Business and Management INK

How Fortune 500 Companies Maximize Web Presence

May 17, 2016 1085

4652243732_6d929df688_zThe online presence of corporations has become increasingly important in the digital age, not only in terms of where corporations are listed on the Internet, but also how they are portrayed online. In the recent Business & Society paper, entitled “The Analysis of Self-Presentation of Fortune 500 Corporations in Corporate Web Sites,” authors Jongmin Park, Hyunmin Lee, and Hyehyun Hong describe what patterns emerge from an analysis of top corporation websites. The abstract for the paper:

In the digital age, many corporations communicate with their publics via online channels. Among many channels, a corporation’s official Web site is often used for BAS Coverinforming publics of its performance and other corporate-related information and for shaping a positive corporate image. This study quantitatively analyzed corporate Web sites, particularly the “About us” Web pages of Fortune 500 corporations based on symbolic convergence theory (SCT), which describes the formation of symbolic reality and the shared meaning of that symbolic reality among the public. A content analysis revealed that economic corporate management was the dominant rhetorical vision, and the fantasy, in the context of SCT, of being a superior company was emphasized by the 500 examined corporations. Such symbolic reality was constructed using corresponding structural tools of Web content, such as dramatis personae, plot line, and scene. In addition, the rhetorical vision and fantasy themes created by the Web sites turned out to be contingent on business classifications (retailer/distributor, manufacturers, and financial/informational/recreational services). Companies that pursued other types of fantasy themes (such as admirable, futuristic, and competent/stable) and rhetorical visions (such as socially responsible corporate management) were also identified. Some suggestions for corporate communicators are provided based on the results of this analysis.

You can read “The Analysis of Self-Presentation of Fortune 500 Corporations in Corporate Web Sites” from Business & Society free for the next two weeks by clicking here. Want to know all about the latest research from Business & SocietyClick here to sign up for e-alerts!

*Laptop image attributed to cea+ (CC)

 

Business and Management INK puts the spotlight on research published in our more than 100 management and business journals. We feature an inside view of the research that’s being published in top-tier SAGE journals by the authors themselves.

View all posts by Business & Management INK

Related Articles

The End of Meaningful CSR?
Business and Management INK
November 22, 2024

The End of Meaningful CSR?

Read Now
Boards and Internationalization Speed
Business and Management INK
November 18, 2024

Boards and Internationalization Speed

Read Now
How Managers Can Enhance Trust
Business and Management INK
November 11, 2024

How Managers Can Enhance Trust

Read Now
The Role of Place in Sustainability
Business and Management INK
October 28, 2024

The Role of Place in Sustainability

Read Now
Turning to Glitter in Management Studies – Why We Should Take ‘Unserious’ Glitter Serious to Understand New Management Practices

Turning to Glitter in Management Studies – Why We Should Take ‘Unserious’ Glitter Serious to Understand New Management Practices

In this article, author Jette Sandager reflects on the inspiration behind her research article, “The sensuous governmentality of glitter: Educating managing women scientists […]

Read Now
Utilizing Academic-Practitioner Partnering for Societal Impact

Utilizing Academic-Practitioner Partnering for Societal Impact

In this article, co-authors Natalie Slawinski, Bruna Brito, Jennifer Brenton, and Wendy Smith reflect on the inspiration behind their research article, “Reflections on deep academic–practitioner partnering for generative societal impact,” published in Strategic Organization.

Read Now
Trippin’ Forward: Management Research and the Development of Psychedelics

Trippin’ Forward: Management Research and the Development of Psychedelics

Charlie Smith reflects on his interest in psychedelic research, the topic of his research article, “Psychedelics, Psychedelic-Assisted Therapy and Employees’ Wellbeing,” published in Journal of Management Inquiry.

Read Now
0 0 votes
Article Rating
Subscribe
Notify of
guest

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

0 Comments
Newest
Oldest Most Voted
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments