5 Tips for Social Media Crisis Management
As of February 4, Toyota recalled approximately 8.1 million vehicles worldwide. After announcing the recalls, Toyota announced they would temporarily stop manufacturing and selling 8 models, including some of their top sellers like the Camry and Corolla, which accounted for 57% of American sales last year. Toyota officials estimate that the total cost of the global recall could be as much as $2 billion. Some would argue that the cost to their reputation is far worse.
Hopefully you never have to deal with something of this caliber, but sometimes crises do happen. Whether small or large, the best thing to do is try to minimize the damage. Unfortunately, for Toyota and others in the future, social media makes this more difficult and is definitely a game-changer when it comes to doing damage control in the event of a crisis. Toyota knows this first hand and has responded well in the social media space. We’re not here to dissect their approach; instead we’re here to give you 5 steps for social media damage control.*
Create a social media crisis communication plan. No one can predict a crisis before it occurs, but you can be prepared in the event that it does. Who will respond? How will you respond? Which social media platforms will you use? Will you address first or wait for the conversation to happen and then respond? Who are your top brand enthusiasts or influencers in social spaces? Do you think Domino’s ever thought employees would post a video of themselves doing unsanitary things to a customer’s pizza? Probably not. You never see a crisis coming, but with a plan in place you’ll be ready when it arrives.
Be proactive, not reactive. Assume responsibility and address the situation. Don’t assume you can hide information anymore and don’t wait for the public to address it for you. Be hyper-transparent and maintain your tone and voice when doing it. Post a note or status update on Facebook. Tell your Twitter followers through a tweet. Create a YouTube video of your CEO making an official statement. Say something!
Monitor closely. Bad news spreads fast, faster via social media platforms. Monitoring the conversation 24/7 immediately following the crisis increases your chances of being the first to respond and set the record straight, before others jump in with inaccurate information.
Respond quickly and consistently. People want the information. And they want it directly from you. Answer their questions and address their concerns to show them you are listening. With everything in social media happening at lightning speed, it’s important to not only respond, but respond quickly.
Update your fans. Keep your fans in the know as you handle the situation and make things right. Share links to interviews, press releases, customer service numbers and other information. When updating your fans/followers be sure to thank them for their continued support.
Do you have other tips for social media crisis management? Or do you have examples of companies who have done it well? Share them in the comments section below.
*We understand that not all of these steps will be feasible for your company.
Great piece, Jenna. And you’re right, it’s always important to know your story, all your audiences, how you’re going to tell your story (blogs, posts, twitter, videos, etc.), and make sure you establish a feedback look w/ metrics and a dashboard to monitor both the event and the perceptions about your company and the event. And don’t forget: Truth is always the ultimate spin. your fan, rv
I agree with almost everything in your piece, Jenna, with one exception. If I’m understanding you correctly, you’re suggesting creating a separate “social media crisis communications plan.” However, one of the vulnerabilities I’ve found with my client organizations is that they often create crisis-related plans in “silos,” with plans for disaster response, computer security, crisis communications, and other contingencies. All written to different standards, with different teams involved, and no interaction between plan writers.
Social media crisis planning should be an integral part of the overall crisis planning of any organization, a subset of the larger plan, with its own relevant operational and communications activities.
IMHO, of course!
Jonathan Bernstein, President
Bernstein Crisis Management, Inc.
Robbie– Thanks for the great feedback. Agreed– truth is always the ultimate spin.
Jonathan– Thanks for the thoughtful feedback. The crisis communication plan doesn’t necessarily have to be an entirely separate initiative. It should work in conjunction with the current crisis communication plan. I apologize if that wasn’t clear.