Coming Soon: Video Chat at Your ATM

Bank of America is adding what the company calls the "human touch of a teller" to the customer's ATM experience. In a statement, the company says that the service provides additional hours of personalized service for customers who need it:

"The new technology gives customers access to a range of services during extended hours to address their daily banking needs, and provides them with convenience, control and flexibility over how, when and where they bank. Using the new ATMs, customers can speak with a Bank of America teller via real-time video and receive the same quality of personal assistance they would if they walked up to a banking center counter."

The statement also says that ATMs in Boston will be the first equipped with the service, with other locations rolling out throughout 2013. In case you fear this will replace your beloved teller at the branch, Bank of America assures us, "Banking center tellers will still be available for customers who choose to conduct their banking transactions in person" (for the few diehards).

Discussion Starters:

• Who do you think will make most use of the voice chat service? Under what circumstances would you?
• What are the costs to Bank of America of implementing the new service (financial and other), and what are the benefits? What else do you think factored into the company's decision to offer this innovative service?

SEC Gives Guidance for Social Media Disclosures

Companies no longer have to wonder what is acceptable to disclose on social media sites. The SEC has set rules for how information may be disseminated on Facebook, Twitter, and other sites.

In the past, the SEC has been stringent on what companies can communication online. Because of Regulation Fair Disclosure (Reg FD), the SEC wanted to ensure that all investors have access to information at the same time, so that no one individual or group has an advantage in investing.

Now, the agency has softened its requirements. According to a New York Times article, companies can now post, with some restrictions: 

"...companies could treat social media as legitimate outlets for communication, much like corporate Web sites or the agency's own public filing system called Edgar. The catch is that corporations have to make clear which Twitter feeds or Facebook pages will serve as potential outlets for announcements."

In a statement, the agency summarized the new rule:

"The Securities and Exchange Commission today issued a report that makes clear that companies can use social media outlets like Facebook and Twitter to announce key information in compliance with Regulation Fair Disclosure (Regulation FD) so long as investors have been alerted about which social media will be used to disseminate such information."

In other words, investors need to know a company's social media strategy-where information will be posted.

By most standards, the rules are long overdue. Companies such as Netflix have been investigated by the SEC for posting information on Facebook. The clarification will help companies use multiple channels to reach multiple audiences.

Discussion Starters:

• Read the SEC's statement. What else do you learn from reading "between the lines"?
• What questions or potential difficulties remain for companies deciding what, when, where, and how to post?

Exxon (Sort-of) Communicates Oil Clean-Up Efforts

Exxon is working triple time to manage the oil spill in Arkansas and communicate its efforts-but the company is missing the social media piece.

A pipeline breach caused thousands of barrels of oil to be unleashed into the water and 22 homes evacuated. Although a nearby lake was spared, the oil reached several residents' yards. The company says the cause of the spill is still under investigation.

The situation is reminiscent of the Exxon Valdez oil spill in 1989, when hundreds of thousands of barrels were spilled in Alaska. Of course no Exxon executive wants this link made too closely. 

On its website, Exxon posted this response:

ExxonMobil Pipeline Company Responds to Crude Oil Spill in Arkansas

MAYFLOWER, AR – March 29, 2013– Cleanup operations were continuing at the site of a spill of crude oil near Mayflower, AR, ExxonMobil Pipeline Company said today.

An apparent breach in the Pegasus pipeline carrying crude oil occurred late Friday afternoon. The pipeline has been shut in and crews are working to contain the spill.

"We regret that this incident has occurred and apologize for any disruption and inconvenience that it has caused," said Karen Tyrone, southern operations manager of ExxonMobil Pipeline Company. "Our focus is on protecting health, safety and the environment.  We will be here until the cleanup is complete."

Emergency response efforts are focused on ensuring community health and safety and keeping the crude oil from entering a nearby lake during cleanup.

Cleanup crews are using specialized equipment to recover oil. Additional resources are being mobilized to the area to assist with the cleanup response.

Air quality monitoring is being conducted in the impacted area.

The cleanup is being coordinated with the Department of Emergency Management and other local authorities. Notification to the Environmental Protection Agency and other agencies has taken place.

