The perils of using staff as online influencers

正文：

Others can learn from Amazon’s failed social media diplomacy

Amazon has finally scrapped a campaign /to use paid “fulfilment centre ambassadors”/ to polish its image /on social media and defend it against criticism. The surprise is that it took the technology group so long to realise it could be spending its marketing dollars better elsewhere.

Satisfied staff are great advocates. That is why a version of the question “how likely are you to recommend this company as a place to work?” is a staple of employee engagement surveys. Referrals of job candidates are so highly valued that many companies will pay staff to recommend new recruits. And outsiders are generally more likely to trust a friend or family member who tells them their employer is great, or its products wonderful.

Allowing, and even encouraging, staff to carry out some brand diplomacy on the side has its merits, then. Many companies have used employees to front advertising campaigns. Such ads project workers’ enthusiasm for their jobs, devotion to clients, or care for the environment. Hyundai recently hired photographer Annie Leibovitz to picture staff for a marketing campaign about its cancer charity.

Social media has changed the way in which “employee advocacy” campaigns work, however. Online channels reach new, younger customers and potential recruits that more traditional media miss. But they also contain many pitfalls for employers. For companies keen to use their staff as influencers, Amazon’s failed campaign offers useful lessons.

First, take care with the incentives you use and the messages you encourage staff to post.

When other Twitter users spotted Amazon staff using the label “FC Ambassador” in 2019, they attacked the company for creepiness. The initiative, which had first come to light a year earlier, also spawned multiple parody accounts ridiculing it. Worse for Amazon, far from defusing criticism of working conditions in the group’s warehouses, the activity of its part-time diplomats drew attention to it.

Many companies try to ensure staff draw on common talking points for online posts. But being too prescriptive about what they should say risks making the entire exercise look insincere. Trying to influence online media covertly is even worse. Companies that allegedly paid staff to post favourable reviews on Glassdoor, where workers can rate employers anonymously, suffered a stinging backlash.

Second, if you are going to encourage employees to talk about their work and workplace on social media, it is best to allow such online chat to emerge naturally and to manage it loosely. Unlike Amazon, Walmart, its US retail rival, has enjoyed some success prompting volunteer “micro-influencers” to promote local stores via Facebook, TikTok and other media.

Third, be prepared for the unexpected. Unlike real ambassadors, the corporate sort will not dutifully say what their superiors want the rest of the world to hear. Social media provide ample space for staff to amplify alternative views, or muddy a clear commercial message with inappropriate personal content. The habits, tastes, tone, and content of social media, not to mention the channels themselves, also shift faster than most marketing departments.

Finally, do not bother putting ordinary staff in the social media front line if you have not already cultivated a healthy internal culture. Even the worst-run organisation will find some evangelists ready to sing about it. But if they are drowned out by the malcontents, the resulting cacophony will not make for pleasant listening.

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The perils of using staff as online influencers

将自家员工作为网络水军的危险之处

Others can learn from Amazon’s failed social media diplomacy

其他人可以从亚马逊失败的社交媒体营销中学到东西

•     peril n. 危险    perilous adj. 危险的
•     influencer n. （带货）网红
•     diplomacy n. 策略、手段

Amazon has finally scrapped a campaign /to use paid “fulfilment centre ambassadors”/ to polish its image /on social media and defend it against criticism. The surprise is that it took the technology group so long to realise it could be spending its marketing dollars better elsewhere.

•   scrap vt. 废弃、取消 n. 废品、废料
•   scrape v. 刮、蹭
•   paid adj. 有报酬的
•   fulfilment n. 满足
•   Fulfilment by Amazon (FBA)  亚马逊的自有物流
•   fulfilment center 亚马逊物流中心
•   defend vt. 捍卫、维护
•   defend sb. against sth.  针对某事，为某人辩护

•   take vt. 需要...时间
•   marketing n. 营销、促销

段落大意

背景介绍：

亚马逊终于取消了“FA大使”这个营销策略。

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Satisfied staff are great advocates. That is why a version of the question “how likely are you to recommend this company as a place to work?” is a staple of employee engagement surveys. Referrals of job candidates are so highly valued that many companies will pay staff to recommend new recruits. And outsiders are generally more likely to trust a friend or family member who tells them their employer is great, or its products wonderful.

•  advocate n. 支持者、拥护者
•  staple n. 主要部分、重要内容
•  engage vt. 参与、加入
•  engagement 员工参与度
•  employee engagement survey 员工参与度调查
•   referral n. 转诊
•   employment referral 内推
•   recruit vt. 招募、吸收新成员
•   outsider n.（公司）外部人员
•   insider n. 圈内人、业内人士

段落大意
员工推荐的重要性：

1.为公司带来新鲜血液；

2.员工的家人和朋友也会更相信员工的体验

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Allowing, and even encouraging, staff to carry out some brand diplomacy on the side has its merits, then. Many companies have used employees to front advertising campaigns. Such ads project workers’ enthusiasm for their jobs, devotion to clients, or care for the environment. Hyundai recently hired photographer Annie Leibovitz to picture staff for a marketing campaign about its cancer charity.

•    on the side 作为副业、兼职  Most consultants do private work on the side. 大多数顾问都另外干私活。
•    merit n. 长处、优点
•    demerit n. 短处、缺点
•    front vt. 领导、带领
•    project vt. 投射、映射、展现
•    projector n. 投影仪、幻灯机 

段落大意
员工推广的优点：

反映公司员工的积极面貌、公司的态度。

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Social media has changed the way in which “employee advocacy” campaigns work, however. Online channels reach new, younger customers and potential recruits that more traditional media miss. But they also contain many pitfalls for employers. For companies keen to use their staff as influencers, Amazon’s failed campaign offers useful lessons.

