We’ve all seen stories on the news about companies whose reputations have been smeared online due to a disgruntled employee, bored hacker, or angry consumer. Despite these things happening even to the best-intentioned company, the key lies in your response to these events.
First, you need to decide if this is a situation over which you have any control. For example, when a company is faced with content released by bitter former employees, making a public statement could potentially draw attention to content over which the company has no control. However, if it is a quality control issue raised by a consumer, a public statement is absolutely warranted.
What is being said and by whom? How many people saw the questionable content and how likely they are to be customers? These are key questions to ask as you plan your strategy.
You don’t have to have all of the answers all at one time. If you honestly don’t know, say so. “We’re aware of the situation. We don’t know how it happened, but we’re dealing with it.” shows a brand’s human side, provided that a tone of genuine remorse is also conveyed.
Don’t allow a problem to escalate into a crisis and target your response toward the platform utilized at the time, especially if the attack is being conducted via social media. Direct traffic to your company website where you can address the problem in greater detail.
Focus on the future and what your company will do to prevent the situation from happening again. Once you convey this information to your customers, learn from your mistakes and move on.
Tags: brand, protect, social media