▶ Is Marissa Mayer On the Right Track? Despite a marked increase in the number of communication and collaboration technologies available to workers, a recent survey by TrackVia reveals that most workers still regularly communicate the old fashioned way, in person and face-to-face. The survey comes on the heels of Mayer’s edict that starting in June all Yahoo employees work from the company’s offices. Survey highlights include:
• When a colleague asks to meet in person, it’s only slightly more likely to be good news; 69% of respondents preferred sharing “positive” feedback face-to-face versus 63% who preferred sharing “negative” feedback.
• Fast Friends: 43% of respondents said electronic communication improved workplace relationships. Only 8% said it negatively impacted business relationships.
• Forty percent of workers said they had worked with someone for an extended period, yet never met them in person—or even talked to the person on the phone.
• Fourteen percent of respondents reported flirting with a co-worker via email, texting or instant messaging; 10% admitted to initiating a workplace romance via electronic communications.
• Gender matters when it comes to face-to-face versus electronic communications: 50% of women said electronic communication increased productivity, whereas 62% of men said it increased productivity.
Source: TrackVia
▶ Brand Loyalty Seals Mobile Deal: Discounts, coupons and exclusives are attractive, but not nearly as important to social-media consumers as the loyalty they feel for certain brands. According to a Rhythm NewMedia study in Q4 2012, 61% of mobile users said they followed brands on Twitter in a show of natural support, compared with 52% who did so simply to receive sales or deals. Conversely, 51% of mobile users said they followed brands on Twitter just to receive exclusive content and updates. Other findings include:
• While 58% of mobile consumers reported to “like” brands on Facebook, in a sign of allegiance, 56% did so simply for the sake of sales or deals, and just 40% reported doing so for exclusive content.
• Mobile engagement is soaring. In the fourth quarter of last year, 74% of users accessed Facebook—and 63% accessed Twitter—several times per day via smartphones and tablets.
• 68% of mobile social users “like” brands—be it a show, product, store or service—on Facebook, while 56% follow brands on Twitter.
• Twenty-four percent of marketers are activating social media via mobile campaigns, which represents a 430% increase year-over-year. PRN
Source: Rhythm NewMedia
F500 Telecoms Lead Corporate Blog Charge
Within Fortune 500 telecoms, 40% have corporate blogs, according to University of Massachusetts Dartmouth Center for Marketing Research’s annual social media adoption study. To contrast, just one company in the aerospace field has a blog.
Source: University of Massachusetts Dartmouth Center for Marketing Research