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No Escaping Social Media

Date Published: 28th October 2009 | Written by: Cory Savage

Ask 100 people for their opinion of social-media tools like Twitter and you’ll likely get 100 different responses—ranging from extreme enthusiasm to extreme confusion. However you feel about social media, here is one simple fact: Even if you’re a naysayer who considers these tools inane and a waste of time, a large number of your most influential customers do not. And that means you must at least monitor the conversation for possible signs of trouble.

There are tools out there that you simply cannot ignore. They include Google Sidewiki, a new add-on for Internet Explorer and Firefox browsers. Once installed, it can open a side panel where visitors are able to read other visitors’ feedback—and leave their own—on any page at any website.

Every webpage now can be commented on. Every. Single. One. Potentially, your competitor could comment on your company’s website criticizing your products and services. So can your customers. Did you launch a blog and turn off comments? Now your readers can still comment ‘on’ your blog.

In other words, you can no longer control the conversation, even on your own homepage—because for those with the Sidewiki tool, every site is a social-media site.

The Savage Solution: You need to familiarize your company with what this tool can do, so that you can react to feedback left for your company and, hopefully, become proactive in using Sidewiki to connect with current and potential customers.