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The key word in social media is social.
As such, it’s a two-way game. Brands and businesses that use channels such as Twitter and Facebook to simply broadcast their message rarely get the sort of results they would expect. Fans and customers want and demand to be heard, and brands that carefully nurture these relationships benefit from higher engagement levels, boosts in website traffic and sales, strong word of mouth marketing and customer loyalty.
But sometimes, despite our best efforts, things go wrong. So what do you do when the worst happens?...
Here are 5 benefits of using a mobile app for your internal crisis communications - and which industries and types of organizations would best benefit.
Intranets are a great tool for large organizations that have offices all around the country and the world, but what about when you have workers on the ground? Workers on the ground don’t necessarily have a computer in front of them at all times, but what they definitely do have is a mobile phone. Creating an app designed specifically for your internal (crisis) communications will allow you to:- Access and reach each and every member of your team, no matter where they are at any given time – and all at once...
Fans had made a to-be-published book by Paula Deen a top seller on Amazon, but the publisher, Random House, joined the list of business partners that have cut ties to the embattled chef....
The book deal was one of the last remaining lucrative business relationships for the embattled celebrity chef. Its cancellation came on a day when Sears, Kmart and J. C. Penney announced that they would stop selling products, including cookbooks, branded with her name. Since last week, the Food Network, Smithfield Foods, Walmart, Target, Caesars Entertainment, QVC and the pharmaceutical company Novo Nordisk have decided to suspend or sever ties with Ms. Deen after her admission in a legal deposition that she had used racist language in the past and allowed racist, sexist, homophobic and anti-Semitic jokes in one of her restaurants. Ms. Deen was deposed on video as part of a discrimination lawsuit filed last year by a former employee....(New York Times)
JC Penney was under some social heat after some Reddit users (yup, here’s Reddit again – told you it was one to keep an eye out for!) remarked that the company’s new teapot bares a slight resemblance to Adolf Hitler. Yes, this is obviously an innocent mistake and a matter of personal perception – and is most certainly not a crisis. However, as we’ve seen time and time again, when not responded to appropriately, social media issues can escalate into social media crises. How did JC Penney respond to the Hitler accusations? JC Penney was wise to not take the situation too seriously, though they knew that it still needed to be responded to. Their strategy was to develop a response tweet and use it to respond to everyone mentioning the teapot in relation to Adolf Hitler.
Crisis management has changed significantly. If you are a corporate leader of a multinational company today, and aim to protect your reputation for the long term, you need to ask yourself two questions: are we ready and are we nimble? Are we properly organized and can we respond in time when faced with a crisis? If you still rely on manuals that are more than six months old and do not have social media at its core, both questions are answered. Millions of citizen journalists roam society every day, with phone cameras and Internet access at the ready. They capture and instantly transmit around the world what they witness-or think they witness. They pass along unverified "news flashes" from acquaintances. Their tweets and posts become stories, alongside news from more established sources. These reports, unregulated and uncorroborated as they are, can create irreversible damage when inaccurate and left unaddressed....
9 Ways to respond to reputation threats online... There's an increasingly dark side to online reputation management A week ago I had no idea the hornets’ nest I’d opened when I wrote about the things to do when your business is disparaged online.... ... Loaded for bear, my first questions to Ruddie were about the irony of a reputation management company being the focus of unanswered complaints. His responses surprised me. I learned several things that I believe are valuable news and that will even alter some of the advice I’ve been formerly giving to our agency’s clients. My thanks to Ruddie for his contributions to the following points. For example...
As social media evolves, so must your social media issues management plan because your audience is growing immune. It's time to get creative. Everything about social media has evolved. Everything from your audience’s understanding of the power of their collective and individual voices, to the level of expectations that they have towards your brand in a crisis. It used to be that a simple “we’re here, we hear you and we’re sorry” was enough to stop an issue in its tracks, but no longer is this the case. Things are getting more complex and brands need to be quicker on their feet and much more clever. A simple apology and statement no longer cuts it. With the lack of trust people have in brands today, in an online issues situation, your audience wants proof that you mean what you say and you say what you mean. Take two recent cases as examples...
