Business and Corporate Communications Commons^™

Evolution Of Corporate Reputation During An Evolving Controversy, Siyoung Chung, Mark Chong, Jie Sheng Chua, Ji Cheon Na

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to investigate the evolution of online sentiments toward a company (i.e. Chipotle) during a crisis, and the effects of corporate apology on those sentiments. Design/methodology/approach: Using a very large data set of tweets (i.e. over 2.6m) about Company A’s food poisoning case (2015–2016). This case was selected because it is widely known, drew attention from various stakeholders and had many dynamics (e.g. multiple outbreaks, and across different locations). This study employed a supervised machine learning approach. Its sentiment polarity classification and relevance classification consisted of five steps: sampling, labeling, tokenization, augmentation of semantic …

My Choice Greens, Alina Zulfikarova, Amelia Mohr, Hesi Zhang, Ruiqi Huang, Sean Tatar, Yuhao Zhou, Zijun Zhou

School of Professional Studies

My Choice Programs for Independent Living is a nonprofit in Worcester, Massachusetts that helps individuals with special needs. In 2016, My Choice Programs added a branch to their organization called My Choice Greens. My Choice Greens is committed to growing fresh produce in their hydroponic farm. The profit generated from selling their vegetables is put back into direct programming for My Choice Programs. My Choice Greens is the first hydroponic farm in Worcester, but unfortunately not many people are aware of their program. Also, since they are a small nonprofit, they do not have sufficient funding or resources to market …

A Social Media Plan For The Changemakers’ Playground, Meng Cong, Ciara Kilian, Xinling Wang, Sumanth Wilson, Chenyu Yan

School of Professional Studies

The purpose of this project was to create a social media plan for the Changemakers’ Playground campaign. The Changemakers’ Playground is a website thought up by our client, Sarah Lange, whereby ordinary individuals doing extraordinary things in their community can be celebrated for the work they are doing. Each person featured on the website, also known as a Changemaker, was interviewed by Sarah and that interview was split into three videos to be posted on the Changemakers’ Playground website throughout the week they are being featured. In short, our task was to create the Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram content to …

An Analysis Of The Impact Of Social Media Marketing On Individuals’ Attitudes And Perceptions At Nova Community College, Nya Gibson

OTS Master's Level Projects & Papers

Social media has become prominent in the 21st century. Companies are persistently looking for ways to utilize this new platform within their marketing strategies to increase business growth. Since social media is a networking and communication platform, it is important for companies to create a voice to humanize the business and maintain foot traffic. Although there are studies on how to use social media marketing within a business, there is minimal corroboration available of how social media marketing activities influence a consumer’s buying behavior. This study investigated the effects of social media on consumer attitudes of social media marketing and …

Graduate Admissions Recruitment Project, Kevin Anderson, Chiemela Dike, Yixin Du, Arvinder Kaur, Amanda Popp, Huizhong Yang

School of Professional Studies

In this project, several comparison schools were interviewed and disclosed to have used search lists to find candidates. The organizations that have valuable search lists which may be of good use for the School of Professional Studies include Educational Testing Service (ETS) and the Graduate Management Admission Council (GMAC). By choosing criteria such as demographics, location, academic performance, educational history provided by search lists, we believe there are many quality candidates for SPS programs. However, as we further investigated the functionality and cost-efficiency or return of investment of GRE search list, we spotted many uncertainties and few solid and successful …

Corporate Social Media: A Typology Of Consumers, Beverly Wright, Scott Nadler, Aberdeen L. Borders, Paul H. Schwager, Ashley Sasnett

Atlantic Marketing Journal

Abstract - This consumer segmentation schema is developed using 1) number of businesses followed and 2) companies’ social posts as direct influence toward purchase decisions, as defining behaviors. The use of a theoretical progression prospective, which tracks the development of the customer engagement construct, is central to our development. A combination of qualitative and quantitative research methods reveals types of consumer groups and their interactions, perceptions, and involvement with Corporate Social Media (CSM). Cluster analysis produces five distinct consumer segments, and a process to help managers more effectively achieve marketing goals. The use of additional consumer metrics are recommended for …

Building Relationships Through Dialogic Communication: Organizations, Stakeholders, And Computer-Mediated Communication, Augustine Pang, Wonsun Shin, Zijian Lew, Joseph B. Walther

