It’s a given that social media is de rigueur, but companies can still be better listeners and communicators according to the latest A.T. Kearney Social Media Study.

Parsing the top 50 of Interbrand's list of 100 Best Global Brands, Kearney analysts found that 48 of the top 50 have a Facebook presence, reluctance to include social media as a core factor in customer outreach persists and levels of participation vary widely. Concomitantly, consumer use of online messaging has reached “a staggering quantity,” and the study posits that no FB presence may be preferable to a spotty or irrelevant one.

"The majority of companies we looked at are not moving toward a more interactive use of social media, even as their customers are becoming clearer about their expectation to interact with their brands,” stated Jim Singer, study sponsor and partner in A.T. Kearney's Consumer and Retail Industries practice.

The study focused on four distinct types of posts: personal, consisting of a question or statement not specifically promoting a product; promotional, maybe including a coupon; informative, with product-relevant information; external, referencing off-Facebook content with a link.Continue reading...

It goes without saying that social media, and more specifically Facebook, need to be part of a corporate branding strategy. But a new study conducted by a U.S. West Coast ad agency named WongDoody demonstrates that the leading global brands could improve their Facebook usage.

The WongDoody Facebook Global Practices Study evaluated the Facebook activity of the top 100 brands, as determined by Interbrand's Best Global Brands 2010 rankings. Interestingly, sixteen of Interbrand's 2010 best global brands don't even have an official corporate-run Facebook page.

Poring over the remaining 84 brand pages for the 2010 Best Global Brands, the study analyzed over 60,000 wall posts, nearly 13,000 comments, and over 119,000 "Likes" to see how companies are utilizing Facebook. The results indicated a world of missed opportunities.Continue reading...