Hey #SMEcommunity I did my thesis on the use of Twitter by Irish SMEs as a means of communicating with their publics. Hope you find it interesting.
The full thesis can be downloaded here
Abstract
There has been an increased interest, in recent times, among academics, public relations professionals and industry professionals in the importance of social media in the role of public relations. This study aims to contribute to the understanding of the communication model that suits social media, in particular Twitter, most effectively, from a public relations point of view.
A qualitative research design was chosen for this study, and the primary method used to gather the data were six semi-structured interviews with SMEs that had won awards for their social media work and social media consultants.
All interviewees were chosen because of their knowledge and insight pertaining to the topic at hand.
The research findings show the communication model that is recommended for SMEs, using Twitter as a public relations tool. Throughout the research process, the author learned about the PR benefits that arise from the use of Twitter as a way to engage with the range of publics that a business possesses.
It can be concluded from the research that there are both advantages and disadvantages to using Twitter as a communication tool, as it does not yet reach the widest audience possible online due to the fact that the site is not yet mainstream in Ireland. In addition, if the site is used incorrectly, the reputation of the company can be damaged.
SMEs in Ireland are experimenting on Twitter and those who are using the right communication model are, on this site, beginning to reap the rewards of this new phenomenon.
