The topic of a Social Media Crisis plan came up recently at the Triangle AMA’s Social Media Marketing SIG, and it was quickly discovered that there was no set-in-stone solution when you suddenly found yourself in the middle of a firestorm. Between Applebee’s receipt drama, Chick-fil-a’s mishandling of Facebook during last summer’s same-sex marriage controversy or Penn State’s handling of its child sex abuse scandal, there were plenty of examples of what not to do, and it was clear that none of those groups had a crisis plan in place. Rather than adding fuel to the fire and having our brands burned on a national stage, how do we quickly contain and extinguish a social media fire?
Tip 1: Acknowledge the situation
As a specialist in social media crisis management, Melissa Agnes describes in a recent post the mistake and consequences KFC faced when they ignored the “Kentucky Fried Liver” incident. A wave of outrage was ignited because the fast food chain not only ignored the issue, but also continued it’s social media advertising campaigns. These decisions prompted discussions of food quality, food safety and the company’s lack of compassion. Acknowledging the situation includes evaluating all outgoing messaging and not just issuing a statement.
Tip 2: Create a safe place for reaction
Provide an outlet for people that are upset to voice their opinion and take the conversation offline. Frustrated by automated support lines or email forms, customers see social media as an easy and instant way to vent their grievances. A clear message on Twitter or Facebook that provides a disgruntled person with direct contact information for a company representative can often go a long way to containing the situation.
Tip 3: Be human
When KitchenAid had a team member accidentally tweet an insensitive message about President Obama’s recently deceased grandmother on the company’s account, Cynthia Soledad, their brand leader, quickly hopped on and apologized. She assumed full responsibility. Additionally, she reached out to a number of agencies reporting the incident, explained what had happened and how it was being addressed. By being honest and compassionate in her responses, Cynthia was able to quickly contain the impact of the mishap and resolve the crisis.
Tip 4: Future prevention
As individuals, we all make mistakes. Business, medical and educational entities do too. While social media has provided amazing opportunities to share and communicate with others, it’s also introduced a mine field of issues and complications that are in many cases impossible to foresee. While we as a society are quick to forgive, any wounds to the brand and image will heal more quickly if a prevention plan is publically put in place.
Additional reading on the topic:
Melissa Agnes Blog – www.melissaagnes.com
The Biggest Social Media Disasters of 2012 – http://mashable.com/2012/11/25/social-media-business-disasters-2012
6 Steps to Survive a Social Media Crisis – http://www.smallbusinesscomputing.com/tipsforsmallbusiness/6-steps-to-survive-a-social-media-crisis.html