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

Online media are integral to daily life, and while many organizations use them to reach broad audiences, others still appear to be uncomfortable with online media because they do not understand how to maximize their potential to interact effectively with stakeholders. Numerous organizations use online media for one-way communication to disseminate information, despite the affordances of the media platforms for two-way, dialogic communication. This article draws on two dominant interpersonal theories of computer-mediated communication—social information processing theory and the hyperpersonal model—to propose dialogic strategies that organizations can use to improve their online communication with their stakeholders. We illustrate the application …

Good Game, Greyory Blake

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis and its corresponding art installation, Lessons from Ziggy, attempts to deconstruct the variables prevalent within several complex systems, analyze their transformations, and propose a methodology for reasserting the soap box within the display pedestal. In this text, there are several key and specific examples of the transformation of various signifiers (i.e. media-bred fear’s transformation into a political tactic of surveillance, contemporary freneticism’s transformation into complacency, and community’s transformation into nationalism as a state weapon). In this essay, all of these concepts are contextualized within the exponential growth of new technologies. That is to say, all of these semiotic …

Social Media In The Hiring Process: Uncovering Top Talent Or Lawsuits, Ian U. Anderson

Marriott Student Review

As social media use in the hiring process increases, hiring managers must understand how to use it effectively and legally. Improper use of social media when researching candidates can lead to lawsuits. This article features three key recommendation for effective use of social media in hiring decisions.

Using Online Platforms To Engage Employees In Unionism. The Case Of Ibm, Roxana Maiorescu

Emerson Authors, Researchers, & Creators

To date, there is a paucity of studies that looked into the way unions can use social media platforms to increase employee engagement in activism. Understanding the most effective ways in which unions can make use of online communication to increase membership and raise awareness becomes of paramount importance in light of the decline in union participation that occurred during the last decades and that deepened wage inequality. In addition, union efforts were shown in past studies to be hampered by upper management. Online platforms become an important means that unions can use to eschew managerial control and indirectly increase …

Marketing Strategy Of School Of Professional Studies In China, Jiahui Liu, Jing Wang, Shuo An, Wengxing Wang, Yiwei Wang

School of Professional Studies

Chinese students are the most visible international presence at many universities across the United States, and the number continues to grow. Since 2010, The number of graduate students studying abroad has entered the period in which the increase has been declining. Under the circumstance of the weak global economy and high cost of education, the administration needs to attract the attention of Chinese students. In the process of competing for applicants, how to develop marketing strategies to attract students’ eyeballs has become an important means of trying to increase school income through Chinese students. The marketing strategy mentioned in this …

Transitioning Business-To-Business Marketing Communications To Social Media, Terri S. Gibson

Master of Arts in Media and Communication Plan II Graduate Projects

There has been a movement toward digital media marketing channels away from the traditional media marketing channels in the realm of business-to-business (B2B) marketing. This transformation is more than mere semantics. It reflects the recent integration of digital strategies including blogging, social media, and email marketing by B2B marketers. A greater commitment to driving return on investment (ROI) and tracking movement through a website is seen in these strategies. In the rapidly changing digital landscape of B2B marketing, there is a focused emphasis on analytics, which reveals a sharp contrast between traditional media channels and social networking. With traditional media, …

The Debate About Using Social Media To Screen Job Applicants, Marcel Robles

EKU Faculty and Staff Scholarship

A simple web search of a person’s name on Social Media could point to multiple social media sites within minutes, and a variety of details can be found about someone, including photos and information about marital status, children, race, age, gender, religion, political affiliation, hobbies, and more (Davison, Hamilton, & Bing, 2012).

