Note: I don’t like using the term “social media newsroom.” All newsrooms should be social, but because it has become an industry term, I will use it in this post.
One of the big complaints I hear when discussing the topic of B2B companies and social media is “All of the examples people use are technology companies, of course they use social media.” Because of this common concern I like to use examples that are as industrial and non Internet technology focused as possible. I will not be the 1,000th person to write on Cisco’s newsroom, instead I am going to examine the Scania Group’s social media newsroom.
Scania is a leading manufacturer of heavy trucks, buses and industrial engines. They are about as B2B as a company can get. In doing research I have found that they have one of the best B2B newsrooms I have seen.
It Starts With Content:
For B2B companies exploring the idea of a social media newsroom the first thing they have to determine if they have or can produce enough relevant content for the media and customers to justify the development of a newsroom. Content is clearly something that Scania has made a priority. You can tell that instantly, because they have relevant video headlining their newsroom page and 245 “real” product images accessible via a link or a Flickr widget. They have also created a categories and tagging system that help to organize their content. The only true content area that Scania falls short in is that of written content. The only written content on the site is traditional product releases. They have not included any white papers, case studies, or other written documents that could add additional value for a site visitor.
It Has To Look Good:
Whether a company wants to admit it or not, design matters. Branding, design and user experience matter when you are creating a site that has the goal to provide information quickly to all relevant audiences. How did Scania do this?
1. Scania aggregated their social content:
2. Scania categorized and tagged its content:
3. Scania makes their information easy to find through search. For example they have a descriptive page title for the newsroom.
4. Scania set a priority by promoting a heavy truck as a main design element of the newsroom.
What is the value of social media newsrooms?
Sure this looks cool, but should your organization do it? Think of a social media newsroom as an intermediate step in content marketing. The value lies in being able to aggregate information in one place that helps build search traffic while serving as a clearing house for information relevant to the media, customers, and employees. For social media newsrooms to have value you have to have more than news releases to post, you need other information such as images, video, and social links that provide an added layer of information and perspective about the organization.