Members of the community who may be impacted or have questions can contact 1-800-876-9291.

The cause of the spill is under investigation.

The Pegasus pipeline is a 20-inch pipeline which originates in Patoka, IL and carries crude oil to the Texas Gulf Coast.

Customers have been notified and efforts are under way to minimize any potential impacts.

Since the initial announcement, Exxon has posted two updates:

• Cleanup Operations Continue (March 30)
• Update on Cleanup Operations (March 31)

A Facebook page for Exxon Mobile (misspelled) has critical posts but no voice of the company. If this isn't the company's page, then it should be removed, if possible.

Exxon has posted a few tweets, but only on April 3, a full five days after the spill on March 29.

Discussion Starters:

•  What should Exxon communicate, if anything, on social media? How should the company address comments such as the one above?

• Assess Exxon's website statements. What works well, and what would you suggest changing in the three posted so far?

Restaurant Berates No-Shows on Twitter

Noah Ellis of Beverly Hills restaurant Red Medicine did what most owners would like to do but wouldn't dare: called out no-shows on Twitter.

 

After the public shaming, Ellis was unapologetic to the LA Eater:

"The a**holes who decide to no-show, or cancel 20 minutes before their reservation (because one of their friends made a reservation somewhere else) ruin restaurants (as a whole) for the people who make a reservation and do their best to honor it. Either restaurants are forced to overbook and make the guests (that actually showed up) wait, or they do what we do, turn away guests for some prime-time slots because they're booked, and then have empty tables."

To ABC News, Ellis seemed calmer and explained the impact that no-shows have on the restaurant:

"We're a small restaurant. You can see there's about 54 seats in the dining room. When you lose 20 people in that kind of peak time of the time it's inconsiderate to the other guests."

Ellis also admits that he was frustrated:

"The intent was never to focus on or draw attention to these specific people, it was more to put names to a problem to get some attention and get people discussing it."

Discussion Starters:

• How do you assess Ellis' approach: just desserts, over-the-top, or something else?
• How else can restaurant owners manage no-shows?

Emails Reveal Legal Bill Padding

Lawyers should know better than to send joke emails they want to keep private. Emails among attorneys at DLA Piper, the world's biggest law firm, have become public in a lawsuit about overbilling.

The suit is a counterclaim by an energy executive who has $675,000 in unpaid bills with DLA Piper. In the suit, Adam H. Victor accuses DLA Piper of inflating billable time by performing unnecessary tasks and taking too long to complete them with too many staff.

The emails seem to confirm his claims. Here are two examples, captured by The New York Times. In the first, an attorney says that "random people" were working on the case "for whatever reason" to "churn that bill, baby!" 

 

In a second email, an attorney gloats about going $200,000 over the firm's estimate.

Read more emails.

Discussion Starters: 

• Describe what you perceive to be the working environment that supports these types of emails. In other words, what makes these acceptable-perhaps even encouraged?
• How do emails become public in such situations? Aren't they private-just sent to one or two people?

Twitter Turns 7

To celebrate its seventh birthday, Twitter produced a video to show its accomplishments and a few historic tweets.

Here are some stats about Twitter from 2012, of particular interest to business communicators: 

• 56% of customer tweets to companies are being ignored.
• 32% of all Internet users are using Twitter.
• 34% of marketers have generated leads using Twitter.

The average age on Twitter is 37.3, according to Pingdom, compared to 40.5 for Facebook. As Twitter declines in average age, Facebook has increased-about two years in the past two years for each.

Discussion Starters:

• How do you use Twitter, if at all? What value do you see for you personally?
• What would inspire you to communicate with company via Twitter rather than Facebook or an online form?

Good Grammar Improves Job Prospects

A study by Grammarly examined 100 LinkedIn profiles and found that good grammar improved job prospects:

"Professionals with fewer grammar errors in their profiles achieved higher positions. Those who failed to progress to a director-level position within the first 10 years of their careers made 2.5 times as many grammar mistakes as their director-level colleagues.

"Fewer grammar errors correlate with more promotions. Professionals with one to four promotions over their 10-year careers made 45% more grammar errors than those with six to nine promotions in the same time frame.

