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Associations have been slow to climb aboard the social networking juggernaut. Here we address the fears that have been holding them back. And point out why “wait and see” is a risky strategy.
Social networking: from “who cares” to “must have”
A senior executive at one of Australia’s best known professional associations was shocked and alarmed when she discovered that one of the most influential groups in her association had started a network on LinkedIn without telling her – let alone asking her permission.
Members of almost every single association in the country will have done the same. How quickly things have changed.
Twelve months ago we were telling people that Facebook wasn’t just for kids and got blank faces whenever we mentioned “LinkedIn”.
Yesterday we asked a crowd of 40 association reps who was on “LinkedIn” – and 3/4 said yes
The previous week - we asked a similar crowd about Facebook & it was the vast majority.
Social networking has been the preeminent trend of 2009 – yet associations have still not taken the leap in large numbers.
Some associations have taken defensive action, setting up groups on mass social networking sites. But they often find themselves the wallflower at the dance – watching on powerless as all the action happens in front of them.
Can you protect the interests of you and your members on mass web sites? Or are you just standing by passively as another network takes off with your members?
The question is not really “if” but “how” you are going to social network, and we believe there are compelling arguments why you must create your own social network.
What is holding associations back?
Let’s dig down a little bit into your ambivalence – or even outright hatred of social networks - and confront your worst social networking fears.
What are the things, deep down, that are stopping you from embracing this revolution in communication?
• What are those fears?
• Which ones have some basis in reality?
• Which ones are entirely groundless?
• Which ones can you do something about?
• Which ones are you just going to have to “suck it up”?
So let’s start looking at some of those fears. And let’s not mess about with the also-rans. Let’s go right for the Mother of all fears that associations have about social networking.
Social networking fear #1: Critics
You’re worried that you’re going to create and fund a forum where people can criticise your association. Or, worse, you!!!
That’s a very human fear. But is it a genuine fear? Is that really likely to happen? You bet your life it is.
If people currently have criticisms about your association – or you - and you create a social network, then you can guarantee that your members are going to air those criticisms on that social network. There’s nothing surer.
But, this isn’t the thing you should be most worried about. There is something you should fear far more than people saying bad things about you on your social network.
It’s people saying bad things about you somewhere other than on your social network.
Because you can be absolutely sure they’re going to have criticisms. The only question is whether you get to hear about them - and are able to address them.
If someone says something behind your back, all sorts of rumours, half-truths and outright falsehoods get propagated.
But if you create a forum where you make it clear that criticism – as long as it’s respectfully and professionally rendered – is not just acceptable but absolutely welcomed, then you are in a great position to deal with that criticism.
You can – respectfully and professionally – point out any errors of fact or misunderstandings.
You can acknowledge valid concerns but possibly raise other countervailing considerations.
In short, you can engage in a mature discussion about their concerns, even if ultimately the fools fail to appreciate your patent genius.
A good example of this is the ISP and broadband forum, Whirlpool.
Telcos and ISPs know that people are going to be critical of them – and they’re not going to be able to stop that. But by coming on the forums, not anonymously, but identified as official representatives, and responding to their customers’ criticisms, they are able to defuse some concerns, and earn brownie points just for their willingness to get in there and wear the criticism.
On the other hand, to consider what happens when you try to quash criticism, look at the case of NAB’s new online bank, UBank.
They created an online forum that invited their customers to “tell us what you really think about your bank”. But, then, when they were inundated with a string of invective – gee, who’d have thought? – their head of online posted this comment.
Big mistake. But not the worst one they made.
They then went on the forums, anonymously, and tried to suggest that the criticism in the forums was coming from a rival bank.
There is nothing online forums hate more than a mole and UBank copped an absolute caning.
Criticism is inevitable. There is absolutely no avoiding it. But you’re going to be much better off if it’s aired in a place where you can see it, give it a good airing, and then hopefully beat the living daylights out of it.
You won’t always be able to get them to agree with your point of view or your course of action, but, as long as do act respectfully, you will emerge with an association that is more open, honest and stronger because it chooses to embrace criticism rather than ignore it and let it fester.