• advocacy n. 倡导、主张
• reach vt. 被...看到、听到
• pitfall n. 陷阱、隐患  即pit （坑）+fall（坠落）

段落大意
社交媒体改变了员工推广的模式：

1.优点：线上推广接触面不同；

2.缺点：亚马逊失败的推广策略能带来经验教训

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First, take care with the incentives you use and the messages you encourage staff to post.

When other Twitter users spotted Amazon staff using the label “FC Ambassador” in 2019, they attacked the company for creepiness. The initiative, which had first come to light a year earlier, also spawned multiple parody accounts ridiculing it. Worse for Amazon, far from defusing criticism of working conditions in the group’s warehouses, the activity of its part-time diplomats drew attention to it.

 

•     take care with sth. 小心、注意某事= be careful with sth.
•     incentive n. 激励、奖励手段
•     post vt. 发帖  n. 帖子
•     spot vt. 留意到、发现
•     spot sb. doing sth.发现某人做某事
•     creepiness n. 恐怖、毛骨悚然
•     come to light 为人所知
•     spawn vt.（有时贬义）引发
•     parody n. 戏仿；模仿
•     ridicule vt. 嘲讽、讥笑
•     defuse vt. 缓和、平息

段落大意

教训1：

公司要重点关注激励措施和让员工发的内容

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Many companies try to ensure staff draw on common talking points for online posts. But being too prescriptive about what they should say risks making the entire exercise look insincere. Trying to influence online media covertly is even worse. Companies that allegedly paid staff to post favourable reviews on Glassdoor, where workers can rate employers anonymously, suffered a stinging backlash.

 

 

• draw on sth. 利用、动用
• talking point n. 话题、论题
• prescriptive adj. 规定性的
• 英文释义为telling people what should be done，即告诉别人应该怎么做
• The psychologists insist that they are not being prescriptive.心理学家坚称他们并非一味灌输。
• exercise n.（为达某种目的）活动
• an exercise in public relations  公共关系活动
• covertly adv. 偷偷地
• covert adj. 偷偷的
• overt adj. 公开的、不加隐瞒的
• alleged adj. 被指称的
• anonymous adj. 匿名的
• synonym n, 近义词
• an- 没有、无, -onym- 名字, syn- 同样的
• stinging adj. 言辞激烈的
• backlash n. 强烈抵制

段落大意

补充说明教训1 ：

1.管的太严会让内容看起来不真实；

2.想偷偷地影响社交媒体只会适得其反。

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Second, if you are going to encourage employees to talk about their work and workplace on social media, it is best to allow such online chat to emerge naturally and to manage it loosely. Unlike Amazon, Walmart, its US retail rival, has enjoyed some success prompting volunteer “micro-influencers” to promote local stores via Facebook, TikTok and other media.

•     emerge v. 浮现、出现
•     loosely adv. 宽松地
•     prompt vt. 鼓励
•     micro- 微小的
•     microeconomics 微观经济学
•     macroeconomics 宏观经济学

段落大意

补充说明教训2：

公司管理员工宣传的方式要更宽松。

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Third, be prepared for the unexpected. Unlike real ambassadors, the corporate sort will not dutifully say what their superiors want the rest of the world to hear. Social media provide ample space for staff to amplify alternative views, or muddy a clear commercial message with inappropriate personal content. The habits, tastes, tone, and content of social media, not to mention the channels themselves, also shift faster than most marketing departments.

• corporate adj. 公司的
• superior n. 上司、上级
• ample adj. 足够的、充足的
• muddy vt. 使...变得浑浊 adj. 浑浊的
• muddy the issue 添乱
• not to mention 更不用说

• initiative  n.倡议;新方案;主动性;积极性;自发性;掌握有利条件的能力(或机会);主动权;（美国某些州的）公民立法提案程序  adj.起始的

Finally, do not bother putting ordinary staff in the social media front line if you have not already cultivated a healthy internal culture. Even the worst-run organisation will find some evangelists ready to sing about it. But if they are drowned out by the malcontents, the resulting cacophony will not make for pleasant listening.

 

 

• the front line n. 前线
• cultivate vt. 培养、养成
• run vt. 经营、管理（公司）
• badly-run 管理糟糕的
• evangelist n. 布道者/狂热支持者
• drown out sth. 盖住、压住某事
• malcontent n. 不满的人
• malnutrition n. 营养不良
• cacophony n. 刺耳的嘈杂声
• make for sth. 使...成为可能

 

段落大意

教训4：

如果公司内部没有形成健康文化，就不要让员工身处社交媒体的一线去宣传。

文章结构

 

 

1.  官方水军的经验教训？

1. Take care with the incentives you use and the messages you encourage staff to post.

2. It is best to allow online chat about the workplace to emerge naturally and to manage it loosely.

3. Be prepared for the unexpected.

4. Do not bother putting ordinary staff in the social media front line if you have not already cultivated a healthy internal culture.

 

2. 积累到哪些相关表达？

社交媒体/市场营销相关：

online influencer, micro-influencer, social media account, employee advocacy, tone, contents, channels

商业相关：

commercial message, marketing department, marketing/advertising campaign, social media diplomacy

职场相关：

employment engagement survey, referral, job candidates, new recruit, rate employer, favourable review, workplace, working conditions, cultivate a healthy culture