Sep
19
2008
Another great example of why “bad” can be good in social media
Author: Robin BrowneOn Tuesday CTV.ca published a story called Online campaigns leave candidates ‘vulnerable’ that argued that getting on social networking sites like Facebook “can quickly backfire on candidates.” To support their point they cited all the negative posts NDP leader Jack Layton got on his Facebook page in response to his original opposition to Green Party Leader Elizabeth May’s participation in televised election debates. They quoted one post from a Montrealer on Layton’s public message board known as the "wall" that said, "You just lost my vote, you undemocratic shill. I can’t believe you’d try to block a serious political party from the debates."
But CTV has it backwards because this is actually an excellent example of exactly why politicians and others should always consider engaging in social media – if it fits their larger communications strategy.
That’s because it’s what happened after the negative posts that’s the most relevant: Jack Layton listened to what people said, good and bad, and reversed his position. Facebook gave him a place to make listening easy and very high profile – and his Facebook page remains the most popular of the leaders.
And, who knows, maybe he got that Montrealer’s vote back…