Social networking fear #2: Anti-social behaviour
Another major fear is likely to be people being nasty to one another.
This can take a number of forms. That people use foul language.
Or that they are personally abusive – that, in sporting terms, they play the man rather than the ball.
You can see nasty stuff on some forums but there is one big reason why it will happen far less frequently on issociate.
And that is identity.
On most forums, people are anonymous. They can claim to be anyone. Or no one. And under that shroud of anonymity, people tend to behave very badly indeed because there are no consequences.
But on issociate, you cannot be anonymous. You cannot claim to be someone you’re not. You can only be who you are, and that has a very moderating influence – particularly in the professional context.
We say this reflects real life: when people stand up at a conference or a meeting, they can be recognised and this has a civilising effect – generally speaking.
If associations are having trouble with people behaving badly at public events they have a bigger problem, which is why white supremacists and biker clubs won’t be on issociate.
However if going under your own name isn’t a sufficiently moderating influence, there is always moderation.
We’ve written some blog posts on the subject of moderation, but in summary:
• You need to set clear guidelines for behaviour in your forums
• Your members must read and accept user agreements.
Your moderators then can’t be shy in enforcing those rules – no matter, who the offender is.
But they also need to be tactful and not overly officious in reminding people of those rules.
Martinets make very poor moderators.
You can ask a member to tone down or remove a comment.
If they refuse, you have the ability to remove the comment yourself.
In the case of repeated infringements, you could suspend or expel the member.
That’s why it’s important your association’s name hangs over the door of the social network where your members aggregate.
It means you get to set the rules. It means you get to the set the tone. And it means you still get to run the show.
Social networking fear #3: Moderating
Now this could have you thinking about another of your fears – the amount of time and resources it will take to moderate these unruly members.
The first thing I’d say about this is that Wikipedia …
• produced 3 million articles
• became the 6th most trafficked internet site in the world
… with a full time editing staff of eight.
Picking up the slack were 11 million unpaid Wikipeders.
Even now, as they look to change their model to avoid the problems of wiki-vandalism, their new official editors- all 200,000 of them - will still all be volunteers. And that’s the key to moderating your online forums.
While you might not fancy the job, there are people in your association who will gladly volunteer to moderate your online group discussions.
In any particular topic of interest, you can possibly already think of a member or members who is sufficiently passionate that they’d relish the opportunity to be at the centre of the discussions.
Of course, not everyone who wants to volunteer is suitable for service.
We’ve written a post on the qualities required by a good moderator but it’s not rocket science and in many ways it’s no different to running a meeting. You need people who:
• are already in a group
• know most of the people
• are passionate about the topic.
As long as you select the right people, you’re likely to find you are very rarely required to get personally involved in the moderation process.
At most, it’s likely to be a very moderate inconvenience.
Social networking fear #4: Fakers
Another of your fears about social networks is that people are likely to misrepresent themselves or others.
Again, that’s a very real concern on other social networks.
In fact, the NRL footballer Braith Anasta recently discovered that someone was pretending to be him on Facebook. Why someone would do that is very difficult to imagine.
But that is simply not possible on issociate.
We won’t let footballers on, for a start.
But also, individuals cannot join issociate. You can only become a member when the association loads your details onto the site.
If Barack Obama sends you a message on issociate, then you can be sure it’s coming from the man himself.
Unless an association has created a bogus identity – and we can assure you that that association would be very swiftly removed from issociate.
Social networking fear #5: Rebels
Another fear is that you’ll have an official position on a particular subject, and a member or airs an entirely contradictory view.
For example, the AMA might have a pro-choice view on abortion and they might find it personally offensive that members aired the opinion that abortion should be made illegal.
How do you deal with that?
Of course, certain offensive positions do actually constitute a breach of the law – racial vilification, for example.
But as long as the member has a legal right to air their position, you need to be willing to tolerate it.
So, this fear falls into the “suck it up” category.
And ask yourself, what would happen if they didn’t air this view on our social network?
