Social Media Anonymity -- Bad Idea and Oxymoron

Good tip from Erin Byrne at Burson-Marsteller's Digital Perspective. In commenting on ongoing practice of anonymous employees posting blog comments on behalf of their employer (i.e. responding to negative comments about the employer found in blogs, etc.), she offers some sound counsel: Just stop it.

Erin was quoted in an article regarding Burger King's recent missteps (Burger King's virtual missteps `a cautionary tale').

To get Erin's full counsel, you'll need to read it on her blog. But here are some of her core points.

• Put social media guidelines in place so that employees and partners know what is allowed, and the implications for violating behavior.
  
• Monitor online conversations to understand what is being said. This is a great opportunity to get real-time feedback, almost a focus group of thousands.
  
• Determine how you will decide which posts to respond to.
  
• Contribute to the community. Organizations that find a way to contribute to the conversation as opposed to only participating from a selfish perspective have a great opportunity to build relationships.
  
• Think broadly. This isn’t only about blogs. It is about social media, twitter, discussion forums, and more.
  
• Participate. Monitor. And stick with it.