Photo Credits: Damien Basile
Simple enough: social media is all about giving up control and letting users be creative. But how much control should social media brands give up to their own users? This interesting question ignited a lively debate in Tom Anderson’s blog. Tom had uploaded a caricature of himself on his LinkedIn profile, after which LinkedIn contacted him and asked him to replace it with a real picture (caricatures, logos, and group pictures, among other things, are against LinkedIn’s user guidelines).
Needless to say, Tom wasn’t happy and asked his readers for their opinion: was LinkedIn justified in making this request? Should social media brands impose restrictions and constraints that limit their users’ creative expression?
Here is my take: absolutely, yes. Social networks are brands too, after all. Good brands must create the conditions for a powerful, relevant and consistent user experience.
Allowing the use of caricatures instead of actual pictures would erode the brand experience LinkedIn is trying to create. Most people view LinkedIn as THE professional social network, and there is no doubt that its strict user guidelines have played an important role in strengthening that brand position (the fact that LinkedIn is the only major social network that makes money seems to validate this even further).
The same reasoning applies to other social networks:
For example, is Twitter justified in limiting our creative expression to 140 characters? Absolutely, yes. The 140-character limit is pivotal to Twitter’s brand experience. Take that limit away and Twitter would become just another blog platform, and it would not be the strong brand it is today. We could also make the point that constraints actually increase creativity: by imposing the 140 character limit, Twitter is in fact forcing us to get more creative, by finding ways to be more clear and concise.
Similarly, is Facebook justified in deciding that only official representatives of a brand should be allowed to create a fan page, and not extend the same privilege to brand enthusiasts? Absolutely, yes. By enforcing that rule Facebook keeps spammers at bay and reduces the possibility of getting hit with copyright infringement lawsuits, while at the same time enhancing the user experience and increasing the value of the Facebook community.
Social media are revolutionizing marketing, and the fact that customers are more empowered by them every day should be celebrated and encouraged. But first and foremost, social media properties are brands too, and as such, the universal rules of branding
Everything’s cool, except that link to 22 immutable laws by Al and Laura. That book is truly not the best resource on branding. at least there are many that could deserve the linking honour much more
but Your opinion is really well motivated and i agree with Your arguments totally and absolutely. best regards.
This is why I have my own web site – I have total creative control. I’m also on LinkedIn, but I realize its limits and use it accordingly.
@John: perhaps I can split the link between several books. I’ll get to it when I find some time.
@Sara: Great point. It’s so easy to set up a blog these days that everybody should be taking advantage of it.
Totally agree with your assessment. I am surprised that Tom even had an issue with this. Anyone who uses LinkedIn knows that it is a little more buttoned up than the rest. That’s what makes it unique. Social media is just like any other product. If you don’t like the features, don’t buy it or in this case use it.
I love how the author points out that we should celebrate the fact that we have these platforms; and are able to be creative and innovative with branding, sharing of information, etc. With all the different sm platforms, if you don’t like one’s restrictions, you certainly have many more options. That is the beauty of social media!
Great post! Thanks for the share!
RM
Good post congratulations
The question”how much control should social media brands give up to their own users?” is very interesting. I feel creativity is a good thing but it also should be controlled or it should be limited to an extent. Good post. Thank you for posting.
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That is a real good question that you put up on your post. It is worth thinking about. Too much freedom is also not good. But creativity should be encouraged.
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