Would they not air it? Or would they voice it somewhere even worse – like a public forum? Or in the media?
Your members won’t always agree with the official line – that’s a given. But again, it’s better that they express that contrary view in your house rather than out in the street in front of all the neighbours.
Social networking fear #6: Self-promoters
Another fear is that members will use your social network for overtly personal gain.
The first thing to understand is that very few people join a social network for entirely altruistic reasons.
Most people, consciously or unconsciously, are looking to further their own interests.
It’s all a matter of degree and you’ll be worried that some pushy little buggers will overstep the mark.
You’re concerned they’ll pester other members to expand their sphere of influence.
And you’re worried they’ll use the forums to raise their profile.
On the first count, you have less to fear on issociate than on most.
On most social networks, you get little ability to categorise your contacts.
So what one contact sees, everyone sees – it’s often all or nothing.
We often say that LinkedIn’s approach is equivalent to handing over your address book with you business card. You just wouldn’t do that in real life.
And yet most people feel very awkward about outright rejecting an approach.
Social climbers, on normal social networks, can be a real nightmare.
But this was one of the key things we looked to address on issociate.
So we let you have:
• personal contacts
• business contacts
• acquaintances
• other association members
• other web users
You get to decide exactly who sees what.
If someone approaches you that you don’t really know – or don’t want to know – you can make them an acquaintance, and severely limit the access that your acquaintances have to your personal details and contacts.
We can swap “business cards” and that’s all. And if I change my mind I can re-categorise you.
And in terms of blowing their own trumpets on the forums, I’d say two things.
Firstly, we recommend that your forum rules include a specific provision that bans self-promotion and advertising.
Of course, that’s not going to stop pushy little buggers. They’re going to try it on.
So, again, your moderators have a role here in stepping in to remind them of the rules regarding self-promotion.
If that fails, again, you can always suspend the member.
Or you can let them be tried in the court of public opinion.
People tend not to like pushy little buggers so there’s a very good chance that their flag waving will be entirely counterproductive.
Of course, some irritating types can stimulate a lot of discussion so you should definitely be looking in the first instance to merely moderate their behaviour rather than cut them off at the knees.
Social networking fear #7: Ghost town
Your final fear is possibly that you’ll go to the trouble of creating a social network and no one uses it.
Now, I can understand how this fear may have prevented you from developing your own network from scratch.
That would have cost you several hundred thousand dollars and you’d have been subjected to months of sleepless nights – like we were.
However, the financial consequences of no one using your network on issociate are very modest.
Your set-up cost is miniscule compared to the cost of your own proprietary network.
So if your network fails to ignite the interest of your members, your exposure in money terms is very small.
There are also strategies for lighting the social networking fuse and filling that “white room” on start up.
Social networking reflects life. You will have a vibrant community if you have people who:
• are already active and passionate about a cause
• have something to say
• have already formed groups or working parties.
You know who they are – they’re the busiest people, with the most contacts, who belong to many things.
Social networking provides another vehicle for these people and they may as well be at your place as at someone else’s.
Why “wait and see” is a dangerous strategy.
People want to social network. That’s clear.
So if they’re not networking on your system, they’ll be doing it at someone else’s house.
And once they start sleeping over, they might decide to move out entirely.
So, social networks are a frightening prospect – particularly if you’re still of the view that using them indicates a character weakness or deep psychological flaw.
But there’s no turning back time. They’re here. They’re hugely popular. And your members, increasingly, will want to use them.
If you don’t supply one, or you’re half-hearted in your hosting, they will go to the place down the road and once your association begins to be marginalised, it could be a difficult slide to arrest.
Yes, there are going to be some issues to deal with, but issociate has eliminated many of the problems of normal social networks:
• It’s only for associations
• You can’t be anonymous
• We have greater privacy controls.
And tapping the latent army of volunteers you have will help address many of the concerns you have about extra workload.
Members will behave badly on your social network – there’s no denying that.
But that’s no excuse for continuing to sit on the sidelines.
The social networking bus is leaving and I’d encourage you to get over those fears and climb on board.
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