Companies, Conversations, & Clout

Written By Braden Collum

In social media’s infancy, a company’s social media strategy was simple; it was all about information sharing:

  • Who We Are

  • What We Do

  • What We Sell

  • Where to Buy

  • When Important Dates Are

Fast forward to today, and you know what we call content that only answers those basic questions? Ads.

Lifeless, irrelevant ads.

So, what is the right approach for companies today?

“In today’s digital age, social media is not an option for businesses; it’s a necessity for survival.” – Satya Nadella, Microsoft CEO

“Social media is not just about promoting products; it’s about connecting with your audience and understanding their needs.” – Tim Cook, CEO of Apple

“Social media is not just a trend; it’s the way our society communicates. Your business needs to be part of that conversation.” – Richard Branson, Founder of Virgin Group

“Social media has leveled the playing field for businesses of all sizes. It’s not about how big your budget is; it’s about how well you engage and connect with your audience.” – Brian Chesky, CEO of Airbnb

“Social media allows businesses to have a direct line of communication with their customers and receive real-time feedback.” – Reed Hastings, CEO of Netflix


Go back and study the quotes from these brilliant (oh, and highly successful) leaders again, and you’ll notice a common thread about businesses on social media—conversation is critical.

No longer can companies get by with just posting generic information (ahem, ads). Nowadays, there must be elements of engagement. In fact, research has shown that audiences demonstrate high levels of engagement with organizational messages when two-way symmetrical communication is used (Cho et al., 2014).

Two-way symmetrical communication.

Also known as…conversation.

DuoLingo: A Case Study in Conversation

One particular company who engages with its audience extremely well is the language education app, DuoLingo.

If you’ve been even slightly aware of pop culture right now, you probably have heard of the hit AppleTV show, Severance. The mind-bending series has captured the attention of millions of people and has dominated online conversations. And rather than keeping business as usual and promoting its services, DuoLingo jumped in on the craze by posting a fun, light-hearted parody, “Your innie got in trouble with legal today.”

Not only was this an excellent example of “organizational ambidexterity,” (Charest et al. (2016)—or, an organization’s ability to adapt and capitalize on current trends—but also showcases how popular this strategy is. As of this writing, the post garnered over 21.3k likes, 192 comments, and nearly 2.5k shares.

But best of all?

DuoLingo actually replies to comments!

Not only that, but they actually do it with *gasp* personality and relevant, good humor!

You see, that’s truly the separating factor. Anyone can post good, relevant content. But the accounts that post quality content AND read comments AND actually respond to its audience separate themselves from their competitors.

And it’s working for DuoLingo too. They’re not only top dog in the online language teaching industry, they also just happen to have 4.6 MILLION followers on Instagram alone.

Something’s working.

What This Means for Other Companies

Okay sure, not every brand will, can, or should create a brand personality that revolves around good natured humor like DuoLingo. But every company can learn something from them.

  1. People want to engage with companies.

  2. People don’t engage with ads.

  3. People engage with conversation.

  4. Conversations lead to more clout.

  5. More clout leads to more positive attention.

  6. More positive attention leads to positive consumer relationships.

  7. Positive consumer relationships lead to a stronger brand.

And every company needs a stronger brand. Period.

References:

Charest, F., Bouffard, J., & Zajmovic, E. (2016). Public relations and social media: Deliberate or creative strategic planning. Public Relations Review, 42(4), 530-538.

Cho, M., Schweickart, T., & Haase, A. (2014). Public engagement with nonprofit organizations on Facebook. Public Relations Review, 40(3), 565-567.

Braden Collum