Social media has become paramount to a business’s marketing strategy — as well as how the public learns about, comprehends, and responds to brands. There are a lot of pluses to social media, but there is also a dark side. Things can take on a life of their own and sweep your company in its wake, causing damage to your company’s image and stirring public distrust if not dealt with appropriately.
Yet, as with all emergency situations, you can prepare. This was the main topic for speaker Chris Duffy, Goff Public, at the 2019 Motorcoach EXPO. He opened his session “How to respond appropriately to a negative review or bad social media posts” with an observation that modern companies have come to know all too well: “Twenty-five years ago, if you had a negative experience and you wanted to publicly share it you wrote a letter to the editor, organized a protest, or called a TV reporter. Thanks to phones, everyone is a walking, talking journalist and has the power to share their experience.”
The session covered concrete, actionable advice for those in the bus and motorcoach industry to handle these types of posts in order to sustain the integrity of the companies they work so hard preserve and support day-in and day-out. Duffy emphasized that a negative social media post does not have to be a negative situation. There are things you can do to be ready, such as having a crisis-ready culture (having an action plan if the worst were to happen) and empowering your employees to do the right thing (including establishing a company protocol for your staff to follow should they be approached about a tough situation).
He invited Bethany Schubert, Trobec’s Bus Service, Minnesota, the recipient of the Industry Achievement award from BUSRide Magazine, to tell her story about a tough experience her company had with social media. The account of the event as told by the individual wasn’t true, but a post they made regarding the incident started to pick up steam quickly on social media. Her company was named specifically, and at first she wanted to react emotionally to “protect her company”; however, she called friend Chris Duffy for advice.
That advice included the following: Not every negative social media post requires a response so take that into consideration, albeit quickly as you need to squash any misrepresentation of your company before it gets out of hand. If you feel a response is necessary, Duffy recommends talking through things as a team and not acting alone; not permitting emotions to fuel your decisions so that your response is crafted rationally and thoughtfully; and researching the source and legitimacy of the complaint prior to making a public statement. Duffy notes that the “social media mob” tends to move on within a couple days. Such is the benefit of short attention spans.
However, if you respond too quickly (aka, emotionally) or reach out to sources that are not already in the know about the situation, you could incidentally be making it out to be bigger than it really is and draw unnecessary negative attention to your company. The solution? Duffy suggests having a ready list of need-to-know audiences that should be contacted, and that communication should happen quickly.
He cites airlines as being examples of nimble social media responders. Their strategy is to move the conversation off social media by sending a direct message and then offering vouchers and discounts. The real-life example Duffy gave showed a response by an airline to a disgruntled passenger’s post that had been made only an hour before. This swiftness of response is becoming more and more expected.
It’s important for your company to get good news out, too, not just play defense. Positive publicity impacts the public’s perception of your company’s values, sort of like saving up for a rainy day. This can be difficult when the media is more interested in provocative, controversial news that tends to stir up viewers. Yet it’s still essential. “If you do have a good story about your company, don’t assume everyone’s reading it. Have a plan for sharing positive stories. Don’t just wait,” explains Duffy.[
If you respond to a negative social media post…
- Respond quickly but not irresponsibly
- Practice transparency
- Be thoughtful
- Reflect your values
- If you screw up, apologize
- Speak like a human, not a corporation
- Avoid hot button words
- Do not speculate
- Show emotion about what happened, not your personal struggle
- Be selective about the audiences you communicate with
