5-2

Messaging and Texting at Work

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• Instant messaging (IM) enables two or more individuals to communicate in real time
by exchanging brief text-based messages.
− Companies large and small now provide live online chats staffed with customer
service representatives or AI-powered automated chat bots for routine inquiries
24/7.
• Text messaging, or texting, is another popular means for exchanging brief messages
in real time, usually exchanged via smartphone.
− Texting requires a short message service (SMS) supplied by a wireless service
provider.
− Rich communication services (RCS) promises advanced features such as
multimedia-enhanced texts that can be customized for more appealing opt-in text
alerts and mobile marketing.
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 5-2 Messaging and Texting at Work (2 of 11)

• 81 percent of Americans now own smartphones and many depend on them for
Internet access.
• Fueled by online security and legal compliance concerns, business enterprises
are combining multiple communication functions behind corporate firewalls.
− Instant and text messaging systems lead to presence functionality, which
helps employees save time by locating coworkers online.

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 5-2 Messaging and Texting at Work (3 of 11)

Benefits of Instant Messaging and Texting

• The benefits of instant messaging and texting include:
− Real-time communication with colleagues anywhere in the world
− The ability to share information immediately
− The ability to make decisions quickly
− Instant communication for dispersed coworkers
− Customer engagement

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 5-2 Messaging and Texting at Work (4 of 11)

Risks of Messaging Apps and Texting

• Some employers consider chat and messaging yet another distraction.
• Some organizations also fear that employees using free consumer-grade instant
messaging apps could reveal privileged information and company records.
• Companies also worry about phishing (fraudulent schemes), viruses, and
malware (malicious software programs).
• Any type of message and all other electronic records are subject to discovery
(disclosure) and become evidence in lawsuits.
• A worker’s improper use of mobile devices while on company business can
expose the organization to staggering legal liability.
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 5-2 Messaging and Texting at Work (5 of 11)
Best Practices for Instant Messaging and Texting
• Use messaging or texting efficiently and professionally by following these
guidelines:
− Comply with company policies: social media use, code of conduct, and
ethics guidelines, as well as harassment and discrimination policies.
− Don’t disclose sensitive financial, company, customer, employee, or
executive data, and don’t say anything that could damage your reputation or
that of your organization.
− Avoid harassment and discriminatory content against classes protected by
law (race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, national origin, age, and
disability).
− Don’t forward or link to inappropriate photos, videos, and art.
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− Don’t text or chat while driving a car; pull over if you must read or send a
message.
− Separate business contacts from family and friends; limit personal
messaging.
− Avoid unnecessary chitchat and know when to say goodbye. If personal
messaging is allowed, keep it to a minimum.
− Ensure your presence status is up-to-date so that people trying to reach you
don’t waste their time. Make yourself unavailable when you need to meet a
deadline.
− Use good grammar and correct spelling; beware of jargon, slang, and
abbreviations, which can be confusing and appear unprofessional.
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 5-2 Messaging and Texting at Work (7 of 11)

Text Messaging Etiquette

• Texting is an effective alternative to a phone call or e-mail.
• Use texting for quick and routine messages.
• Follow considerate and professional etiquette guidelines.

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 5-2 Messaging and Texting at Work (8 of 11)

Enterprise Messaging—Slack
• Slack is currently the most popular enterprise instant messaging and group
chat tool.
• All the major players in tech provide instant messaging software, with Slack
outperforming the giants (10 million daily users).

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 5-2 Messaging and Texting at Work (9 of 11)
• The Upside of Slack:
− Slack is popular with small businesses and start-ups.
− Slack declutters e-mail inboxes, simplifies workplace communication, and functions
as a digital water cooler.
− Slack increases camaraderie as workers collaborate on main channels but also
congregate in private channels to chat about mundane topics.
− Slack facilitates conversations across dispersed teams and time zones.
− Reviewers of Slack uniformly praise its intuitive interface and ease of use for local
and remote teams.
− They also like the seamless integration of other productivity tools with Slack, such
as G Suite and Dropbox.
− It allows employers to securely monitor, log, and archive all communication.
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 5-2 Messaging and Texting at Work (10 of 11)

• The Downside of Slack:

− Some workers find Slack so distracting that they refuse to use it, while others
cannot disengage from it.
− It can create spillover of workplace messaging into home life.
− Some users engage in rude behavior on the platform.

