚假神话[摘要]社交媒体已经改变了我们销售、营销以及公共关系等，然而有关社交媒体依然有许多误解。
印度企业家、作家、公共演讲家阿维纳什·卡西克（Avinash Kaushik）曾发文称：“社交媒体就像青少年性爱，每个人都想尝试，但却没人真正了解。而当最终梦想实现时，他们却发现并非像想象中那样美好。”那是2009年时的情景，今天，社交媒体已经改变了我们销售、营销以及公共关系等，然而有关社交媒体依然有许多误解。我们搜集了9个社交媒体神话，并尝试解开它们。
神话一：Facebook、Twitter以及LinkedIn为社交媒体下了定义。
商务教授安德里亚斯·卡普兰（Andreas Kaplan）和迈克尔·亨莱因（Michael Haenlein）曾对社交媒体下定义，称其为“一组基于互联网的应用，这些应用建立在Web 2.0的理念和技术基础之上，即允许创造和交流来自用户产生的内容”。
而Facebook、Twitter以及LinkedIn等绝对是最好的社交网站，但也有许多相对来说不太受欢迎的社交网络，包括协作项目Wikipedia、微博客Tumblr以及YouTube与Dailymotion等内容社区。企业协作工具Sharepoint、Yammer等也可被归入社交媒体范畴。所有这些网站都有自己独特的用户群，需要与用户成功交流的不同策略。
神话二：社交媒体导致普通员工生产力下降。
我们听说过许多类似故事，比如学生因迷恋Facebook以至于注意力下降。这种影响如此巨大，以至于许多人不得不在考试期间停用Facebook账户，以强迫自己集中注意力。
可是，在职场，社交媒体侵蚀生产力的说法不成立。Ipsos与微软对全球32个国家近万名信息职员调查显示，46%的人称他们的生产力因为在办公室中使用社交媒体而有所提高。在此情况下，社交媒体包括即时通讯、短信、视频会议、news feeds、社交网络以及SharePoint等团队网站。
神话三：社交媒体工具不利于工作环境。
在Ipsos与微软的调查中，34%的员工认为，管理层低估了社交媒体工具带来的好处。37%受访者称，如果公司能为职场提供使用社交媒体工具的更好环境，他们的工作表现将更好。
此外，麦肯锡咨询公司的研究也显示，在消费包装产品、零售金融服务、先进制造业与专业服务等特定行业，如果公司能够全面使用社交技术，可以改善企业内部与外部的协作与沟通，这会提高生产力20%到25%。
神话四：通过社交媒体招聘只会吸引低素质求职者。
由于通过社交媒体求职没有任何障碍，为此求职者的素质自然是参差不齐。这很容易让人产生求职者平均素质很低的印象，不如通过招聘机构选择那些特定范围内的求职者。
然而，布莱顿企业管理学院的研究显示，94%的求职者使用社交媒体找工作，49%的招聘者发现求职者的素质正得到极大提高。实际上，在18到34岁年龄段之间的求职者，73%的人通过社交网络找到最新工作。求职招聘网站Jobvite2013年社交招聘调查显示，最好的求职者通过推介获得，其次就是通过社交网络招聘。
神话五：社交媒体导致普通员工对工作兴趣下降。
大数据公司Evolve对美国呼叫中心的约4万名工作人员进行抽样调查显示，那些每周使用1到4个社交网络网站的员工比他们的同事留在工作岗位上的时间更长。对4991名员工进行第二类实验显示，那些经常使用5种社交网络以上的员工，比那些不使用社交网络的人的销售额更高，而且花费时间更少。
神话六：不使用社交媒体的财政结果并不重要。
麻省理工学院与咨询公司Capgemini Consulting的研究发现，进行社交媒体和数字媒体培训具有关键性作用，数字化密集型公司的表现要比非数字化公司在财政方面表现更好。报告称，数字强度更高的公司从他们的实物财产方面获得的收入更高，每位雇员贡献的收入、净利润率以及市场价值都更高。
神话七：社交媒体永远无法进行直接销售。
2009年，戴尔公司通过其Twitter帐号营收300万美元。这个账号收听粉丝的心声，有许多杰出消费者参与。如果一个品牌能够获得消费者支持，并倾听目标用户关心的话题，它可能会通过社交渠道推动产品。
如果品牌想获得更多好处，它们需要走近社交媒体，将其作为培养在线消费用户群的良机，而不仅仅将其当作销售渠道。只要团队保持至诚，只需适度的提及产品，它们就能向消费者提供有帮助的工具，而非成为恼人的销售伎俩。
神话八：没人再使用社交新闻聚合网站了。
Digg、StumbleUpon以及Reddit等社交新闻聚合网站依然很受欢迎。随着Facebook、Twitter以及LinkedIn社会news feeds的到来，有人认为它们可以取代社交新闻聚合网站。可是，网站通讯流量监测机构Statcounter社交媒体全球统计表明，StumbleUpon和Reddit依然十分活跃，在过去一年中，这两家网站的平均流量甚至超过YouTube。
神话九：老年人在社交媒体上不够活跃，为此针对这个群体的行业不必烦扰。
美国皮尤研究中心2013年调查显示，在65岁以上的美国人中，43%的人至少使用一家社交网站，2010年这一数字为26%，2008年更是只有1%。目前，有3900万65岁以上老人正在使用Facebook、Twitter以及Skype，他们也是这些网站用户增长最快的群体。为此，千万不要低估他们的力量！（风帆）
9 myths about social media at work
Avinash Kaushik, an Indian entrepreneur, author and public speaker, once tweeted that “Social media is like teen sex, Everyone wants to do it. No one actually knows how. When finally done, there is surprise it’s not better.”