PR professionals are familiar with the crisis drill, because we’re called upon when crisis strikes and we’re prepared with our crisis plans in place. Today, executives realize that crisis takes precedence, as their companies are in the public’s critical eye, their brands are the topic of constant conversations and communication travels more quickly than ever before through social media channels. The difference between the PR crisis manager and the pre-crisis doctor is the ability to use the very channel that causes the crisis, to prevent the situation from either starting or spiraling out of control. It’s one thing to prepare how you would manage the situation but it’s an entirely different strategic process to try to prevent it from happening. Today we’re able to scan, monitor and respond more proactively to all different types of media, including the negative conversations in social media communities. There should be no waiting or hesitation. If two hours of crisis goes by, then those two hours have the potential to lead to serious reputation issues and damage....
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Oprah Winfrey, one of the world’s richest women valued at over 2.9 billion dollars, was refused 3 times the opportunity to examine and purchase a 37 thousand dollar Tom Ford handbag. This happened at a posh upscale boutique in Switzerland.
The resulting news and social media backlash for the boutique involved and Switzerland itself (the country’s tourism office also apologized to her) was rapid and explosive, with negative commentary from news organizations, Facebook, Twitter, media publications and the like chiming in. Don’t be surprised by this! Anything that touches on deeply personal values (racism, gender equality, lifestyle, health, etc.) will quickly mushroom into an immense social media unconscious event. It will either become a social media dream or in this particular case…the ultimate social media brand reputation management nightmare.
This wake up call provides a powerful opportunity for businesses regarding their reputation management process. Not every business has a plan in place and for those who don’t know where to start, consider these 3 compelling reputation management tips....
Just about every plan we put together these days includes aspects of social media crisis management. Presenting a variety of platforms and utilities that are perfect for communications, reputation management, monitoring stakeholder sentiment and a host of other specialized uses.
Add to that the fact that your audience is all but guaranteed to be both talking about and searching for information on your crisis via social media, and the question of whether to use social for your next crisis management campaign becomes a no-brainer.
Twitter plays an essential role within your crisis management. The use of a crisis hashtag is one of the most important parts of your crisis communications. One of my favorite crisis bloggers, Kim Stephens, recently published an interesting summary of two reports by Project Hazards Emergency Response and Online Informal Communication (HEROIC), on their research around the use of Twitter by officials in the Boston Marathon Bombings. There are many aspects of these reports that are very interesting, but the thing that struck me the most was the inconsistency of hashtag use, across the board, during the week of events that followed the Marathon Bombings....
Carnival Cruise is an example of a company suffering long-term repercussions from a crisis. Not only has it affected the company, but the entire industry. I often mention the differences between a social media crisis and a social media issue. Yesterday, I evaluated how JC Penney handled their recent social media issue like a pro, and how they will suffer no negative consequences as a result – which is what defines it as an issue, rather than a crisis. Today, let’s evaluate the repercussions of a crisis. In doing this, I hope to help you clearly differentiate between a social media crisis and a social media issue....
The two owners of Amy's Baking Company Bakery Boutique & Bistro took over the restaurant's Facebook page last night to fight unruly commenters, and man, was it embarrassing.
During a crisis can you forbid your staff to comment about the crisis on social media? Melissa Agnes, social media crisis specialist, answers this question.... Today’s Q&A Monday answers reader Charlie’s question: “During an incident can you forbid your staff to use social media to comment on the incident, even if it is their own twitter or Facebook and they are only open to their friends?” First, let me begin by saying that I’m not a fan of the word “forbid”. However, during a crisis, it’s extremely important that your entire staff understands: - What is going on - What is expected of them, including what questions they’re permitted to answer, and where to send inquiries that they are not permitted to answer...
Like most crises, this one was predictable and mostly avoidable. With the volume of passengers and cargo handled by major airlines, missing or damaged luggage is common. A missing pet should set off crisis management alarm bells all over the place but apparently not at American Airlines. The story began when Karen Pascoe and her longhair cat Jack arrived at New York’s JFK airport for a flight to California six weeks ago. That’s when the fur began to fly....
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It takes R & R: Relationship & Response to issues.
Great infographic! It's all about having a plan in place BEFORE you need it.
Always have a plan in case of an emergency.