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 5-2 Messaging and Texting at Work (11 of 11)

Slack Etiquette
• Follow this “ultimate Slack etiquette guide”:
− Stay away from slang and acronyms with swear words in them.
− Avoid talking about job hunting, illness, finances, or hating coworkers.
− Shun arguments.
− Compliment your coworkers.
− Curb the emojis.
− Use miscellaneous channels to make friends.
− Adjust your tone to your audience.
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 Knowledge Check 1

True or False:

1. A short message service (SMS) is usually supplied by your employer.

2. Presence functionality helps employees save time by locating coworkers
online.
3. Discovery refers to any messages or records that can become evidence in
lawsuits.
4. There are no downsides to using instant messaging software like Slack.

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 5-3
Making Podcasts Work for Business

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 5-3 Making Podcasts Work for Business (1 of 6)

The Growing Popularity of Podcasts

• Podcasts are digital audio programs distributed over the Internet and usually
downloaded on smart electronic devices.

• They tend to be:

− Series of episodes that generally feature a host, sometimes two, often in an
interview format
− Distributed regularly—daily, weekly, or monthly—as audio programs that can be
played on demand in a Web browser or with a mobile app on various digital devices
− Discussions of diverse topics
− Pre-recorded, but some are live
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 5-3 Making Podcasts Work for Business (2 of 6)
• Awareness of podcasting has grown from 50 percent to 70 percent among
Americans 12 years old and up; more than half of all Americans have listened to
at least one podcast (up from a third).
• Estimates suggest that 850,000 shows with more than 30 million episodes may
be vying for listeners’ attention today.
• Podcasts are
− Portable
− Downloaded and can be enjoyed offline
− A means for busy professionals to learn, keep informed, and be entertained
while maximizing their limited time

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 5-3 Making Podcasts Work for Business (3 of 6)

The Main Players in Podcasting

• Although business podcasts are “consumed” only by 10 percent of weekly
listeners, many companies are eager to jump into making a podcast series.
• Podcasts can:
− Inform, engage, and train staff
− Help convey authenticity by featuring the voices of employees and
personalizing executives
− Broadcast repetitive information that does not require interaction
− Replace costlier live teleconferences and offer on-demand consumption
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 5-3 Making Podcasts Work for Business (4 of 6)

• It helps if the podcast host is a well-known businessperson or TV personality.

• Many hosts author bestselling self-help books, blogs, and podcasts and amass
sizable fan communities.
• Capitalizing on technical and journalistic expertise, many major news
organizations and media outlets podcast radio shows.

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 5-3 Making Podcasts Work for Business (5 of 6)

• Some instructors record their own podcasts to:

− Facilitate accessible learning for students with disabilities
− Benefit auditory learners
− Create an archive of lessons
• Podcasts allows students to listen to instructors’ lectures, interviews, sporting
events, and other content anytime and anywhere.

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 5-3 Making Podcasts Work for Business (6 of 6)

Can Podcasts Make Money and Do They Last?

• Sizable audiences will attract advertisers.
• Sponsors pay podcasters for product endorsements.
• Disclosure of promotion deals is important in avoiding accusations of bias.

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 5-4
Telling Stories with Blogs and News Sites

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5-4 Telling Stories with Blogs and News Sites (1 of 8)

• A blog is a website or social media platform with journal entries usually written
by one person with comments added by others.
• Businesses use blogs to:
− Keep customers, employees, and the public informed
− Accumulate a far-flung, vast audience
− Shape the brand story in a longer narrative form
• Commercial banks, specialty retailers, semiconductors and electronics makers,
gas and electric utilities, and pharmaceuticals are the sectors most likely to
embrace blogs.
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 5-4 Telling Stories with Blogs and News Sites (2 of 8)

How Companies Tell Stories

• Companies use blogs for public relations, customer relations, market research,
internal communication, online community building, and recruiting.
• Internal blogs accessible to employees on a corporate intranet serve as
information hubs, encourage discussion, create a sense of community, and
foster engagement.

