Offline issues can quickly turn into online crises that cause real and lasting reputational damage. Tamara Littleton, CEO of social media management agency, eModeration, gives her advice on what brands can do to manage a social media crisis.
Brands don’t need to be involved in social media to find themselves at the centre of a social media storm. In fact, an unfamiliarity with social media conventions and behavioural trends, combined with failing to factor social media into crisis planning, can land a brand in a great deal of trouble.
The detailed crisis plans that brands have in place have to address social media (and include immediate response – not just in office hours).
If it’s not a matter that can be cleared by communication alone – but if it requires the business to act in a more tangible way – the situation may start to drag on as debates rage internally. Here’s some advice for brands facing a social firestorm:
Take Action – sometimes words are not enough. People have to see that the brand is responding, which may mean that quick decisions need to be made at a high level.
Understand what you can control – there is no way that you can control or censor social media. Shutting down comments on your Facebook page will only make the community angry and make them turn to platforms beyond the brands control, and with a wider audience. The only thing that you do have control over is how you respond.
Keep communicating – agree on a response and know who is saying what and when. Respond with one voice ensuring a consistent message and minimising confusion.
Listen to the mood of the community- A community that is passionate about an issue won’t respond well to either flippancy or aggression from the brand. (And be very careful what topical information you use to promote your product. Microsoft got into hot water when it tried to capitalise on the death of Amy Winehouse to push album sales).
Authorise – allow your community managers to issue a response to the community that they manage. If people flood the brands community site with questions and comments, they will expect to receive an answer from the brand’s representative on that site. Community managers and moderators should use an escalation for dealing with serious issues.
Avoid firestorms – it’s better for a brand to only address the situation where it has been raised. If someone’s complaining about your brand on a small forum, don’t promote it by responding on Facebook, Twitter and your company website.
Be able to contact the team – having a crisis response plan is of limited value if you haven’t got your marketing manager’s new mobile number when you need to call her at 11pm. The crisis contact list must be kept updated at all times.
Involve your agencies – the response has to involve input from community managers and moderators who will be on the frontline of the social media situation, as well as the marketing and PR departments or agencies that will be able to take a strategic view of how to handle the situation to avoid reputational damage. The brand will also need to keep their legal teams updated on the latest developments.
One of the most important things to remember when dealing with a crisis is to handle the crisis with respect and understanding for the communities and their members who are passionate about the issue being discussed. This needs to be conveyed in all communications, and although the message must remain consistent, the brand has to use the appropriate tone for the community to whom it is talking (rather than just copying and pasting a formal press release onto the Wall of the brand’s official Facebook page).
A brand that has developed a strong relationship of trust with its online communities, and which has a reputation of honesty and transparency, will stand a far greater chance of weathering the storm.
By Tamara Littleton
CEO
eModeration
www.emoderation.com
eModeration has joined forces with PR agency, Carrot Communications to offer a new social media crisis management service. Details available from http://www.emoderation.com/services/crisis-management.
