In a study of social media, Ed Kitchingman, the senior analyst at We Are Social, found “that the iPhone 5 dominated — by far — the launch day conversations on Twitter and other social media platforms, but that its competitors did a much better job of steering the discussions,” Philip Elmer-DeWitt reports for Fortune.
“Samsung, for example, used social media aggressively to invite fans to be part of its launch, offering sneak previews, teasing content and encouraging them to ‘meet the next Galaxy’ at a Broadway-style event in New York City,” P.E.D. reports. “By contrast Apple, according to Kitchingman, ‘was not proactive enough pushing positive messages about the iPhone 5 and any innovation it offered, resulting in a low level of conversation around its features.'”
P.E.D. reports, “‘[Apple]’s lack of proactivity and staid marketing tactics,’ he concludes, ‘leave the social space open for other brands to take advantage.'”
Read more in the full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: This is basically what we’ve been saying forever: Apple’s PR is seemingly hamstrung, reactive, when it does finally react, it’s usually too late, and Apple’s long stretches of silence while FUD or real issues swirl and gather strength creates an inviting vacuum for others – rivals, shorts, pundits, hedge fund managers – to fill with whatever they like.
Cleaning up after shitstorm after shitstorm is not effective public relations.
Apple’s problem is some vestige of Steve Jobs’ uh, interesting way of dealing – or, more precisely, not dealing – with the media and public relations and, increasingly, as the media expands and speeds up, Apple’s method does not work well, if at all, for Apple’s benefit.
Tim Cook should get some real PR people in there, experienced people with crisis-management experience, or, if he already has them on staff, he needs to unshackle them, trust them, and let them do their jobs for a welcome change.