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5-4 Telling Stories with Blogs and News Sites (3 of 8)

Public Relations and Customer Relations

• Blogs provide up-to-date company information to the media, employees, and
the public.
• Influencers, influential plugged-in opinion leaders who boast large online
audiences and followers, are invited by retailers to create a profile and blog on
its platform.
• Brand ambassadors are influential online opinion-leaders who are powerful
product champions. They evangelize, or advocate for brands and services in
exchange for compensation and perks.

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5-4 Telling Stories with Blogs and News Sites (4 of 8)

Engagement and Viral Marketing

• The engagement aspect of blogging appears to be waning.
• Marketers hope their messages will be picked up by brand advocates or
influencers and go viral.
• Viral marketing refers to the rapid spread of messages online, much like the
spread of infectious diseases.
• Large companies employ social media experts and marketers who scrutinize
social media for information about their organizations and products.

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5-4 Telling Stories with Blogs and News Sites (5 of 8)

Online Communities
• Company blogs can help create loyal followers who want to keep informed
about company events, product updates, offers, freebies, and other news.

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5-4 Telling Stories with Blogs and News Sites (6 of 8)

Internal Communication and Recruiting

• Internally, blogs can be used to:
− Keep virtual teams on track and share updates on the road
− Help build communities
− Prompt the sharing of expertise
− Stimulate employee involvement

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5-4 Telling Stories with Blogs and News Sites (7 of 8)

• Internal corporate blogs serve as searchable archives of company knowledge.

• Public-facing blogs mirror the company culture and help recruit potential
employees.
• As blogs mature, fewer encourage commentary, or they require registering and
logging in behind corporate firewalls.

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5-4 Telling Stories with Blogs and News Sites (8 of 8)

Mastering Blogging: Seven Tips

1. Craft a catchy but concise title.
2. Ace the opening paragraph.
3. Provide details in the body.
4. Consider visuals.
5. Include a call to action.
6. Edit and proofread.
7. Respond to posts respectfully.

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 Knowledge Check 2

Fill in the Blank:

1. A ________________ is a website or social media platform with generally

well-crafted articles or commentaries on a variety of topics.
2. ________________ are loyal fans with a large social media following.
3. ________________ refers to the rapid spread of messages online, much like
the spread of infectious diseases.
4. ________________ mirror the company culture and help recruit potential
employees.

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 5-5
Navigating Social Networking for Business

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 5-5 Navigating Social Networking for Business
(1 of 15)

• Social media enable businesses to:

− Connect with customers and employees
− Share company news
− Promote goods and services
− Exchange ideas

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 5-5 Navigating Social Networking for Business
(2 of 15)
Tapping into Social Media
• 72 percent of American adults use some type of social media.
• 85 percent of millennials (those born 1981–1996) use social media.
• 93 percent of millennials own smartphones.
• Millennials are now the largest generation in the workforce (35 percent).

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 5-5 Navigating Social Networking for Business
(3 of 15)
The Most Popular Social Media and Percentage of American Followers
− YouTube: 73 percent
− Facebook: 69 percent
− Instagram: 37 percent
− Pinterest: 28 percent
− LinkedIn: 27 percent
− Snapchat: 24 percent
− Twitter: 22 percent
− WhatsApp: 20 percent
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 5-5 Navigating Social Networking for Business
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The Most Popular Social Media Used by Fortune 500 Companies
− Facebook: 95 percent
− Twitter: 96 percent
− YouTube: 90 percent
− Instagram: 73 percent
− Because of its popularity with 14 to 26-year-old, advertisers are starting to
use TikTok.

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 5-5 Navigating Social Networking for Business
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Enterprise Social Networking
• Enterprise social networking mirrors social media sites but is securely located
behind corporate firewalls.
• The platforms promise seamless networking away from e-mail, connecting
workers one-on-one, in small teams, and across the entire company in one
secure environment.

