The company issues an apology to the customer and fires the employee .... 2 http://www.prnewsonline.com/hm-under-fire-lo
What Happens When Your Social Media Team Sleeps 4 NIGHTMARE SOCIAL MEDIA SCENARIOS Social media crises can strike at any hour and take off with lightning speed. All it takes is one tweet. Those 280 characters can cost a company millions in less than 24 hours. Social media doesn’t sleep, and your brand can’t afford to either. Here are four nightmare scenarios that will make you rethink your brand protection strategy.
Racial Insensitivity Goes Viral (1)(2)
The catalyst: A multinational clothing retailer posts an image on its online store of a young black boy wearing a hoodie reading “Coolest Monkey in the Jungle.” A blogger takes a screenshot and calls the company out on Twitter for racial insensitivity.
The speed: In less than seven hours, the post has
18,000 retweets and 23,000 likes. Millions of users publicly
shame the company for racial insensitivity. The clothing retailer waits a full day to issue an apology.
18,000
23,000
The crisis: Numerous celebrities call the company out on their social platforms. One celebrity endorser publicly ends his partnership with the company over the incident. Major news sources report the story.
The lesson: Racial insensitivity is a costly mistake that is highly likely to spur viral backlash. Companies must meet this type of incident with an immediate response.
Insensitivity to Tragedy Is Not an Option (3)
The catalyst: A company sends out a tone-deaf marketing email on the anniversary of a major terror attack. Social media users tweet screenshots of the email and tag the company.
The speed: The company issues a public apology the same day,
the incident is already trending on Twitter.
but it’s too late;
270
1.3k
3.8k
The crisis: The incident quickly catches media attention. Major news sources report the story.
The lesson: Those who were affected by the tragedy may continue to associate the brand with painful emotions for years to come. While the negative blowback was unavoidable once the email was sent, reacting within 24 hours of the crisis is essential to showing your followers that you take responsibility for the situation.
Customer Mistreatment Strikes a Chord (4)(5)
The catalyst: An employee of a world-renowned coffeehouse chain loses her temper after a miscommunication with a customer. She is filmed verbally attacking the customer for several minutes.
The speed:
The customer posts the video on YouTube and Facebook shortly after the incident takes place.
The crisis: Within 48 hours,
the video receives thousands of likes and shares. Major news sources break the story and repost the video on various social platforms.
5,285,527 views
17k
The lesson: The company issues an apology to the customer and fires the employee involved. Major news sources drop the story, but videos of the incident live on and will keep gaining views for years. If the company had social listening in place, it could have reacted faster and addressed the issue with its followers.
Fake News Has Real Consequences You may remember the first three scenarios from the news. The final scenario is a hypothetical one about a very real and constant social media threat: trolls.
The catalyst: A troll posts an Instagram comment after business hours, which falsely claims a company is affiliated with a controversial political group.
The speed: Within hours, the post receives hundreds of comments.
The crisis: The troll continues to leave provocative comments that incite user arguments and make the company’s followers uncomfortable. The company loses hundreds of followers overnight.
The lesson: Trolls are spreading fake news through social media at increasing rates. The only way to protect your brand is to have a 24/7 social listening strategy.
Find Out How To Protect Your Brand’s Reputation 24/7 Schedule a social listening consultation today
The Breakdown Dynamic Risks Social media crises are an imminent threat. They can happen anywhere and at any time, and users are eager to spread them. • Social media crises happen on all platforms, even ones you don’t fully control, such as Yelp. • Fake news causes real crises. • Trolls are everywhere, and they’re pros at starting fires.
The Most Common Mistakes
Failing to monitor social channels
Responding too late
Issuing tone-deaf apologies
Misidentifying trolls and rogue users
Costly Consequences Social media crises are easy for people to remember. They cost companies millions and cause permanent reputation damage and far-reaching financial consequences. • Severe drops in sales can last for months • Damage repair requires costly time and resources • Companies may lose partnerships and customers
In 2017, a Target employee published an unauthorized blog post on the company’s website that spurred a nationwide boycott of the retailer.
The crisis cost Target more than $20 million.(6)
A social media crisis can even put a company out of business. Smaller enterprises may not have the resources to recover.
In 2013, after a public meltdown on Facebook gained national attention, a local Arizona bakery was forced to close its doors.(7) The bakery reopened, but continued receiving fake reviews and
and is now permanently closed.(8)
negative comments from trolls,
Social media crises come in many forms, and can strike at any time. The only way to truly protect your company’s reputation is to have a 24/7 social listening strategy.
Find Out How to Protect Your Brand in Real Time Schedule a social listening consultation today. Schedule My Consultation
Sources: 1
http://money.cnn.com/2018/01/08/news/companies/hm-apologizes-monkey-hoodie/index.html
2
http://www.prnewsonline.com/hm-under-fire-loses-brand-collaborator-the-weeknd/
3
https://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2017/04/19/524692534/adidas-apologizes-for-congratulating-2017-boston-marathon-survivors
4
https://www.huffingtonpost.com/2015/05/18/starbucks-rant-queens_n_7303380.html
5
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t5qMRZNdlOg
6
http://www.businessinsider.com/target-ceo-blindsided-by-boycott-2017-4
7
https://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/05/14/amys-baking-company-kitchen-nightmares_n_3274345.html
8
https://www.yelp.com/biz/amys-baking-company-scottsdale
