Social Media and Public Relations Practice in Ghana: A Comparative Study of Ghana Water and Electricity Company of Ghana Limited.

Abstract

This study was conducted to assess social media and public relations practice in Ghana, a comparative study of Ghana Water Company Limited (GWCL) and Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG). The research design adopted for the study was the quantitative research design. Using the non-probability sampling technique, the purposive sampling method, a sample size of eighty (80) research participants took part in the research. The study established that, the social media platforms used for Public Relations (PR) activities are Facebook (47 respondents, representing 59%), Twitter (25 respondents, representing 31%) and Linkedin (8 respondents, representing 10%). The study established that, the kind of Information posted on Social Media Platforms included public announcements, maintenance schedules, new service tariffs and energy safety tips. The study also established that, both ECG and GWCL use their social media platforms to receive complaints, provide feedback to customers, communicate issues to customers and send information to customers. However, it was clear that, the social media platforms of ECG had several evidences to show that, it was using its social media platforms to achieve these and many more. From the statistics, it can be seen that ECG has a stronger presence on Facebook and Twitter whilst GWCL had a strong presence on Linkedin. The study further revealed that, ECG had a team of four staff who have been hired to handle the three main social media platforms of the company. However, GWCL had no dedicated staff for social media, even though the updating and posting of information on the social media platforms lies within the responsibilities of the Public Relations Unit. The study recommended that, both organisations should develop a Social Media Policy and institute a 6 hour Feedback Mechanism to respond to all questions, comments and enquiries on the social media platforms. For GWCL, the study recommended that, a staff or team of dedicated staff for social media should be hired to enable to coordinate the organisation's social media efforts.