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A social media crisis is common for a large company to have but they could to deal with and some handle them better than others.
There are some interesting examples we can learn from them.
First example is Applebee’s
Shows how not to handle a social media crisis
What happened: A pastor who had eaten at an Applebee’s restaurant crossed out the automatic% tip charged for parties of more than eight and wrote “I give God % why do you get” above her signature. A waitress at the restaurant took a photo of this and posted it on Reddit. She was subsequently fired for “violating customer privacy” which would have been understandable if Applebee’s had not posted a similar receipt that was complimenting them just2 weeks prior.
As news of this incident spread like wildfire and infuriated people across all social media platforms, Applebee’s responded with a short post defending their actions on their Facebook page. This quickly drew over, mostly negative comments, to which Applebee’s started responding by posting the same comment over and over again. They were also be accused of deleting negative comments and blocking users.
The downward spiral continued as Applebee’s persisted to defend their actions and argue with users that criticised them. By the following day, after the original post had generated over, comments, Applebee’s decided to hide the post which only created more anger.
What we can learn: Applebee’s defensive and even argumentative approach amplified the whole situation and blocking users, tagging users in repetitive posts and hiding criticism only make things worse. The bottom line? Arguing with Facebook users is always a bad idea.
On contrast , Second example: Kitchenaid
A social media crisis handled with honesty and speed
What happened: An insensitive tweet about President Obama’s grandmother wasposted to the Kitchenaid Twitter account, instead of the personal account of a KitchenAid staff member. The tweet was quickly deleted, but many people had already seen it. The head of the Kitchenaid brand, Cynthia Soledad, took to the Twitter account just minutes later and explained what had happened. She apologised to President Obama and the public and pointed out that the person who posted this will no longer be tweeting for them.
What we can learn: First of all, this emphasises the importance of keeping personal and company accounts separate, but if a mistake does happen it should be addressed immediately. Time moves very quickly on social media, so companies need to take decisive action as quickly as Cynthia Soledad did. Her honest explanation and personal apology was well received and the damage to the brand reputation was limited as a result.
Following are the major steps to deal with Social Media Crisis.
1: Have a Plan in Place
A Social media crisis consumes both time and money. When you’re in crisis mode, you feel like you’re in over your head.
Additionally, create a social media committee that involves people from the entire company and meets on a regular basis (weekly or monthly depending on how big your business is). These people need to know the ins and outs of the company, understand which strategies to use when a crisis hits and have the right skills to communicate with customers.
Create a crisis center to direct customers and stakeholders to one source that has relevant, useful links with up-to-date information.
In, General Motors dealt with a major tragedy that caused a lot of customers to reach out to their social media accounts. People died in car crashes resulting from faulty ignition switches, which prevented airbags from inflating. In the months to come, General Motors set up a major recall action.
General Motors created a special, stand-alone website, that served as a hub of information. It contained FAQs about the recall, a step-by-step explanation of the problems and advice on where and how to get help.
To effectively handle a social media crisis, whether it’s caused by external or internal factors, you need to monitor how to it develops Plus, you need to do this in such a way that the volume of social media messages doesn’t overwhelm you.
Use a social media monitoring tool or simply keep Twitter tabs open that have your notifications, as well as a search on the relevant hashtag. Also, label the conversations that are coming in via email to keep track of all social media messages that still need a reply.
Post relevant updates via your social channels and respond directly to customers. When you communicate information about a crisis to your audience, craft a rapid public response. You want to update anyone and everyone, so no one is left in the dark.
A social media crisis never seems to reach an end. Continue monitoring the events and relevant notifications after a crisis.
First and foremost, when a social media crisis is caused internally, take full responsibility for the issue, even if you’re not the one to blame.
Put together a well thought-out public statement, and share it first on the original platform where the problem started. For example, if a crisis was first initiated on Twitter, launch a statement there first.
The speed of a reply is everything.
When faced with a social media crisis, make sure you send out your first statement or brand apology into the world within minutes. To make the statement more effective,have a reputable source within your company, such as the head of social media, brand manager, etc., speak on behalf of your brand.
That was exactly the case for KitchenAid in, when a staff member accidentally tweeted an insensitive comment about President Obama’s grandmother from the brand’s account.
Just a couple of minutes later, the renowned brand issued a public Twitter statement coming from the head of the KitchenAid brand, Cynthia Soledad, apologizing for the mistake and pointing out that the person who was responsible for the tweet won’t be tweeting for the company anymore.
When issuing a statement, show compassion and your full commitment to the issue. Assure customers that they’re your first priority. Don’t be defensive, don’t justify your actions and most importantly, don’t hide from criticism.