"Fewer grammar errors associate with frequent job changes. Those who remained at the same company for more than 10 years made 20% more grammar mistakes than those who held six jobs in the same period. This could be explained in a couple of ways: People with better grammar may be more ambitious in their search for promising career opportunities, or job-hoppers may simply recheck their résumés between jobs."

One-hundred is a small sample size, but the results aren't surprising. In another survey, 11% of employers who checked applicants' social media posts did not hire them because of "poor communication skills." I might assume that included poor grammar.

Although few spelling mistakes were found on LinkedIn profiles, probably because of the spell-check feature, careless and grammatical errors could be a dealbreaker for your future employer.

Image source.

Assignment Ideas:

• Review another student's LinkedIn profile. Do you find any errors? If so, how does this affect your opinion of him or her as a job candidate?
• Look at your Facebook page, if you have one. If you were a potential employer reviewing the page, what would be your impressions?
• Consider making changes to these sites and other social media spaces that employers may visit.

Weight Watchers Employees Weigh in on Compensation

Frustrated by big payouts for celebrity endorsers, Weight Watchers employees have taken to airing their complaints on a message board hosted by the company.

The New York Times published an article highlighting the pay gap. As one employee said, "They know my love for the program, but I can't say we're treated right. We are professionals, we have to dress nice, but we are paid less than kids who work at McDonald's." As celebrities Jessica Simpson and Jennifer Hudson collect millions of dollars for their endorsements, many Weight Watcher employees are paid minimum wage. 

Company CEO David Kirchhoff, responded to employees' complaints: "One of our top priorities is to improve your working life at Weight Watchers, and in particular, the way we reward you for the incredible work you do."

On his blog, Mr. Media Training, Brad Phillips speculates about what Weight Watchers could have done differently:

"I couldn't help thinking that Weight Watchers could have helped prevent this story from bubbling up to the surface simply by moderating their site more carefully. Sure, nothing would have stopped employees from complaining on third party websites, but it would have been much more difficult for them to communicate without a central website to visit, especially because the workforce is diffused and decentralized."

Discussion Starters:

• Do you agree with Brad Phillips' assessment?
• What else could the company have done differently to prevent employee sentiment from becoming public?
• How else could the company have managed employees' communications?

More Creative Ways to Job Hunt

Finding a new job is getting more and more social-and bizarre. A social media strategist posted an ad on Facebook and received "multiple offers."

Ian Greenleigh, author of The Social Side Door: How Social Media Has Rewritten the Rules of Access and Influence, tried a second experiment. Billing himself as a "Future Googler," he targeted current Google employees for his next Facebook ad. Forty-eight clicked on the link.

One in six job seekers say that social media helped them get their current job. "Social resumes" today go beyond having a LinkedIn profile. Rather, they represent your entire online presence.

On the other hand, creative tactics don't have to involve technology. One inventive marketing professional distributed resume chocolate bars to potential employers.

 

Facebook ad image source.

Resumebar image source.

Discussion Starters: 

• Which of these ideas might you try? What are the risks of each?
• What other creative approaches have you taken to search for a job?

Fake Menu for Guy Fieri's Restaurant

Note to business owners: register all web domains similar to your company's name. Guy Fieri didn't, and a prankster created a fake menu on guysamericankitchenandbar.com. Fieri's restaurant is at the URL GuysAmerican.com, and the fake menu is a good visual imitation of the real one.

 Bryan Mytko had some fun with the idea and bragged about it on Twitter:

This is the second time Fieri is doing damage control in the past few months. The fake menu follows a scathing New York Times review of Fieri's restaurant.

Discussion Starters:

• What other domains should Guy Fieri have registered? At Easy Who Is, check a few more similar names to see who owns them. 
• Should Guy Fieri try to get the domain back? If the owner wants him to pay, what do you think would be an appropriate price?

Burger King's Twitter Feed Hacked

Burger King is the latest victim of Twitter hacking. With its page image turned into a McDonald's logo, the company suffered embarrassment for an hour before Twitter closed down the account.

 

Within this time, the hacker offended Burger King employees, promoted a musician, and claimed that the company had been sold to McDonald's. The first tweet was, "We just got sold to McDonalds! Look for McDonalds in a hood near you." Another tweet read, "We caught one of our employees in the bathroom doing this..." with a photo of someone shooting a syringe into his arm.

During the incident, @McDonald's tweeted, "We empathize with our @BurgerKing counterparts. Rest assured, we had nothing to do with the hacking."

Burger King shared this statement with Mashable:

 

When Burger King regained control of its Twitter feed, the writer acknowledged the thousands of new followers and tweeted, "Interesting day here at Burger King, but we're back! Welcome to our new followers. Hope you all stick around!"

Meanwhile, Twitter is under fire for so many recent hacks. In response, the site may institute two-factor authentication, which requires a user to respond to a text message before gaining access to the account from a mobile device. Facebook, Google, and Dropbox already have similar processes in place.

Discussion Starters:

• How do you think the hacking occurred? Where might Burger King have vulnerabilities in its Twitter feed or process?
• How do you assess Burger King's response? What, if anything, could the company have done differently?

Facebook Admits Hacking

After weeks of reported breaches, Facebook has admitted that it was hacked. The same issue with Oracle's Java software that allowed hackers to access data from 250,000 Twitter users provided inroads to Facebook. Although Facebook apparently knew about the breach for at least a month, the company just came clean.

In a blog post titled "Protecting People On Facebook," Facebook assured users that personal information was not compromised and that its systems have been fully patched to prevent future break-ins. The first two paragraphs provide context and the admission:

"Facebook, like every significant internet service, is frequently targeted by those who want to disrupt or access our data and infrastructure. As such, we invest heavily in preventing, detecting, and responding to threats that target our infrastructure, and we never stop working to protect the people who use our service. The vast majority of the time, we are successful in preventing harm before it happens, and our security team works to quickly and effectively investigate and stop abuse.

 "Last month, Facebook Security discovered that our systems had been targeted in a sophisticated attack. This attack occurred when a handful of employees visited a mobile developer website that was compromised. The compromised website hosted an exploit which then allowed malware to be installed on these employee laptops. The laptops were fully-patched and running up-to-date anti-virus software. As soon as we discovered the presence of the malware, we remediated all infected machines, informed law enforcement, and began a significant investigation that continues to this day."

 Next, one sentence appears in bold type:

"We have found no evidence that Facebook user data was compromised."

The post echos Twitter's blog post from February 1.

Discussion Starters:

• What arguments does Facebook use in its post to convince us not to worry about the breach? Which do you find most and least convincing?
• How easy is it for non-technical people to understand Facebook's post? What, if any, jargon or business slang can you identify?
• How does Facebook's blog post compare to Twitter's? What similarities and differences do you notice?

S&P Emails and IMs Part of Government Suit

When will people learn that internal communications can go public? The federal government is suing Standard & Poor's for knowingly rating securities too highly, in effect, bolstering deals before the 2008 financial crisis. Internal emails and instant messages support this claim.

In one IM exchange, two analysts discuss a pending crash, and one admits that "we give in anyway."

In another exchange, one analyst IMs to another that "we rate every deal...it could be structured by cows." And in an email exchange, an analyst describes the pressure at S&P, and a client questions the built-in conflict of interest.

Although the video doesn't seem to be available online, analysts created a parody of the song, "Burning Down the House," by the Talking Heads.

What was apparently clear to some pockets of Wall Street took a while to hit Main Street, where the real damage was done. 

Discussion Starters:

• How else could these analysts have handled the pressure they were under?
• Why did these analysts feel comfortable communicating this way? Do you think S&P doesn't have a clear email policy? What else could be going on?

Southwest and JetBlue Model Twitter Interaction

Two of the more engaged companies on Twitter have been engaging with each other. Unusual for competitors, Southwest and JetBlue teach us what social media is all about-human interaction.

After a friendly discussion about a radio station in Chicago and Guitar Hero, the two representatives got kudos from Twitter followers: 

One of Southwest's tweeters told PR Daily,

"People sometimes forget when you work in the same industry you share a similar passion for what you do with your competitors. We all get along and admire the great things each other does, and playing nice oftentimes makes the competition more fierce, and certainly more fun to play in."

