Image via WikipediaYesterday, I received a forwarded email through a colleague, originally sent last week from a technology company that deals with many higher education institutions. The company and the individual presenters will not be named -- for reasons that you will shortly understand.
The company, a respected one, is offering an upcoming webinar titled "How to Implement Effective Social Networking: Helpful Tips for Higher Education Web Professionals".
In the email, the company claims that:
"As one of the most important student recruiting tools in your overall integrated marketing strategy, your institutional website must be relevant, dynamic, engaging, and meet the needs of your audience. Inherent in that strategy is leveraging the lastest [sic] Web 2.0 technologies to your college's advantage.
"Social Networking provides prospective students and parents with a unique forum for gathering information and building relationships. And, Instant Chat allows them to converse one-on-one with an admissions counselor in real-time with no waiting. Both tools are an effective way to build your institutional brand and encourage enrollment.
"[Name, title and company deleted] will discuss how clients have effectively implemented Social Networking and Instant Chat on their higher education websites. During this session he will:
- Discuss what works and doesn't work
- Provide some real-life examples
- Review the guidelines for implementing these important technologies"
Some research turned up the following interesting information (or lack thereof) about the two listed presenters:
Both are listed on EDUCAUSE, a "nonprofit association whose mission is to advance higher education by promoting the intelligent use of information technology." Neither profile has a picture, a mailing address or other important information usually associated with a social -- and especially professional -- networking site, at least to people without an EDUCAUSE account (which I now have to wait apparently 72 hours to get -- see below). And the primary presenter's title looks woefully out-of-date compared to the information in the email.
It should be noted that while EDUCAUSE seems to claim that it provides "networking" for those interested in information technology (IT) within higher education, it is apparently only for organizations and does not have options for individual memberships. Furthermore, once an individual has submitted an entry for an account login, the EDUCAUSE reply screen reports: "We will update our database within 72 hours, and you will receive an e-mail when your account has been activated." Personally, I have never had a networking site tell me that it's going to take 72 hours to "process" my account. It also has no available categories for social media / social networking, community managers, etc.
- In one case, the only other ranked "social / professional networking" site on which the second individuals is listed requires a monthly payment of about US$30 to access their information after a brief "core trial" period. To sign in to get this information requires address and phone information, asks you to identify your CRM software and your make of mobile phone and then encourages you to download their "special toolbar." Oh, and the resulting "acceptance" simply leaves your "trial membership ends" date completely open, so you have no idea how long you have permission to use the site.
- A brief search within LinkedIn (a free and powerful professional networking site) showed listings for both individuals. The main presenter had 29 (!) contacts and the secondary presenter had a few more with 78. Both of these individuals are major executives with their companies. However, not even a limited profile (easily available through LinkedIn -- an an option that I choose) is "publicly searchable" on the web.
By the way, I noted that out of my hundreds of current LinkedIn connections that apparently link me to millions professionals at this time, many of which are in higher education and in the field that this company serves, there was not a single first or second level connection to either of these individuals. This particularly surprised me because I used to work for an organization that was a client of the company giving this webinar.
However, a quick Google search on each persons name -- with company, to make sure I had the correct person -- confirmed that apparently neither individual has a public presence on any major public social networking site.
A search for the main presenter turned up a mere 35 entries on the entire Internet and the second did slightly better with 361. In both cases, the majority of the entries were for the company the individual represents, not the individual.
The secondary presenter seems to have a Facebook account, but there is no indication of one for the primary presenter -- not even a "professional" Facebook page easily accessible to others.
So here is a respected higher education technology company claiming to give a webinar on social networking for use in higher education and it appears that neither presenting individual has the public social media and/or social networking presence, experience and, therefore, credentials (not to mention simply "street cred") to present this type of webinar.
So what gives I have my suspicions that this company may be trying to sell their own brand of "social networking" (probably more "closed" than "open") to their clients and prospective clients.
There's nothing wrong with that, in and of itself.
But colleges and universities need to know and understand that they have options that will allow them to meet prospective and current students -- as well as recent alumni -- in better and more cost-effective ways with networks that are free and existing and with ample traffic.
And companies need to understand what social media is and is not. And it is not a captive audience.
Would you trust these two to teach your or your office, organization or institution about social networking? Would you trust them to understand the complex relationship between social networking, marketing, public relations and customer service?
Am I going to be attending that webinar? You bet -- unless they take my registration away now that I've posted this. Stay tuned.
Related articles
- Social Networking in 2012 (socialmediatoday.com)
- 15 Fluff-Free Ways to Step Up Your Social Media Game (hubspot.com)
- Social networks in the workplace (therunninglibrarian.co.uk)
- The Myriad Future of Social Networks (bigthink.com)
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{ 8 comments… read them below or add one }
Ruth,
I get plenty of invites to plenty of webinars on many of topics, as I’m sure you do. Many turn out to be similar to those free breakfasts you get to enjoy…after you listen to the timeshare pitch. The one you speak of could be one of them.