Many people may be posting personal information on social media sites with the intended audience of friends in mind, but often there is another audience that is not being considered, such as potential employers (Stoughton, Thompson, & Meade, 2013). As an inexpensive alternative to traditional background checks, many …

Social Media Information And Analyst Forecasts, Mahfuja Malik, Rajib Hasan, Abu S. Amin

WCBT Faculty Publications

In the past decade, social networking has changed the landscape of information dissemination. The rapid diffusion of social media services such as Facebook and Twitter is unprecedented and offers immense possibilities for corporations to communicate with, and engage core stakeholders in, various business decisions. In this study, we investigate whether social media play any role as a source of information for financial analysts. We specifically focus on information revealed on the official Facebook pages of S&P 500 firms. We define information content on a Facebook page as the total number of posts by the corporations and the comments, likes and …

The Use Of Social Media To Make Personnel Decisions In Education, Tamra Davis, Hulda G. Black

International Journal for Business Education

Given the ubiquitous nature of social media, it is important for prospective and current teachers to be aware of the impact of a personal digital footprint upon their career. Teachers are held to a higher standard due to the public nature of their employment. Teachers represent the school district not only during the school day, but beyond the work day. The study surveyed school principals or hiring managers in Illinois, USA about the use of social media to screen or censure teachers. Approximately 2300 principals were contacted; however, only 80 responded to the survey. Of the responses, approximately 50 percent …

Exploring Motivations And Usage Patterns Of Social Media Users, Anita Whiting

Atlantic Marketing Association Proceedings

Social media is an important aspect of marketing today. According to Hanna et al (2011), social media is not an optional part of marketing strategy but a mandatory component for most companies today. Social media usage is rapidly growing. Facebook, the largest global social network, has over 1.19 billion users with an annual growth rate of eighteen percent (Aichner & Jacob 2015).

An Application Of Social Media Marketing For Community Sustainable Development, Lei Huang, Amelia Clarke, Wen Tian, Natalie Heldsinger

Atlantic Marketing Association Proceedings

Though the social marketing approach has been developed from commercial marketing, it is a holistic approach from various social sciences disciplines like marketing, psychology, sociology, mass communication and economics. It is basically an art to explore new ways of analyzing problems and solving them effectively. For instance, social marketing influences sustainability through the use of marketing principles to increase awareness, understanding, change attitudes, and motivate the society to change, adopt, or sustain a particular behavior. This paper attempts to explore a framework of social media in light of disseminating the knowledge of a community-wide sustainability plan among various stakeholders. Policy …

Confessions Of An Angry Employee: The Dark Side Of De-Identified “Confessions” On Facebook, Arunima Krishna, Soojin Kim

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

Employees’ communication behaviors are an important area of research for public rela-tions. In this study, employees’ communication behaviors in a de-identified context havebeen studied from the perspective of online flaming by analyzing “confessions” posted on aFacebook confessions page. The theoretical perspectives of the uses and gratification theoryand employee communication behavior in public relations literature were adopted in thisstudy. Positive and negative “confessions” were analyzed to identify employees’ motiva-tions in posting them. While negative posts expressing anger and frustration at policies,personnel, and the management in general dominated the page, positive posts indicatedexpressions of pride, nostalgia, and gratitude for social support from …

Parody Social Media Accounts: Influence And Impact On Organizations During Crisis, Sarah Wan, Regina Koh, Andrew Ong, Augustine Pang

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

With the uptake of the use of social media, the communication field has seen a rise in a new phenomenon: parody social media accounts. Through study of five such accounts, this paper shows how parody social media accounts can arise from a crisis or paracrisis, which is “a publicly visible crisis threat” that is triggered online (Coombs & Holladay, 2012, p. 409). The study also examines the behavior of these accounts and how they enforce negative perceptions and impede an organization's efforts and initiatives. Using the social-mediated crisis communication model as its theoretical lens, this study seeks to examine parody …

Building Relationships Through Integrated Online Media Platforms: Analysis Of Top 100 Global Brands, Wonsun Shin, Augustine Pang, Hyo Jung Kim

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

Many studies have examined organizations’ use of specific types of online media, but few studies have examined how organizations generate dialogues and develop relationships by using multiple online communication platforms. This study takes an integrated approach by examining how top global organizations incorporate brand Web sites, Facebook, and Twitter to cultivate relationships with stakeholders. Its findings suggest that those particular online media are used similarly, that is, more for information dissemination than user engagement and more for one-way than two-way communication. The findings also suggest that the types of products promoted can affect the way that organizations use different online …

Impact Of Social Media On Power Relations Of Korean Health Activism, Kyu Jin Shim