That was in 2009. Today, social media has transformed the way we do sales, marketing and public relations – yet there are still many misconceptions about social media. We’ve rounded up nine common myths and research to debunk them.
Myth 1: Social media is defined as Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn
Business professors Andreas Kaplan and Michael Haenlein define social media as “a group of internet-based applications that build on the ideological and technological foundations of Web 2.0, and that allow the creation and exchange of user-generated content.”
Whilst Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn definitely top the list of social networking sites, there are many less popular forms of social networks out there. These can include collaborative projects such as Wikipedia, microblogs such as Tumblr and content communities such as YouTube and Dailymotion.
Enterprise collaboration tools such as Sharepoint and Yammer also count as social media. All of these sites have their own unique audiences and require various strategies to successfully engage with fans.
Myth 2: Social media makes the average worker less productive
We’ve all heard stories about students who get distracted from studying due to Facebook and use it as a method of procrastination; so much so that people had to intentionally deactivate their Facebook accounts during exam periods so they could concentrate.
However, this dip in productivity does not necessarily hold true for the workplace.
Ipsos and Microsoft surveyed roughly 10,000 information workers across 32 countries and found that 46 percent of workers said their productivity had greatly or somewhat increased because ofsocial use in the office. In this case, social media encompassed instant messaging, text messaging, video conferencing, news feeds, social networks and team sites such as SharePoint.
Myth 3: Social media tools are not beneficial in the work environment
In the same Ipsos and Microsoft study, 34 percent of workers indicated that management underestimated the benefits of social media tools, and 37 percent said that they could do their job better if the organization’s management was on-board with the use of social tools in the workplace.
Furthermore, a study by McKinsey stated that certain industries like consumer packaged goods, retail financial services, advanced manufacturing and professional services could raise productivity by 20 to 25 percent if companies fully implemented social technologies which help improve collaboration and communication within and across enterprises.
Myth 4: Recruitment via social media attracts poor-quality candidates
As there are no barriers to applying for jobs via social media, the quality of candidates naturally varies. It’s easy to believe that the average quality of applications would indeed be lower than if a company went through a recruitment agency which targets the profiles of candidates of a certain caliber.
However, research from the Brighton School of Business Management showed that 94 percent of recruiters use social media for their jobs and 49 percent of employers found an improvement in candidate quality. In fact, 73 percent of 18-34 year olds found their last job through a social network (myself included!)
Jobvite’s social recruiting survey 2013 results found that the highest-rated candidates are sourced through referrals, followed by social networks.
Myth 5: Social media makes the average worker less interested in their job
A study by big data firm Evolve looked at call center staff in the US with a sample size of approximately 40,000 and found that employees who used one to four social networking sites on a weekly basis stayed at their jobs longer than their peers.
Furthermore, in a second experiment with a sample size of 4,991, staff who regularly used more than five social networks demonstrated higher sales in less time than their colleagues who didn’t.
Myth 6: The financial consequences to not engaging in social media are minor
A study by Capgemini Consulting and MIT found that training in social media and all things digital is a deciding factor in why digitally-intense companies outperform their less Web-savvy counterparts financially.
The report stated that “companies with stronger digital intensity derive more revenue from their physical assets.” They also generate more revenue per employee, have higher net profit margins and higher market valuations.
Myth 7: Social media will never generate direct sales
In 2009, Dell made $3 million in sales from just one of its Twitter accounts. This account also had a history of listening to fans, and excellent consumer engagement.
If a brand is able to build a following of consumer advocates and listen to the concerns of its target audience, it might be able to get away with slightly pushing products via social channels.
Still, brands need to approach social media as a chance to foster an online consumer base rather than just another sales medium if they want to gain these other benefits. As long as the team remains genuine, and only mention its product in moderation, they can offer helpful tools for consumers instead of overload them with annoying sales pitches.
Myth 8: No one uses social news aggregators anymore
Social news aggregators like Digg, StumbleUpon and Reddit are still popular—and relevant. With the advent of social news feeds on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn, one might think that they’ve replaced the social news aggregators.
However, Statcounter’s global stats for social media show that people are still quite active on StumbleUpon and Reddit. Both sites have had higher average traffic than YouTube for the past year.
Myth 9: Senior citizens are not active on social media so businesses targeting this demographic shouldn’t bother
The Pew Research Center found that in 2013, 43 percent of Americans over 65 used at least one social networking site, compared with 26 percent in 2010 and 1 percent in 2008.
At time of publication, there are 39 million people aged 65 and older using Facebook, Twitter and Skype, making them the fastest growing age demographic on these sites. Don’t underestimate this power generation!
sourse:TNW
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