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 5-5 Navigating Social Networking for Business
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• Many platforms combine an array of functions, such as:
− Project management
− Up-to-the-minute microblogging updates across the network
− Profiles of people in the organization
− Collaborative space
− Crowdsourcing tools
− Blogging
− Task management
− Content storage and forums
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 5-5 Navigating Social Networking for Business
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• Enterprise Social Networking platforms enable companies to:
− Quickly respond to disasters and prepare for future disaster needs.
− Use social analytics to track grievances posted on social media in order to
respond quickly, restoring goodwill.
− Match up and connect off-site employees.
− Conduct virtual meetings.
− Exchange instant messages to quickly resolve problems.
− Participate in enterprise social networking to contribute creative ideas.
− Invite employee input to effect change and solve business problems.
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 5-5 Navigating Social Networking for Business
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Social Media and Risk Management
• Public-facing social networks can lead to lost productivity, reputational damage,
and legal issues (e.g., violations of privacy laws, workplace harassment, and
defamation).
• Hackers may deliver malware through Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook, or Instagram
by hijacking accounts
• To minimize risk, companies rely on social media policies, approve and oversee
employees’ use of social media, and mandate training.
• The best advice to workers is to follow company policies.

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 5-5 Navigating Social Networking for Business
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DOs DON’Ts

• Learn your company’s rules. • Don’t spread rumors, gossip, and negative
defamatory comments.
• Avoid sending personal e-mail, instant
messages, or texts from work. • Don’t download and share cartoons, video clips,
photos, and art.
• Separate work and personal data. • Don’t open unfamiliar attachments.
• Be careful when blogging, tweeting, or posting • Don’t download free software and utilities to
on social networking sites. company machines.
• Keep sensitive information private. • Don’t store your music and photos on a company
machine (or server) and don’t watch streaming
• Avoid pornography, sexually explicit jokes, or videos.
inappropriate screen savers.
• Don’t share files and avoid file-sharing services.
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 5-5 Navigating Social Networking for Business
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The Dark Side of Technology and Social Media
• Privacy Fears:
− Location services in most apps allow users to be tracked.
− Our personal data ends up in the cloud, where it exists indefinitely and
where it can be hacked, viewed by unauthorized personnel, or sold to
advertisers.
− Sometimes our personal data ends up on the dark web, the black market of
the Internet, a mostly illicit network of websites that cannot be accessed by
standard search engines and browsers.
− Sensitive financial information and our medical data are stored in networks
that are frequently breached.

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 5-5 Navigating Social Networking for Business
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• Disinformation and Election Tampering:
− More than 90 percent of users access their news online; some 50 to 68
percent of them rely solely on social media.
− Online, people tend to seek out echo chambers (online communities of like-
minded people who embrace narratives confirming their existing views),
resulting in polarization.
− Disinformation, (false news stories, doctored narratives, and propaganda
spread on social media to confuse and incite the public), confuse the public.
− Foreign agents use large bot armies to disseminate fake news stories on
social media and incite conflict to deepen sharp divisions among the
American public.
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 5-5 Navigating Social Networking for Business
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• Deepfakes, Doctored Videos:
− A post-truth era; “circumstances in which objective facts are less influential
in shaping public opinion than appeals to emotion and personal belief.”
− Advances in AI could soon make creating deepfakes (doctored video
footage that makes people seem to say or do something they did not do) a
lot easier, permitting ever more sophisticated disinformation.
− Such tampering could be weaponized before an election or might threaten
national security.

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 5-5 Navigating Social Networking for Business
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• Incivility, Trolling, and Cyberbullying:
− Trolls are social media users who fake their identity, provoke arguments,
and disrupt discussions.
− Users face threats of violence, doxxing (a form of bullying committed with
digital devices aimed at scaring, angering, or shaming victims), and troll
armies bent on silencing others.
− Cyberbullying, a form of bullying committed with digital devices aimed at
scaring, angering, or shaming victims, persistent messaging, and other
digital nastiness, has driven victims, many of them teenagers, to despair.

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 5-5 Navigating Social Networking for Business
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• Data Security:
− Spyware
− Ransomware attacks
− Phishing
− Data breaches
− Romance scammers on dating sites
− Fake bot accounts
− Hacking of connected security networks
− Vulnerabilities in smart speakers and connected cars
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 5-5 Navigating Social Networking for Business
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• The average total cost of a data breach stands at $3.9 million.
• In the most recent year, an average 25,575 records were compromised per
breach, and it took 279 days on average to identify and contain the breach.
• Americans’ knowledge of digital topics, such as cybersecurity or the advertising
business model of social media companies, is inadequate.
• Adoption of VPNs is spreading, and growing concern has led to efforts to
introduce privacy protections.

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