JetBlue has been praised for its use of Twitter as a customer service platform, not as an advertising tool:

"JetBlue responds quickly to customer service questions on Twitter. They don't take any days off (just like their airlines) and are there to help at any time."

And Southwest has been a superstar since the early days of Twitter. See the "too-fat-to-fly" situation with movie director Kevin Smith.

Discussion Starters:

• What risks did the airlines take in participating in this interaction? What are the potential downsides?
• On the other hand, what can other competitive brands learn from the exchange?
• On what other social media sites can brands potentially engage each other?

Responses to the Super Bowl Outage

Twitter users were active during the Super Bowl outage, and parties involved are responding to the blackout that delayed the game by 34 minutes.

A joint statement by Entergy and Superdome manager SMG blames energy lines for the outage:

"A piece of equipment that is designed to monitor electrical load sensed an abnormality in the system. Once the issue was detected, the sensing equipment operated as designed and opened a breaker, causing power to be partially cut to the Superdome in order to isolate the issue. Backup generators kicked in immediately as designed.

"Entergy and SMG subsequently coordinated start-up procedures, ensuring that full power was safely restored to the Superdome. The fault-sensing equipment activated where the Superdome equipment intersects with Entergy's feed into the facility. There were no additional issues detected. Entergy and SMG will continue to investigate the root cause of the abnormality."

New Orleans Mayor Mitch Landrieu said the power outage was "an unfortunate moment in what has been an otherwise shining Super Bowl week for the city of New Orleans. . . . In the coming days, I expect a full after-action report from all parties involved." He may have reason to worry: critics say that the outage may affect whether New Orleans hosts future games.

During the outage, fans were active on Twitter, reporting what they saw and making jokes. And marketers took advantage of the downtime, quickly generating relevant ads:

Other advertising tweets were timely:

• Walgreens: "We do carry candles" and "We also sell lights."
•  Tide: "We can't get your # blackout, but we can get your stains out."
• Audi: "Sending some LEDs to the @ mbusa Superdome right now…" (This one is a dig on Mercedes-Benz' sponsorship of the stadium.)

Image source.

Discussion Starters: 

• If you watched the game, what did you do during the outage? Did you visit social media sites to post or see commentary? What did you expect, and what did you find?
• Read some of the tweets sent during the Super Bowl. What strikes you about these examples? How would you summarize the two or three ways that people used Twitter during the game?

Applebee's Receipt Goes Public

Unhappy with not receiving a tip, an Applebee's server posted the signed check online-and got fired. The customer, Pastor Alois Bell, crossed out the 18% tip automatically added for large parties and wrote "0%" with the note, "I give God 10% why do you get 18?" The server, Chelsea, posted the receipt to the Atheism forum on Reddit.

Bell apparently left a $6 cash tip, but the server, Chelsea, was still offended by the note. When Bell learned that the receipt was posted online, she returned to Applebee's and demanded that everyone be fired. Later, she regreted her actions, calling them a lapse in judgement: "I've brought embarrassment to my church and ministry."

As expected, social media reactions are mixed, with many comments criticizing Applebee's decision to fire Chelsea. The company posted this response to its Facebook page: 

"We wish this situation hadn't happened. Our Guests' personal information-including their meal check-is private, and neither Applebee's nor its franchisees have a right to share this information publicly. We value our Guests' trust above all else. Our franchisee has apologized to the Guest and has taken disciplinary action with the Team Member for violating their Guest's right to privacy."

In addition, the CEO posted a statement on Applebee's website, including the excerpt from the policy:

"Employees must honor the privacy rights of APPLEBEE's and its employees by seeking permission before writing about or displaying internal APPLEBEE'S happenings that might be considered to be a breach of privacy and confidentiality. This shall include, but not be limited to, posting of photographs, video, or audio of APPLEBEE'S employees or its customers, suppliers, agents or competitors, without first obtaining written approval from the Vice President of Operations. . . . Employees who violate this policy will be subject to disciplinary action, up to and including termination of employment."

Image source.

