Redefining Realness for Brands on Twitter

There is no shortage of sessions about social media at SxSW. But if you are a social media manager or a brand looking for insight into some social media best practices, I hope you attended “Redefining Realness for Brands on Twitter,” because not only was it informative, it was entertaining, too.

The panel featured experts Bianca Buckridee of Sprinklr, Christina Warren of Mashable, John Colucci of Engadget, and Mariali Hackman of Procter & Gamble, who cracked jokes, dropped pop-culture references and shared the social media hits and misses of the last few years, including American Airlines’ inappropriately placed model plane, the KitchenAid hates Obama tweet, DiGiorno Pizza #WhyIStayed, JetBlue #LikeAGirl, IHOP’s and Denny’s unique voices, and of course Justine Sacco — all while helping to drive home a few points on the dos and don’ts of social media.

It was a very organic presentation. In fact, John Colucci often flipped back and forth through the presentation slides to keep up with the examples and responses that were flying around the room, which helped make a 19-page deck actually feel like more like 40 pages. They gave a link to the deck for everyone to view and download, but I have listed their 12-point wrap-up below.

1. 1. Be proactive with a social-crisis plan, not reactive. Don’t wait until you need one. HAVE ONE READY. ALWAYS.
2. 2. Always check the context of a trend or conversation.
3. 3. Be authentic and sincere with your apologies — duh.
4. 4. Create an EASY and efficient process for posting content, but don’t let it suffocate you either.
5. 5. Build a rapport and relationship with your community. Ultimately, they are what really matters.
6. 6. FOR THE LOVE OF ALL THINGS HOLY: Social can no longer be tacked on to a marketing plan like an afterthought. It is an essential part of your marketing.
7. 7. Get to know and trust the person or team that has access/runs your account.
8. 8. Customer service is priority #1 for your brand on Twitter.
9. 9. Take customer complaints seriously and take the opportunity to LEARN from it. #ToughLove
10. 10. Think like a troll, ACT LIKE A BRAND. Be prepared for every possible reaction, including trolls.
11. 11. Don’t be afraid to take chances but make sure you own up to the mistakes.
12. 12. Don’t be afraid to have personality, but make sure it’s right for your brand AND community.

@DrewLewis
New Media Director of @WundermanLA

Originally published on Wunderman Reports