Participation in Social Networks as Feral Information Systems

Social networking systems blur the distinction between the private and working spheres, and users are known to use such systems both at home and at the work place, both professionally and with recreational goals. In fact, several traditional information systems have been modified in order to include social aspects. However, in the vast majority of cases, social networking platforms are used without corporate blessing, maintaining their status as feral systems. This chapter provides some background notions about theories of participation in social networks. In particular, it reviews the notion of social capital, which may be important both for the individuals that are able to accumulate large amounts and for organizations. Subsequently, it shows the role of social capital in the participation in online social networking activities, in the various cases of virtual organizations, virtual teams, and online networks of practice. Finally, it describes the present situation and some possible prospects where social elements are being increasingly introduced into more traditional business systems, such as CRMs and ERPs, with great promises and mixed initial results.

Constructions of Banksy

This chapter examines how multiple, often competing, identities of the street artist Banksy are constructed through a variety of media. It uses actor network theory and activity theory to trace and analyze the contexts, or networks, wherein Bansky's identity is constructed. Banksy's identity is of particular interest because he is an anonymous figure, and he actively abstains from social media. This examination of how he is constructed online sheds light on the agency that individuals have in constructing their identity in digital spaces. The insight from this investigation should be of great relevance for all professionals as they consider the non-professional writing they do, or chose not to do, beyond their office walls, within the public domain.

Leveraging New Media as Social Capital for Diversity Officers

While most have grasped how to utilize social media in their personal lives, very few have been able to bridge the gap in leveraging new media effectively to enhance their careers. This chapter is a how-to guide for Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (EDI) professionals seeking to use social media to carve a niche in the social networking arena. The purpose of this chapter is to highlight how EDI professionals can benefit from utilizing new media marketing tools to position themselves as subject-matter experts and use this authority to create engaged communities surrounding the topics of equity, diversity, and inclusion in higher education. A current review of new media technologies and emerging strategies starts the chapter. It continues with further details on the steps needed to develop and implement a successful social media marketing strategy. The chapter concludes with how to turn plans into actionable steps and includes a social media marketing planning worksheet.

Effects of Consumers' Social Media Participation on Consumer Behavior

Technological advancements have shaped and reshaped the marketing landscape from time to time. The digital revolution in particular has given rise to a new digital era that has changed this marketing landscape, perhaps permanently. One of the core technologies involved in defining this digital era is the Internet. The Internet has not only empowered the people by creating and disseminating information like never before but also has affected the way we conduct our businesses. Various business usages of the Internet in search engines, email, mobile, and social media have given rise to new ways of conducting marketing activities such as affiliate marketing, display advertisement, email marketing, search marketing, and social media marketing among others. The significance and the relevance of online social media marketing have made this particular digital channel a topical subject of the digital era. The effects of social media have been felt in influencing both seller and buyer behaviors. However, the focus of this chapter is to address two important aspects of consumer behaviors in an online digital social media environment. First, the authors propose a conceptual framework of consumers' social media participation. Second, the chapter discusses how this participation affects consumers' behaviors including their purchases. Finally, the authors present a few econometric challenges associated with modeling consumers' social media participation and quantifying its impact on their behaviors.

Facebook and the Societal Aspects of Formal Learning

An online subject used social media to provide “collaborative spaces” that were “additional and complementary” to discussion in the university's Learning Management System (LMS). Facebook and Twitter provided optional “informal spaces” in which students “talk about general issues to do with media and connect with other students in the unit.” This chapter's analysis of Facebook posts shows a cooperative group of peers providing advice on assessment and recommending useful resources. Analysis, however, reveals that, as well as supportive posts, a proportion of posts could be considered inappropriate, distracting, or even, infrequently, inflammatory. Guidelines about acceptable behaviour must be imposed by teaching staff. More importantly, optional participation in social media sites requires critical consideration. If Facebook is used as a student support space for an online subject, it should be integrated into the curriculum and have an explicit purpose; making social media sites optional alongside mandatory university-supported platforms can prove problematic.

Social Media in the Canadian Post-Secondary Classroom

In Canada, the use of Social Networking Sites (SNS) for instructional purposes at post-secondary institutions is constrained by students' legislated rights to privacy. Some universities have explored ways to obtain the advantages of cloud computing while still meeting mandated obligations to protect student privacy. The government of British Columbia maintains the strictest standards in Canada regarding access to and storage of personal information, hampering instructional use of SNS. The University of the Fraser Valley (UFV) decided to work within this legislation and challenge faculty to modify their classroom practice. At UFV the most significant SNS-related teachable moments come from education towards informed consent to public sharing of information through SNS. While our ability to teach students how to use SNS resources is restricted, working within the legislation encourages educators to evaluate their central purpose for using SNS. Students acquire digital skills through various forms of informal learning; therefore, the formal instructional setting becomes an opportunity to foster development of digital citizens.

Social Media as a Tool for Nonprofit Advocacy and Civic Engagement

Blue Star Families is a small nonprofit organization whose goal is to create a virtual community for military families, spouses, children, relatives, and the general public. Founded in 2009 by a group of military spouses, Blue Star Families combines community building and civic engagement with an advocacy role on behalf of military families. Blue Star Families aims to create a cross-sectoral community space that includes other nonprofit organizations, government agencies, private businesses, and private citizens. The organization employs several forms of social media to accomplish its goals. While Blue Star Families has been largely successful in its efforts, the study finds that social media creates challenges for small organizations, particularly in terms of monitoring for appropriate use of the common space by members of the community, acquiring adequate staff resources to analyze usage data, and finding resources to purchase access to more powerful analytics.

Reconciling Social Media with Luxury Fashion Brands

Modern developments in communication media are creating new networks of information diffusion which are profoundly altering the way in which people can construct shared ‘realities'. Internet along with its prototypical subsets, notably social media, is enabling the emergence of new mechanism of human association which are shaped by – yet also shape – the development of this new medium of communication. This chapter integrates social media theory and luxury fashion brand theory arguments to examine the knowledge benefits that this cultural transformation provides to the development of a marketing communications programme. The authors argue that the key to providing an effective marketing communication programme is understanding and responding to customer expectations through the integration of social media platforms and traditional marketing communications media.

How Social Media Tools are used in Research

Social media tools are being widely used. Every day we witness new tools appearing or new features being added to already existing tools. Their characteristics allow us to communicate and collaborate without time and space constraints. Moreover, they also help us in the development and creation of new content as well as in the sharing and publishing of it. Since they are so popular, can it be that researchers are also using them in the research workflow process? If they use them, what are the most commonly used tools and their reasons for use? These are some of the questions addressed in this chapter. The authors analyse responses given by a higher education institution to a questionnaire on the use of social media tools. These findings contribute to a greater understanding of the importance of these tools for research purposes.

Strong Value Proposition through Social Media Tools

This chapter looks into social media tools being leveraged by marketing groups of various organisations. More specifically, this chapter attempts to identify the usefulness, sustainability, and reliability of social media tools in the context of the brand image of American Express. In the last two years, American Express has launched numerous touch points on various social media platforms, which include Facebook, LinkedIn, and FourSquare. The chapter concludes that social media tools do impact the brand building exercise of an organisation to offer strong value proposition, and therefore, American Express should also invest such effort to stay a leader in the payment industry. However, in order to target younger customers there is a need for revamping and rejuvenation the value proposition so as to remain young, meaningful, and contemporary.