By any measure, General Electric is one of the leaders in the technology and innovation space. Founded in New York in 1892, the company has grown and diversified into one of the largest and most well-known brand names on the planet. A world leader in innovation, particularly inenvironmental initiatives, it comes as little surprise that GE has also been an enthusiastic adopter of social media, regularly amongst the first brands utilizing new platforms and technologies. These efforts have been widely recognized, with much written online about GE’s excellent social media efforts, which have even garnered award nominations for their implementation and execution. There’s much to learn from GE’s social presence – I recently got a chance to speak with Anthony Spargo, Director Public Affairs GE & Communications GE Capital, Australia and New Zealand, to get an insight into how GE approaches social and how they measure their performance.
Early Adopters
One of the standout aspects of GE’s social media presence is the company’s leadership. They are regularly among the first brands on new platforms and are always willing to experiment – with everything from Vine to Yo toSnapchat. GE is quickly able to understand the audience of each specific platform and tailor their content to suit – which is an achievement in itself, given that many probably wouldn’t associate a company like GE with the focus of such apps. “For us,” Spargo told me, “it’s really about understanding our customers and prospective customers, and knowing how and where we engage with them in an authentic and productive way.”
This approach extends to the brand’s presence on LinkedIn; “Take our GE Capital LinkedIn program for example. Since 2012, GE Capital has released a report each year on the Australian mid-market, based on a survey of 5500 CFOs across the mid-market sector. We looked for ways that we might engage mid-market CFOs in conversations around the findings of this report, but found that our target audience were time poor, and didn’t spend a great deal of time on digital platforms. The one platform that they did consistently use was LinkedIn. As a result, we worked closely with LinkedIn to develop the GE Capital Australian Mid-Market Hub, a place for discussion about the key issues and trends impacting innovation and growth, how the mid-market is changing, and how this is driving the Australian economy. The group has been a great success, and now boasts 2250 plus members, the majority of whom are senior leaders in the mid-market space.”
The Big Brand Theory: GE Demonstrates Value Through Platform-Specific Content
