The art of engagement: dialogic strategies on Twitter
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to explore how the dialogic theory of public relations can help strategic communication practitioners support and enhance the relationship between individuals and organizations.
Design/methodology/approach
This inquiry applied the dialogic theory of public relations by investigating leading media companies’ context-based strategic use of Twitter. Researchers conducted a qualitative content analysis of 1,800 tweets from 18 top-performing media organizations.
Findings
This study identified strategies, rooted in dialogic theoretical principles that media organizations used to engage stakeholders. Media companies employed strategies based on dialogic principles, including promoting organizations as industry and thought leaders, integrating social media, and using an interactive, synergistic organizational voice.
Research limitations/implications
These strategies support the need to expand theoretical conceptualizations and use of dialogic principles to study online communication.
Practical implications
Findings offer practical strategies for practitioners managing organizations’ Twitter communication to foster engagement. In particular, practitioners should consider organizational context and subsequent content advantages.
Originality/value
Findings offer practical and theoretical contributions to the debate of interactivity.
Keywords
Acknowledgements
The idea for this research project emerged through a course assignment in one of the author’s advanced social media writing courses. The authors would like to thank the graduate and undergraduate students who helped advance this research project through pilot data collection and analysis. The authors would also like to thank Dr Maureen Taylor for her generous feedback on this manuscript.
Citation
Sundstrom, B. and Levenshus, A.B. (2017), "The art of engagement: dialogic strategies on Twitter", Journal of Communication Management, Vol. 21 No. 1, pp. 17-33. https://doi.org/10.1108/JCOM-07-2015-0057
Publisher
:Emerald Publishing Limited
Copyright © 2017, Emerald Publishing Limited