Companies that still believe they can ignore social media in their communications strategies are likely to fail, says Thomas Crampton, Asia Pacific head of Social@Ogilvy.
"A lot of companies are still trying to pretend it doesn't exist," he says. "Ignoring social media these days is like not reading newspapers. You need to make sure it is integrated into everything you're doing in a deep way."
Social@Ogilvy is a cross-discipline social media practice. Crampton was in Johannesburg last week to investigate opportunities in Africa. Since launching four years ago, his office has grown from two people to over 250 responsible for 23 markets.
Among those to "get it", he says, is Ford Motor Company, which last year launched its new Explorer sports utility vehicle on Facebook rather than traditional platforms such as motor shows.
In Hong Kong, nappies brand Huggies recently ran a Facebook-based campaign inviting parents to send pictures of their babies. Some of the children were chosen to be among 50 whose pictures were displayed on city buses.
"There are some brands which lead with social media and others that don't even try to understand it," says Crampton. "Those that are able to adapt to change are those that tend to be successful over time," he claimed.
Source: Financial Mail via I-Net Bridge
