Brandweek reported on Skittle’s move to make their homepage a wiki.  I was directed to a twitter page rather than their wiki page, but the point is clear:  whether or not they achieve their goal of “leveraging what we think are the key consumer social media touchpoints”, they have received a tremendous amount of free publicity (positive and negative) from this.

Rather than rush to copy what Skittles (brilliantly) did, think of taking a bet and FULLY adopting a social media technology boldly and brashly to get some good publicity for your organization.

Here are key considerations:

• Pick the right thing- Mars candy did not let their entire corporate web page be the wiki/twitter.  They picked a good brand.  As Brandweek put it, “The effort underscores Skittles’ brand positioning, which Walker said was ‘a border zone . . . Skittles lives in a world that is unexpected.’ “
• Prepare to respond quickly – Skittles wikipedia page is now under “semi-protection” and there is the dreaded, “This article is written like an advertisement.” at the top of the wikipedia page.  Have a plan to monitor, respond, and manage the move and MAKE SURE that all internal stakeholders are informed of the change.
• Do something different with something familiar – The eTrade baby on twitter is a great example.  eTrade has a ton of brand permission to do something different with their young corporate spokesman.  It is engaging, different, and won’t likely produce a lot of backlash.

Here are some free ideas to exploit:

• Investment Professionals – Open your personal portfolio, debt, and budget numbers to your clients and prospects
• CPG Companies – Put old concept boards your company is no longer developing on a site for people to vote
• Car Dealers – Put your recent sales prices right next to current inventory to allow customers to see what others have actually paid
• Restaurants - Put all your recipes, down to the letter, on a wiki that’s open to the public

What other ideas can you think of?  What will it take to get as much value in the technology as in the publicity?