Social Media: Organizational Uses

Social media has the ability to make it, or break it for individuals when it comes to things such as getting a job, however, the issue I want to look at is how social media can affect an organization. The article Social Media for Social Change – Inside the Organization? the author takes a look at how social media can be used to develop organizational change movements. Social media has the ability to transform relationships, and can also help with project management, and it can also lead to an expanded network and finding sponsors. These are all aspects of social media that can lead to success within an organization.

These are not the only benefits of social media within an organization that are discussed in the article. Social Media Today points out that social media networks provides an opportunity for employees to voice changes that they think are necessary, including initiative changes. When it comes to social media, there are also negative aspects itself. The primary obstacle to using social media within an organization – especially a network that the organization owns – is that powerful members of the organization want to prevent employees from discussing change they can just change the rules of how the network may be used, and they can revoke user privileges.

While this article does make some excellent points, it fails to mention that employees may be connecting outside of the organization’s social media network. If rules are set in place to prevent employees from rallying for a change, it is possible that they will just do it on another social media website. Internal change is a big use of social media in an organization, but it can also be used for external changes as well.

How Nonprofits Use Social Media to Spark Change discusses how grassroots revolutions in Egypt and Tunisia were driven in part by messages on Twitter and Facebook. Although it would be great it only social media could be the only factor in making changes, you have to know how to pair it with other campaigns as well. The Invisible Children charity “…has used Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and its own video-rich Web site to organize hundreds of student rallies across America to oppose the use of child soldiers in northern Uganda.” It is important to realize just how much change can come from social media.

Social media provides a sense of a community where people can relate to others, and can learn of the good things that are happening around the world. Social media can be used to inspire others and bring about great change. While social media is such a powerful tool, there are so many different uses, and many people still do not know how to use social media properly to run successful campaigns. The article provided tips for social media campaigns, and the last one is the one that stuck out the most to me. It says to “Measure everything, but have a goal from the start.” I feel that this step is often forgotten, and if this action is taken, social media campaigns will become even more effective.

Whether social media brings about changes internally or externally, organizations need to realize how big of an impact social media has in today’s society. Nonprofit organizations can help spread their goal of what they are working for. If social media is used correctly, nonprofits can make changes to the world that we never knew was possible. Social media can help an organization get feedback about what they are doing right, and what they need to change.

I feel that organizations need to understand the importance of social media, and how they can benefit from using it correctly. In the event of a crisis, an organization would be able to reach out to their audience to clear the air, and to reassure them about what they are doing to fix the problem. Nonprofits can gain support by learning what people are interested in and being able to find a message that relates to them. The only problem with social media is that not everybody knows how to use it and they are afraid of change. However, from the articles discussed, we have learned that change can be a good thing.

To read the articles mentioned: Social Media for Social Change – Inside the Organization?

                                                                  How Nonprofits Use Social Media to Spark Change