Best Blogs of the Week
Two helpful posts this week.
Blog
Your CEO is Not Using Social Media? No Problem
Over at Fast Company, HootSuite CEO Ryan Holmes tosses out another in the endless line of arguments about how companies aren’t using social media effectively. The points he makes are generally fine. Two of the central tenets have been, are, and will remain true for a long time:
He didn’t need a college degree. And he doesn’t need Twitter either.
- Social media is a huge opportunity for corporations and will significantly impact the bottom line
- We have a long way to go before these benefits are even close to fully-realized
People get it. Even skeptics understand there’s real opportunity. But it all takes time. After all, the same two ideas above still hold true for “old” technologies like e-mail, CRM tools, and (gasp) Web sites. If Mr. Holmes is up for it, he’ll be able to recycle his article a few years from now and probably not have to change much of anything.
Still, I have an issue with the starting point of Mr. Holmes’ argument. If you didn’t click through to the article, it begins with the following:
On June 6, Larry Ellison–CEO of Oracle, one of the largest and most advanced computer technology corporations in the world–tweeted for the very first time. In doing so, he joined a club that remains surprisingly elite. Among CEOs of the world’s Fortune 500 companies, a mere 20 have Twitter accounts. Ellison, by the way, hasn’t tweeted since.
Mr. Holmes is making the point that big-time CEOs don’t get social media because only 20 have Twitter accounts. There are two big problems with this:
- A Lack of Usage Does Not Equal a Lack of Understanding. There are thousands of CEOs who know relatively little about finance, or marketing, or operations. This doesn’t mean that they don’t realize they are important to their organizations.
- Social Media Needs to be Genuine. There’s no point to a social media presence unless you truly care about it. If Larry Ellison and 480 other Fortune 500 CEOs aren’t huge Twitter fans, they’re better off not having Twitter accounts. And if they give it a shot and it doesn’t take, that’s fine, too.
Corporate executives typically have good reasons for doing or not doing social media at this point. They get it. They just might choose not do it.
Best Blogs of the Week
on Sep 04, 2012,
in Best Blogs of the Week
, tagged with AB, BlackRock, Franklin Templeton, OppenheimerFunds
Another week and another newcomer to the best blogs of the week. This week it is Oppenheimer. With the first presidential convention under way, this week included numerous blog posts linked to the November elections. I’m sure we’ll continue to see more posts up to the election (and probably afterwards). In this review, we included two posts with links to government.
- AllianceBernstein – This post describes the differences between an Obama and Ryan budget plan. As advisors receive greater inbound questions, similar posts will help shape those advisors’ answers.
- BlackRock – Simply a fantastic infographic.
- Franklin Templeton – The driest of the four, this post provides practical input on risk management when overseeing a portfolio.
- Oppenheimer – This post discusses the impact of Chairman Bernake’s reappointment by President Obama’s in 2010 and the importance to consider the effect of a change.
Best Blogs of the Week
This week’s best blogs refresh a few topics, not covered often. The list includes a rare 529 sighting. Though an important investment vehicle, 529 plans rarely show up on industry blogs.
- JPMorgan – Making a first time appearance, this post shares easy-to-digest information about US returns versus non-US. The chart is a helpful reminder about how correlated global equity markets have been in 2012.
- Putnam – This post discussed the intersection of family trusts and 529 college savings. It’s probably an esoteric topic, but valuable to some advisors.
- Wells Fargo – This post challenges conventional investment wisdom succinctly.
Best Blogs of the Week
“Fiscal cliff” has become a weekly occurrence. It’s joined by some theory and some practical answers.
- AllianceBernstein – Is this argument convincing financial advisors of Dow 20,000?
- BlackRock – This post shares Q&A from the iShares’ telephone support team. Most of the material is basic, yet still a good refresher.
- MFS – Ahh, the fiscal cliff. This time there’s a bit of intelligent prognostication that may be helpful for an FA fielding calls on the topic.