However, I’m not sure passing judgment on a person or firm because they don’t have a large number of contacts in LinkedIn is a bit close-minded. Should social media professionals be involved in the medium they preach about? Sure. Do they need to have a minimum number of contacts to be considered “legit”? I think not.
What’s most important is that they understand and convey the very “concept” of social media and it’s connection to relationship building. Hopefully this firm does. If not, enjoy the breakfast.
This definitely sounds like a closed approach, as you posited. I get the impression they are promoting technologies of web 2.0 to augment a traditional marketing approach: admissions meetings can be replaced with live chat and brochures can be replaced with information gathering through a community portal.
Maybe, on the other hand, they assume their audience is unfamiliar with things like the power and influence of references or the open dialog that can be created with social media. Perhaps they are simply trying to speak to their audience’s presumed level of understanding while falling victim to the old adage that marketers market themselves last (my company doesn’t yet use the software we have been developing and maintaining for 15 years.)
I will be curious to see what comes of the webinar. It is certainly suspect to promote oneself as an expert in a transparent environment without being present.
Ben’s last blog post: Serial Commas and Double Spacing
this sounds to me just another attempt to pitch another turnkey web product. I remember similar scenarios in the ’90′s with turnkey websites and virtual shopping malls.
Phil, it’s not my intention to pass judgment on anyone’s number of LinkedIn contacts. For all I know, their profiles were created last week. That said, the apparent absence of the presenter’s presence (?!) from many major social networking sites, especially those utilized by the very students that their clients are trying to reach does, I believe, say something.
Furthermore, it sounds like this webinar isn’t really on “social networking”. It looks like it’s simply on how to use IM for college / program admissions. And, as I noted, I’ll bet the webinar may be an advert for an IM component that is an add-on to the company’s software (with which I’m familiar).
I agree with Ben that many companies — or, in this case, educational institutions — are looking at Web 2.0 tools to augment traditional marketing methods instead of looking at some of the radical shifts that can occur. Sometimes that will be positive. Not always.
The field of international educational exchange is still taking baby steps in understanding the both the importance and impact of social media, not to mention the simple practicalities of how to use the tools of the trade. That’s one of the reason I have this blog.
As someone who has presented on this at our professional conferences and who works with clients on these issues, I hope that what is being presented is truly useful and legitimate and not just an attempt to jump on the social media bandwagon for a profit.
Ben, your company doesn’t use its own software?? That doesn’t bode well, either.
In all cases, I continue to hope for better things — more understanding and more conversations — in the future.
UPDATE: I had applied for an EDUCAUSE account on Thursday, July 31 at approximately noon. I received the confirmation of the activation of my EDUCAUSE account at approximately 4:45 p.m. that same afternoon — well ahead of the 72 hour response window that EDUCAUSE indicated they would need. Kudo’s to EDUCAUSE for beating their own deadline!
Hi Ruth,
Thanks for the blog and the comment response. I also saw your tweet regarding your experience, and wanted to offer any assistance in re: EDUCAUSE that I could. I’m sorry you couldn’t find the information about the presenters you were looking for on our site- because of privacy concerns, we allow folks to choose how much profile information they want published – require login, public, or not at all.
Although we don’t have a specific category for social media, we have a lot of members who are very interested in web2.0 and social media and many resources that seek to open dialogue with senior administrators and faculty about emerging technologies and their implications for institutions. So I see a bunch of parallels in re: what you are doing for the Int’l Education community (eg NAFSA) and what we try to do.
If you’d like further information about EDUCAUSE, please feel free to e-mail or tweet (@pumpkiny) !
Catherine, glad to have someone from EDUCAUSE join the conversation!
I’ve now had an opportunity to get in and create my own profile on EDUCAUSE. I noted that the profile interest categories, once you have been given access to EDUCAUSE, include a few Web 2. 0 options, which is a good start.
I completely agree with the rights of individuals to limit the information that they make public on any web site, particularly those that involve networking. It’s important that individuals be allowed to choose what they are comfortable revealing on these sites.
I do see a difference, however, between professional networking and personal networking and the type of information that can (or should) be shared in each sphere.
Now that I’ve had the opportunity to create my own profile and take a look at the profiles of the two individuals, I’ll note that my initial review of the main presenter seems correct. Job title is out of date. No phone number (not even a main line to the company!). The secondary presenter seems to have more profile information, particularly contact information at the company. But, more to the point, EDUCAUSE is one of the very few “networking” sites where these two are listed. EDUCAUSE is a great resource for people interested in IT in higher ed. Outside of that, it’s not considered a major social networking site.
Still, a valid question remains: If a presenter is claiming to present on social networking and yet isn’t visibly, publicly doing so — where is the credibility?
Ruth,
Personally, I totally agree with you on needing to have different kinds of info exposed for different kinds of roles, and for the need to have more information public in re:professional representation.
Interestingly, we used to have everything public and recently added the profile granularity in response to member comments. I think some of the feedback was that the “everything out there” philosophy was not in total synch w/some of member’s institution’s privacy policies on exposing pictures/phone/address, etc.
And I understand your point on the social networking expertise and practice…I’m looking forward to reading your feedback on the seminar!