Using Social Media as a Crisis Management Method

Questions by: Kimberly Coudreaut Answers by: Amber Dixon, Marketing & Public Relations Strategist in Utah

1. As a public relations professional, how do you currently recommend the use of social media platforms to brands you represent?

The first thing that individuals need to know about social media is that it is NOT a media. Social media should be looked at as a communication gateway like the telephone, and not like a television. No one wants to be broadcasted to all of the time. We are social creatures, so we want to have dialogue with one another.

I also stress the fact that they are humanizing their brand through social media. This means that no one should create a social media account as a company. Instead, create a company page that is linked to a personal account to establish professional relationships and directing connections to the company page.

After that is realized, I tell them that they must put together a marketing plan with a social media component. Without a detailed marketing plan, no strategy can be 100% effective. The marketing plan identifies the client’s target market, and with this information they can choose which of the plethora of social media platforms available will assist them with reaching their target audience.

Once the social media platforms are chosen, we develop communication strategies. These strategies may be different based on the platform they are using. LinkedIn, for example, is primarily used by business professionals. The status updates, invitations, and other methods of communication on LinkedIn need to be tailored for the business professional. Also, LinkedIn has upgraded its Company pages to maximize exposure to a specific target audience.

I look at Facebook as more of a relationship building tool. Rarely do people want to buy where they socialize. With this in mind, it is an effective format to reach your target audience on a more social level. Share articles, tips pertinent to them, and “listen” to what is being said about your brand.

From a public relations standpoint, I encourage brands to post their latest press releases on the social media sites as a discussion starter. Facebook allows you to post photos but no other files formats on status updates. LinkedIn allows you to post links, but not files. So, I train clients on the tool HootSuite that allows you to link 5 of your social media sites and hosts your files. You only need to write your message once, add a file like a .pdf or .jpg and send. Another way is to convert your press release, brochure, or other information to a .jpg for use on Facebook. Of course, there are apps that you can add but that is probably for a completely different discussion.

Aside from press release posting on social media sites, I set up a client’s LinkedIn account with SlideShare and Box.net so that they can display their brochures, price lists, presentations, and any other item they would like to highlight. Doing this allows them to share their accomplishments, while creating brand awareness.

Other tips I help clients with is how to search for and manage what other individuals are saying about the brand. By doing this, they are able to create a better customer service experience by acknowledging negative experiences and correcting the issue, and they are able to thank anyone with positive feedback. Tracking company mentions is also a fantastic training tool for company employees.

Amber Dixon re: crisis management

2. Do the brands you represent have blogs? How do they use them?

The ratio for company’s who have or do not have blogs are split 50/50. The more forward-thinking companies use them, while the companies who have not fully accepted the importance of social media for creating brand awareness and loyalty generally do not have one.

A few companies I work with use blogs as a platform for employees to interact with existing and potential customers. The blog becomes a forum to ask questions, receive feedback, announce new products, and review existing products and services. The comments and questions on the blog are uncensored, so the good and the bad are viewable by everyone. It works for the companies using this format.

Other companies use blogs as an extension of their news sections on their company website; another form of press release distribution. While others use blogs to share ideas, tips, and updates.

With LinkedIn and Facebook, blogs can be linked so that they are displayed on the “walls” of the profile being viewed. This creates another touching point for the company.

3. What do you perceive to be benefits to a brand using social media?

I believe I’ve listed advantages in the first question, but to summarize, the benefits to a brand using social media may include:

Create brand loyalty.

Increase brand awareness.

Improve customer service experiences for customers.

Easily broadcast new products, company updates, job opportunities, and changes in services or products.

Customer engagement through relationship building and valuable content distribution.

Track the competition.

Collect what is being said about own company.

Collect information about potential employees (this is a gray area, and an area that I am not 100% on board with, but I can see its value.)

4. What do you perceive are disadvantages of using social media?

I do not see many disadvantages of social media, unless the following are true:

Not properly trained on the tools of the social media platform(s) being used.

Not being intentional with posts.

No marketing plan is in place outlining the specific platforms to use, the brand’s target market, or goals to be accomplished.

The wrong platforms are being used resulting in not reaching the correct audiences.

A tracking method is not implemented.

Social media is looked at as a method rather than a tool.

The company uses social media to broadcast only, and not engage with their connections.

The social media manager “posts and runs.” A very common mistake made is that someone will post an update, or other information, and does not return to the post to reply to people who have commented on it.

Value added content is not used.

Amber Dixon re: crisis management

5. When developing a crisis management plan for a brand, do you recommend social media platforms as a channel for distributing information in the event of a crisis? If so, which ones? If not, why not?

Using social media as one of the methods to distribute information during a crisis can be highly effective. If a product recall, for example, needs to be made, the brand would be able to alert consumers quicker than with traditional methods. If a scandal happens, being first to acknowledge the scandal and reaffirm the brand’s commitment to a swift resolution, could prevent losing credibility with the public. Word-of-mouth has always been a communication method that companies rely on to promote the company, and hope to avoid during a crisis. Facing the crisis in a straight-forward way, like through social media, can diffuse the situation before it is sensationalized through the news outlets.

With regard to which platform is the best one to use for crisis management, it really depends on the audience of the brand. Twitter is at the top of the list because with the use of hashtags, a larger audience can be reached. LinkedIn can be effective, but only your connections will view it, and generally fewer individuals access LinkedIn on the weekends. Facebook would probably rank second as the platform to use because many individuals are using it regardless of the day. Unfortunately, like with LinkedIn, only your connections will see the information in a timely manner; even with the privacy setting being set to “public.”

6. In your opinion, how believable does the general public find traditional media sources? Social media channels?

I believe that the public is aware of the sensationalism that is used in both traditional and social media channels. This question does not have a clean and clear answer because the public trusts based on his or her personal experiences. Also, news outlets like CNN has a high reputation for distributing accurate news, while tabloids like the National Enquirer and Star Magazine (of course) are read for entertainment purposes only. This reason is why I mentioned earlier about humanizing a brand. Social media allows a brand to gain trust from the public by listening to its audience, delivering value-added content, and building professional relationships. People trust other people, and companies, who they have relationships with and can connect with on a variety of levels. People do not trust a brand, or a person, who only broadcast information and do not engage with them.