Why you should stay away from social media like the plague and avoid a social media crisis

Excuse me?

You heard read correctly. Social media is dangerous and could totally turn your business reputation into poop faster than you can say “social media crisis”.

Help me Shay Wan Kenobi, you’re my only hope!

I admit the title is a little clickbait-y and hopefully you didn’t get scared and shut down all your social media accounts, because that would just ruin my case here.

Nevertheless, social media is, in fact, a very dangerous play-field, which could turn into a mine-field if sufficient attention isn’t paid. People can turn on you super-fast and the much coveted transparency motto could actually become a stick between your wheels, as they say here in Italy.

What I’m talking about is called Crisis Management, which is what many, many (many) social media managers are lacking, or simply not prepared enough to confront a real social media crisis.

Here’s a few examples for ya

Applebee’s vs. Chelsea Welch

Applebee’s made a grave mistake not responding correctly to an internal issue put out in the open by their ex-worker Chelsea Welch, when she posted a photo of a nasty comment by a client written on a receipt.
 It all went downhill when the internet began commenting on the ordeal and it quickly became an internet vs. Applebee’s social media manager.

This social media crisis has been dragged along for a couple of days, but the worst part was when the social media manager decided to turn into a bot and copy-paste the same response to all the commenters, which is a social media faux pas.

Read more about it here.

Kitchenaid vs. Obama’s Grandmother

Oh yes, this is actually as absurd as it sounds. Basically, Kitchenaid’s social media manager forgot to switch to his own private account and made a rather distasteful comment about Obama’s Grandmother, expressing his private opinion on Obama’s regime.

A social media crisis that could’ve been easily avoided if accounts were separated on different devices, even tho having multiple accounts on the same device is comfortable.

There are many other examples you can find online, but I will stop here.

Keep calm and sum it up

• Don’t let your feelings get the best of you, always remain calm and respond with a positive attitude.
• Make sure you understand the situation perfectly and gather all info available before responding. The internet doesn’t forget.
• Understand that a client contacting you online wants answers and solutions, not homework. Try to resolve his problems contacting the right people for him, and do not tell him to send emails or make phone calls.
• See that all information that goes public is always monitored by someone and look out for discrepancies or mistakes.
• In case of a malfunction-type crisis, make sure your clients have a place to go for info about the problem, like an informative landing page or a dedicated Twitter or Facebook assistance account.
• Respect is fundamental, show your clients that their problem is important to you to resolve and give it a high priority. Remember that a resolved issue of a pissed-off social media user can turn him into a brand advocate!

Got any experience with a social media crisis or mishaps? Share them with us in the comment section.

Want more info about preparing your team for a social media crisis? Contact me for a private session!

Originally published at blog.stibelman.com on August 7, 2016.