As we have come to grips with the online environment the rules of engagement have, for the most part, followed the same niceties and social etiquettes we apply in our other interactions.  Those who have transgressed have been outed and dealt with by the group.

In the early days in particular, a company or brand that naively masqueraded as a private individual in order to promote a product or respond to a complaint was frequently found out.  And so they should be – the truth will find you out.

But as with all things that involve human nature and the idiosyncrasies that go with this, nothing is black and white and the lines have begun to blur.  As individuals and organisations have become more creative and adventurous, new ways are being found to push the boundaries to achieve end goals.

Take the chap who decided to post fake nude pictures of his mother on Trade Me as part of a media studies paper – this was the fabler who proclaimed he had not lied. A similar transgression by a major company or brand would have seen this act go down in the annals of history as what not to do. In this case the boy is most likely now seen as the class hero.

Just recently party pill promoters registered a domain name and created a website similar to TV3, as a stunt to promote their own product.  The resulting media coverage is what they were probably looking for and most likely it was good for business. Had a major drug company done this the resulting hue and cry would still be heard.

One assumes that the first rule of such on-line prankstering is “firstly do no harm”.  Was any harm done?  That depends on who you talk to.  Did TV3 get damaged?  Probably not! But they did need to protect their brand, and in this instance they have done so.

But wait a minute, what about the values of honesty, transparency and authenticity, the very ones that have made online communities so powerful.  Content is generated and managed by the very people who want to interact and the real power is in this very fact.  How can they get away with this?

The reality is, as it is in the off-line world, different rules really do apply to different people and organisations.  If you are a reputable company or brand or even an individual of high standing – you simply can’t and should not lie or deceive. You set the standard and you should know better.  While at times it may seem unfair we need to accept the fact that with certain status or position comes responsibility.

Just as the standards set for certain professions are far higher than others might be expected to adhere to, so must the standards a reputable company, brand or business adheres to.  And in the online environment as new rules are being established, it is more important than ever that behaviour is beyond reproach.  Boring maybe but in the longer-term is most definitely the right thing to do.

To quote one of my favourite Web 2.0 experts San Francisco based PR guru Brian Solis. “The point is that when establishing a paid Social Media campaign, anything that is less than clear, honest, or actively contributing back to the bottom line of the business and/or brand resonance is actually taking away from it.”

Tags: Brian Solis, online, Social Media, Trade Me, Web 2.0

This entry was posted on Wednesday, July 29th, 2009 at 4:45 pm and is filed under Brand, Social Media. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.