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

This case study explores how the Korea Leukemia Patient Group (KLPG) uses social media in its internal communication strategy and how that empowers its relationship with external counterparts. The findings of this study indicate that the local health NGO’s communication strategy is changing in response to the increased effectiveness and impact of social media. With the use of social media like Twitter, the KLPG can construct an issue-based advocacy group quickly and effectively. Consequently, more legitimacy and representativeness through collected support from general publics has further empowered the KLPG. Yet, the sustainability component in the relationships built through social media …

Making The Magic: How Public Relations Is Handled At The Disney Parks, Elizabeth Demeo

Senior Honors Theses

The Walt Disney Company has always been an organization that has prided itself on its corporate image. One of their biggest successes has been their 11 theme parks across the globe. Ever since its creation in 1955, Disneyland has been known as "the happiest place on earth." However, many wonder how this reputation came to be and how it is being maintained today. To find this answer, one must look to the creative minds behind Disney's public relations. By examining the Disney parks and their public relations history, tactics, crisis management and current and future campaigns, companies can find out …

Game-Changer: A Case Study Of Social-Media Strategy In Big Ten Athletic Departments, Makayla Hipke, Frauke Hachtmann

College of Journalism and Mass Communications: Faculty Publications

This study used a case study approach to develop an understanding of how social media strategy is developed and deployed in Big Ten Conference athletic departments and to explore the issues associated with it. Based on in-depth interviews with department officials, the following six themes emerged: connecting with target audiences; varied approaches in coordination of postings; athletic communications as content gatekeepers; desire to incorporate sponsors and generate revenue; focusing on building fan loyalty through engagement; and challenges of negativity and metrics. The social media strategy in Big Ten Conference athletic departments appears to be driven by athletic communications/sports information departments …

The Process Of Social Media Migration Among Young Professionals: A Grounded Theory, Maria Hermosa, Frauke Hachtmann

College of Journalism and Mass Communications: Faculty Publications

The purpose of this study was to develop a theory that explains the process of social media migration among young professionals. The theoretical propositions that emerged from this qualitative study explain how different causal, intervening, and contextual conditions interact with and affect the phenomenon of social media migration. Internal and external pressures have an effect on young professionals’ decision to join new social media sites while abandoning others. Intervening and contextual conditions provide specific circumstances in which social media migration might occur. Integrating useful and organizational features to ease the use of social networks were important strategies in the process …

Social Recruiting: The Role Of Social Networking Websites In The Hiring Practices Of Major Advertising And Public Relations Firms, Keri Cook

Senior Honors Theses

The purpose of this study is to determine the role that professional networking websites, such as LinkedIn, play in the hiring decisions of talent recruiters at major advertising and public relations firms. A study of literature relating to social media, traditional recruitment techniques and legal implications regarding the use of networking websites in the hiring process provided a foundation for the study. Primary research, in the form of online surveys distributed to hiring managers at some of the largest international advertising and public relations firms, was conducted to set a foundation for understanding the use of networking websites in the …

Social Networks And The Desire To Save Face: A Case From Singapore, Michael A. Netzley, Akanksha Rath

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

For five years, corporate communication undergraduates have maintained a wiki as a final course and community service project. Using Web 2.0 platforms to crowdsource and curate content, they learn to employ online communications for work purposes. When the course was launched in 2007, the dominant social media narrative invited educators to embrace a technological optimism with sub-themes of open communication, sharing, and co-creation. By 2011, student feedback had compelled the instructor to consider the limits of technological optimism and revise the course. Specifically, Singaporean students have displayed a need to save face online, which has led to a localized teaching …

The Social Revoution Will Be Live And Digitized, Deirdre Barrett-England

Communications Management - All Scholarship

No abstract provided.

Youtube Video Project: A" Cool" Way To Learn Communication Ethics, Carol M. Lehman, Debbie D. Dufrene, Mark W. Lehman

Faculty Publications

The millennial generation embraces new technologies as a natural way of accessing and exchanging information, staying connected, and having fun. YouTube, a video-sharing site that allows users to upload, view, and share video clips, is among the latest “cool” technologies for enjoying quick laughs, employing a wide variety of corporate activities, and also communicating relevant, engaging instructional content for today’s students. This article describes a YouTube video class project that is a natural fit with today’s students because it involves cutting-edge social media while addressing a critical component of professional development—communication ethics. This project encourages critical thinking, creativity, and applied …