Public Relations & Social Marketing Insight

It didn’t take long for visiting New York University professor Geoffrey Miller to start damage control last week after he told “obese PhD applicants” they wouldn’t have the will power to finish dissertations if they “didn’t have the willpower to stop eating carbs.”

...Don’t think his backpedaling will help him out, however. Whether your bio warns that “views are my own” or that “RTs aren’t endorsements,” Twitter disclaimers won’t save you when questionable social media use gets you in hot water at work....

To reduce the risk of social media blunders gone viral, develop a company-wide policy that defines acceptable (and unacceptable) social media behavior, and dictates how employees can effectively communicate your brand culture, voice, and message....

Does the saying "There's no such thing as bad publicity" apply to social media blunders gone viral? Your brand ending up as a gag skit on "SNL" because of a social media mishap is probably not part of the PR strategy. As opposed to the social media sentiment when you land an interview with Oprah that trends on Twitter, gets replayed on YouTube, and shared on Facebook with a behind the scenes shot on #Instagram.

If you think social media and public relations are two different departments with separate agendas, think again....