Advocates can be found anywhere. Since I like things organized, I ran across Rubbermaid’s blog for organization advocates. The blog has fascinating postings about how people are saving money making soups and storing for meals, why animals like to eat through plastic (they apparently don’t like plastic but like the trash can odors) and the adventures of a professional organizer. Obviously Rubbermaid materials are the undercurrent but it was fun reading about people’s experiences organizing and cluttering their lives. Advocates for clean garages have a contest to enter (luckily I don’t have a garage) which was probably some pr person’s brilliant idea. There are endless places to tour if you are interested in checking out people’s closet makeovers. A good reminder again that blogs can advocate for companies and the key is not just pushing your products and services but drilling down into that core advocacy theme in your business. Once you find that, you can talk straight to your advocates easily and tie them to your company’s key strategies.
No one can argue that the challenge of managing and protecting company reputation is an enduring leadership agenda item, taking on priority status as the online co
mmunity becomes more sophisticated. Opportunities abound for companies to connect with their staunch, passionate, and highly influential supporters – their advocates – to help build and protect reputation. New technologies seem to surface every day that allow organizations to build relationships with these advocates and cultivate new advocates.
To assess the online reputation risks and vulnerabilities in business today, and how advocacy can reduce threats and create opportunities, we recently completed a large global study about online reputation management, called Risky Business: Reputations Online™. We conducted it in cooperation with the Economist Intelligence Unit, surveying more than 700 senior executives from 62 countries.
Risky Business determined that executives believe the threat level to their companies’ reputation is high – a striking 67% of top executives regard their company’s reputation as vulnerable. However, the study also found that advocacy helps safeguard company reputations in many ways. Below are a few highlights to whet your appetite, but we’ll be releasing more from the study over the next few weeks.
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Reputation threat levels are lower at companies with loyal advocates. Less than 6 in 10 executives (56%) who believe that most of their company’s advocates would stay with them if they faced a reputational crisis (i.e., those with “very loyal” advocates) report high or moderate threat level to their company’s reputation today. Comparatively, 79% of executives whose company’s advocates are not loyal (i.e., most would abandon them in the face of a reputational crisis) consider the threat level to their company’s reputation high or moderate.
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Executives at companies with very loyal advocates are far less worried about online badvocacy from dissatisfied customers or critics than executives at companies that lack loyal advocates (31% vs. 47%, respectively). This confidence is probably a result of their companies’ rigor in managing reputation online: those with very loyal advocates report having a more rigorous approach to online reputation management than those whose advocates are not loyal (65% vs. 44%, respectively).
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Companies with very loyal advocates
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Companies without loyal advocates
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The threat to my company’s reputation today is high or moderate
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56%
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79%
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I am concerned that a dissatisfied customer or critic will launch an online campaign against my company
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31%
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47%
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My company is very/somewhat rigorous today about managing its reputation online
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65%
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44%
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More proof to come of the benefits of finding and nurturing advocates…
The Obama stimulus plan is looking for advocates. An email was sent to hosts of stimulus plan parties seeking support and info on explaining the bill. New DNC chairman Tim Kaine is videoed urging support and instructions on how to achieve that: “Don’t forget to gather stories and questions from your guests — they will be featured on BarackObama.com to tell the story of the economic crisis, and our recovery.” Advocacy is all about telling stories and sharing them– much like Obama has done. Kaine also answers questions from ordinary people in his 13 minutes on video. I received a 4 minute video from President Obama this morning asking me to advocate the plan and explaining why he needs my support. [Where does he find the time? Does he sleep?]As soon as the plan is passed, www.recovery.gov goes live and we can see how our money is being spent and is meeting its objectives. Advocacy has never been so viral, so social and so immediate.
Tags: Advocacy, advocates, Kaine, Obama, Stimulus plan