Discussion Starters:

• What's your reaction to Chelsea's posting the receipt online? Was it her right, or did she misstep?
• Did Applebee's do the right thing by firing Chelsea? Why or why not? How do you assess the company's rationale-that posting the receipt was a violation of the guest's privacy?
• Read the CEO's statement. What do you consider his strongest and weakest arguments for terminating Chelsea?

Employee Live Tweets During Layoffs at HMV

Note to companies: Maintain control of your Twitter feed, particularly in tough times. At British Electronics company HMV, an employee "live tweeted" during layoffs.

 

We can understand the marketing director's wanting to stop the tweets, but it sounds funny for him to ask, "How do I shut down Twitter?" That's like wanting to stop Facebook. We've all had that dream.

When the company reclaimed control over the feed (I'm not sure how), they tweeted this response:

Discussion Starters:

• How could HMV have prevented the Twitter feed from being hijacked? Should management have anticipated this, or is that too much to expect?
• How do you assess the company's response? What, if anything, should management have done differently?

Teacher May Be Fired for Posting Pics of Students

A teacher is under pressure for posting pictures of her students with duct tape across their mouths. What was intended as a funny moment within a class has become an issue for an Ohio school board.

When a middle-school student had trouble with her binder, 33-year-old teacher Melissa Cairns gave her some duct tape to hold it together. Instead, the student put the tape across her mouth. Getting a laugh from students encouraged others to do the same.

According to Cairns, the students asked her to talk a picture. She did. And posted it to Facebook with the caption, "Finally found a way to get them to be quiet!!!"

Another school employee reported her. Cairns removed the picture, as requested, but she is now suspended on unpaid leave, awaiting the school's decision. 

Discussion Starters:

• What about the teacher's perspective (in her video interview) makes sense to you? What doesn't?
• If you were the school principal, how would you handle the situation? 
• Imagine that you're a parent of one of the children whose picture was posted. What do you suppose your reaction might be?
• The CNET article refers to Cairns' "private" Facebook page. Is Facebook private?
• What could a school do to prevent this type of situation in the future?

More Teens and Young Adults Use Tumblr than Facebook

Is Facebook becoming passé?  Among 13-to-18-year-olds and 19-to-25-year-olds, Tumblr is the social media winner, according to one recent study. Although Facebook is still popular among these age groups, 55 % of teens and 52% of the young adults are on the site, compared to 61% and 57% on Tumblr.

One digital marketing consultant explains the difference this way:

"Facebook is where teens and young adults connect with family and some friends. Tumblr is where they connect with like-minded people about the topics they care about."

With its single-subject, short blog entries and animated GIFs, Tumblr appeals to the younger crowd. Facebook certainly is showing its age, with the average user now 40.5-not exactly the Harvard social seeker of its roots.

Survey researcher Gary Tan, 31, is concerned that he's already a "geezer":

"To be honest, it's a sobering notion that there's some piece of technology out there that you and your peer group doesn't use and doesn't understand. As far as I can tell, it might be a first for me and my geezer friends."

This survey is consistent with other reports that teens may not be as excited about Facebook as their older peers. A Los Angeles Times article in May 2012 reported that young people's "goal is to hook up with smaller circles of friends and share their thoughts and feelings away from the prying eyes of Mom and Dad." When parents are online, it's just not as much fun anymore.

Image source.

Discussion Starters:

• Does this latest survey match with your experience of social media sites? If you have younger brothers and sisters, do you find them interested in sites other than Facebook?
• What reaction do you have to the survey? Do you feel old and stodgy on Facebook?

Facebook's App Has Security Problems

For the new year, Facebook posted a "Midnight Message Delivery" app for people to send notes when the clock struck 12. It was a cute idea, but the app was easily hacked.

A computer science student first discovered the security flaw. Jack Jenkins found that changing the message ID brings users to different messages intended to be private. For example, this message has a confirmation number at the end that can be changed easily: http://www.facebookstories.com/midnightdelivery/confirmation?id=76188.

Being able to read private messages was one issue; another was the ability to delete messages that people believed would be received.

Facebook has since disabled the app.

Discussion Starters:

• How does such a security flaw affect Facebook's credibility? To what extent could this affect people's trust in future Facebook apps?
• In addition to disabling the app, should Facebook post a message about the flaw? If so, what should the company say?