Last week's comparison of Apple's and Microsoft's social media strategies ("") also generated scores of comments and retweets. Even Fake Steve Jobs . We weren't surprised to receive negative comments ("This article's claim is preposterous!", "tabloid school of journalism", etc.), but we didn't expect that so many people would actually defend Apple for failing to utilize the many social media tools at its disposal to connect with its operating system customers, and build its business. Here's what they :
A user calling himself :
"":
A user identified as :
"":
But the most articulate response came via email from a reader named . He agreed to let me include it in this post:
We agree with Bryant that secrecy is hugely important to Steve Jobs' management and marketing strategies. Pre-launch secrecy for major product launches and upgrades has helped the company save millions in marketing expenses and generate billions in sales. And it's understandable that the company would not want to risk spilling the beans on a new product or pricing strategy.
But who said that social media and product secrecy are mutually exclusive? We haven't looked through all 2,148 tweets on the , but most of the ones that we have seen are promotions for Windows-related events and products ("@logicgnome For more information on Windows7 student pricing in the UK, visit:http://bit.ly/I2MXp ^NS") and conversations with customers, many of them relating to support issues ("@kaykun I did some searching on your USB eject problem and found some suggestions, it should solve your issue. :) ^BK").
When it comes to product secrecy or sensitive issues like defective software, it's safe to say that the five listed authors of this Twitter account (who sign their tweets with a carat followed by their initials) and the official Microsoft "voice" on Facebook and MySpace are working under very strict information control policies. They are, as PR professionals are wont to say, "staying on message."
Of course, Microsoft employees have leaked information using such tools. Last month, a company meeting at Seattle's Safeco Field was . Last week, a LinkedIn profile -- reportedly maintained by a Microsoft employee -- , even though Windows 7 has yet to ship. The profile has since been deactivated.
But it's important to note that this information came from personal social media accounts, as opposed to Microsoft's official product or marketing efforts on Facebook or Twitter.
In addition, Apple has demonstrated that it too can operate social media campaigns for its products without giving up state secrets. Apple's (which was by a reader of our original article) has millions of fans and hundreds of updates, mostly relating to product promotions ("Download Glee on iTunes") but also some feature announcements ("iTunes 9 Feature: Share On Facebook and Twitter.") Most of the updates have hundreds or even thousands of "likes" and comments. We were unable to find any media references to premature product revelations or leaks originating from this official Apple resource.
The iTunes/Facebook example is proof that it's possible for Apple Inc. to run a social media presence without overstepping its secrecy mandates. Moreover, the response to the site shows that millions of customers, far from being turned off by what Bryant calls the "unpleasant odor" of corporate Twitter and social networking efforts, want to follow and interact with Apple and this product. If Apple can do it for iTunes, then why not for OS X?
: NetworkWorld.com, Gizmodo.com, Apple.com, Facebook.com/itunes, email with Dave Bryant, TheStandard.com
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