From the Journal of Public Relations, 22(3): 265-287, 2010
By Dawn Gilpin of the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication at Arizona State University
Karen's Summary
She examined Whole Foods Market for six months. Specifically, its online press room, blog, and twitter account. the various communication channels did overlap on core messaging, but also dealt with diverging aspects of the organization's projected image.
Terminology
reputation - a combination of organizational self-presentation, representations by the media and other third parties, and stakeholder perceptions. It is dynamic and unstable. Much of it is out of the company's control.
image - organization is directly involved in organizations image. It can be described as an insider's image of the organization.
intended image - the identity the organization seeks to project to stakeholders
construed image - the idea organization's members have of external stakeholders view. In other words, what the company thinks its stakeholders think about the company.
PR
Public relations plays a role in image construction. In fact, this blog is an example of using a blog to construct an online image. I also tweeted and wrote a facebook posting on the article.
Fragmentation
Many companies, including Magnolia Sky, have multiple blog, tweet... authors. This empowers more stakeholders, but also loosens image control management.
The Study Precis
the study examines "the online image construction for a six-month period in 2008. The economic crisis came into sharp relief in the US during this time with the collapse of several large lenders..." (p. 270). Although food is not a luxury, the high quality, natural, organic, and locally grown products = higher prices and the nickname "Whole Paycheck."
Conclusion
The study showed what Justin Concepcion in the Mayor's Office already told me -- "using multiple online channels for image construction can reinforce core concepts, yet also allow public relations practitioners to paint a richer portrait of the organization through dialogue" (p. 284).
What does it mean for communication professionals? "Given the increasing fragmentation of the media landscape, an understanding of these linkages is becoming crucial for anyone seeking to understand the social dimensions of organizational image construction, and build theories of reputation that take variegated media use into account" (p. 285).
I wonder if the results would be different if blog comments and tweets to Whole Foods were analyzed. In general, expansion of source data. But I am even more curious of what the results would be if other types of organizations were examined (nonprofits), size (local), sector (oil and gas)...
Special thanks for Dr. Heath for suggesting that I read the article.
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