FreshNetworks Blog

Image courtesy of X journals

Now might be a good time to check your Facebook privacy settings as it appears that Facebook has rolled out its new auto facial recognition feature without giving users any notice.

So what happens with this new facial recognition technology?

Basically every time your friends upload images, Facebook will try to determine if any of the pictures look like you. And if they find what they believe to be a match, they may well urge one of your Facebook friends to tag it with your name.

So the tagging is still done by your friends and not by Facebook; the element that some deem to be creepy though is that Facebook is now actually pushing your friends to go ahead and tag you.

What’s more, Facebook does not give you any right to pre-approve tags so it’s up to you as a user to untag yourself if you are tagged by a friend.  And that’s often after you’ve been tagged.

If the new facial recognition technology is something you’re uncomfortable with you “opt out” by disabling the  “Suggest photos of me to friends” option, which can be found by going to Facebook account’s privacy settings and then “Customize settings”.

So what do you think about Facebook’s facial recognition privacy settings? Creepy or clever? Or both?

So far in our social business blog series we’ve provided a definition of  social business and why it’s important in a commercial context.  We’ve also looked at existing examples of social business by looking at a few social business case studies, as well as providing some simple, practical advice on how to succeed at social business.

In this final post of our social business series, we’ll look at how you can get the ball rolling in your own organisation.

Social business, after all, is really a re-evaluation of how communication takes place within a company. The difficulty comes from the need for a new company culture, and that’s usually dependent on top-down movement from senior levels.

So while you might understand the importance of clearer communication and collaboration, how can you convince the key decision makers that it’s something they really should be thinking about too?

1. Find your champion

At a recent seminar I attended about social media use in FTSE 100 companies, Bian Salins, Head of Social Media Innovation for BT Customer Service, commented that a strong personality is an essential requirement for encouraging a company to adopt social media.

Basically, Bian was saying was that you need to have a champion, someone who will not back down, especially when facing senior stakeholders who are invested in or unwilling to change from legacy systems and procedures.

If you have to face middle management before reaching key stakeholders, finding someone in this level who is already aware of social media and it’s value can help improve your chances and can give you an ally.

2. Find your story

Obviously, enthusiasm and charm alone will not be sufficient for your champion – solid evidence of why social business adds value is a vital instrument.

To do this you may need to start small. If possible,  get a pilot scheme running (which is also a good opportunity to involve middle management and find your champion).

While the main challenge may be getting approval from senior executives, demonstrating the value and generating buzz from the bottom up can show that there is not only a need for social business, but a willing and prepared pool of evangelists who are ready to encourage adoption.

If you aren’t able to get your own process started, then case studies of strategic social media use from other businesses are another way to demonstrate success and reduce perceived risk. Of course, it never hurts to highlight how it has been beneficial to competitors,but having the first mover advantage is probably more beneficial.

A recent research report from Threepipe Communications revealed that two thirds of the FTSE 100 prefer Twitter to Facebook.

63 FTSE 100 firms are now actively tweeting, while just 33 have their own Facebook page.

Pharmaceuticals giant GlaxoSmithKline was the first FTSE 100 company to send a tweet back in April 2007, whilst Tesco is the most recent convert, having joined Facebook in March of this year, just two weeks before they started using Twitter.

The study also reveals that just 11 of the companies in the FTSE 100 use  social media channels as a helpline or for customer service, whilst just six of them use social media to raise brand awareness through their corporate and social responsibility activities.

These results seem to suggest that while FTSE 100 companies are aware of the need to engage with their customers, it’s still very much about marketing and pr rather than using social media across their business.

The infographic below provides a useful summary of the key points in the report.

Image courtesy of Threepipe communication