Example -- Applebee
What happened: A pastor who had eaten at an Applebee’s restaurant crossed out the automatic% tip charged for parties of more than eight and wrote “I give God% why do you get” above her signature. A waitress at the restaurant took a photo of this and posted it on Reddit. She was subsequently fired for “violating customer privacy” which would have been understandable if Applebee’s had not posted a similar receipt that was complimenting them just2 weeks prior.
As news of this incident spread like wildfire and infuriated people across all social media platforms, Applebee’s, with a short post defending their actions on their Facebook page. This quickly drew over, mostly negative comments, to which Applebee’s started responding by posting the same comment over and over again. They were also be accused of deleting negative comments and blocking users.
The downward spiral continued as Applebee’s persisted to defend their actions and argue with users that criticised them. By the following day, after the original post had generated over, comments, Applebee’s decided to hide the post which only created more anger.
What we can learn: Applebee’s defensive and even argumentative approach amplified the whole situation and blocking users, tagging users in repetitive posts and hiding criticism only make things worse. The bottom line? Arguing with Facebook users is always a bad idea.
I am sharing the things we can do while handling social media crisis. Have come across the below while going through such topic and believe below will be helpful.
Source : Convince and Convert
1. Acknowledge
Your first response should always be “yes, we realize something has happened” even if you have ZERO answers. This will stem the tide of “hey company, did you know?” messages.Here are the8 steps to successfully managing a social media crisis
2. Fight Social Media Fire With Social Media WaterOnce you have some information, you should respond first in the venue where the crisis first broke. If the crisis initiated on Facebook, respond first on Facebook. Then circle around and respond in other venue that have picked up on the crisis.
Kellogg’s failed on this point in April, during a Facebook-fueled crisis about the soy ingredients of their Kashi brand. Kashi responded to the crisis with a YouTube video, which got no traction whatsoever. A live, streaming video response on their Facebook page would have been a much better balm.
You never know where a crisis will break, however, so you must have presences in every social outpost, even if you’re not routinely participating there. For example, are you ready for a Pinterest crisis? It could happen.
It probably goes without saying, but speed matters. What we ask our clients atConvince & Convert is simple, yet difficult. “Can you get a video online from your CEO within4 hours, any time of the day or night, from anywhere in the world?” If the answer is no, you aren’t fully prepared.
3. Be SorryAmerica is the land of forgiveness. We’ve forgiven Mike Tyson, Bill Clinton, Exxon, Tylenol, and a rogue’s gallery of corporate and individual miscreants and near do wells. You’ll be forgiven too, if you say you’re sorry and mean it.
4. Create a Crisis FAQ2Create a Web page or microsite and put all the information about the crisis in one place. This allows you to respond to questions with a link instead of an answer. This saves times and prevents misinterpretation of your responses (especially on Twitter).
This Crisis FAQ should include:
5. Build a Pressure Relief ValveThis may be counterintuitive, but you WANT people to vent on a venue you control1. Whether it’s your Facebook page, blog, forum, or comments section on your Crisis FAQ microsite, you want ire to accumulate on your turf. There are four benefits to this approach:
If you do not proactively provide a pressure relief valve, complainants will create their own, giving you no recourse or control whatsoever.
6. Know When to Take it OfflineSocial media crisis management isn’t about winning, it’s about damage control. Some people will be angry enough that you’re not going to convince them of anything.
Do not get in an online tit for tat, ever (and certainly not in a crisis scenario).Keyboards embolden us all, and sometimes the best course of action is to offer your phone number or email address, and encourage the troll to contact you that way. Will it take the kettle off boil? Sometimes, but even if it doesn’t the rest of the community sees that you went the extra mile and provided an olive branch. That matters. Crisis management is a spectator sport.
Remember the rule of3. Never send a third reply. A third reply is an argument, not an answer. On the third reply, you take it offline.
7. Arm Your ArmyWe know where everyone works, because it’s listed on their Facebook and Linkedin profiles. If you wanted more information about the Kashi crisis, would you call their corporate communications department and wait on hold, or would you go to Linkedin and find ANYONE at Kellogg’s to whom you had a connection. Bingo! Call centers and waiting on hold is for suckers, and every employee is a potential spokesperson.
That’s why it’s imperative that you keep ALL employees informed about the crisis.Whether it’s email, text message, internal blog, Yammer (or similar) you must keep your employees at least as knowledgeable as the public.
8. Learn Your LessonsAfter the crisis subsides, and you’ve dried the tears off your laptop, reconstruct and deconstruct the crisis. Document every facet:
Apologized for the answer, I do not know, leave the answer for the professionals.
Depends on what you mean by crisis :)
We have various softwares that help in problem solving, hootsuite being my favorite.
