How SeaWorld Tanked Their Social Media
Whoever came up with the phrase “there is no such thing as bad publicity” clearly didn’t anticipate the wrath of social media.
When it comes to maintaining a public image, a lot has changed in the past decade. If handled correctly, social media can make it possible for companies to interact with their customers on a personal level and positively shape how they are viewed in the public eye — but we all know that’s easier said then done.
When the documentary Blackfish was released in 2013, it took the world by a storm by exposing the multimillion-dollar corporation SeaWorld, using interviews with former employees to share heartbreaking and graphic stories of what really goes on behind closed doors. (If you haven’t seen the film, just imagine Sarah McLachlan’s commercial for SPCA meets Free Willy.)
To put it lightly, when people jumped on the anti-SeaWorld bandwagon allegations of cruelty bombarded the company and have only continued to do so ever since.
Almost two years after Blackfish was released and despite having hit a significantly low point for the company, SeaWorld reached out to Twitter allowing users to ask questions with the hashtag “#AskSeaWorld.” Either the person who came up with this idea was living under a rock or seriously wanted to sabotage SeaWorld because almost instantly the account was flooded with questions from critics and animal rights activists. The results show the poorly timed campaign was destined to fail long before it even started.
As if the campaign couldn’t have been worse, SeaWorld retaliated by responding with the following bizarre tweets.
The entirety of SeaWorld’s post-Blackfish comeback has been one failure after the other. Their disconnect from consumers stems from the insincere and generic content they post online. I think it’s safe to say that part of what makes any person or company likeable is their transparency because nobody likes feeling that they’ve been lied too. Even though Blackfish had been out for two years, people were (are) still angry with SeaWorld and the campaign only furthered that rage. It somehow was able to strengthen the already negative opinions of SeaWorld and proved to critics how wrapped up in their own lies they truly are.
I know I’m not a PR expert but I feel that the company’s response was completely inappropriate. And if you think SeaWorld was hacked those tweets are still available on the company’s twitter account. The “trolls” and “bots” that SeaWorld refers to, are the very people the company should be trying to win over — not fight. Eventually, SeaWorld might learn their lesson and not to ask questions they don’t want to answer.
