Social media has impacted CEOs, executives and employees of companies around the world, in the way they perceive their roles, how they organize themselves internally, how they communicate with the market and how they interact with their customers.

Some critics have questioned the ROI of Social Media, others that there is no parameter to demonstrate their value, but in both cases the fact that their brand community not only responds perfectly to social media, but that takes advantage of them is overlooked. to the maximum.

Consumers around the world are more aware of the multiple global crises we face than ever before, thanks to the information found on the Internet. In light of the protests that are spreading across the Arab world of natural disasters such as the earthquake in Haiti or the Tsunami of Japan among others, consumers are more sophisticated in their ability to connect with each other through the media around they care.

This can be a very powerful force for a brand, or its downfall. Here is why:

Transparency : in the coming years there will be a call for greater transparency of brands. Since the Wikileaks scandal, there is nothing more important as privileged information, therefore, brands need it to act more authentically and be more responsible for their mistakes. If not, consumers are not only aware, but are armed with the tools to spread that message, encouraging their communities, families and friends to boycott their products and the brand in general.

Responsibility : Based on the awareness of the problems of the global community, consumers seek brands that play an important role in social change, trying to fill the gap left by governments and their policies with companies. What’s more, they are aware that many brands have benefited generously at times when their customers were fighting desperately, witnessing how they took advantage of the moment. For this reason, intolerance towards socially irresponsible brands has large dimensions and their capacity to share their dissatisfaction is very broad.

Redundancy : The periods of technological transition brings survivors and victims. As a consequence, companies that insist on perpetuating the thought and behavior that served them in the past no longer have the same place as today.

The reality of the monopolies of the companies, of the national states in competition, of a planet of infinite resources, has been replaced by a business social market, a global community and a finite planet that struggles to survive. The companies that watch over this change will be the ones that survive. The others will be increasingly irrelevant in a market in constant movement.

Creativity : A new type of CEO, entrepreneur, employees, consumers and shareholders is emerging, forming a new consciousness, which leads to a new creative approach to how to practice private and professional life as individuals and corporations. Thinking about the past does not solve the future, and therefore CEOs must be willing to rethink the way they act, companies how to organize, brands to re-imagine what products and services to provide and consumers to change their shopping habits. This creative ability and adaptation is the most persistent in today’s media.

Companies that make significant contributions while listening to the voices of others are the ones that really get involved in their community. The ability to do requires a creativity that is often stifled by institutional inertia and whoever reaches it will take the lead.