Looking through the PR Daily I noticed a trend; people are upset with the way companies are handling their communications using social media, especially during a crisis. Granted, people in general are hard to please, but let’s face it, there have been companies that reap the benefits from utilizing innovative social media strategies.
According to a recent study by Burson-Marsteller, 79 percent of companies in the Fortune 500 list use Twitter, Facebook, YouTube or blogs to communicate with customers and stakeholders. Out of the four top social media platforms used, Twitter is the most popular for Fortune 500 companies. About 67 percent of the Fortune 100 companies have at least one Twitter account and have an average of 4.2 Twitter accounts per company (www.mashable.com).
One company that uses Twitter is Netflix. Recently the company decided to split into two different businesses, and they told their customers about the new business plan via their corporate blog and email late in the process. The two businesses would include one that streams movies and TV shows online, which will continue to be named Netflix, and another that mails DVDs, which will be called Qwikster.
Other than Netflix hiking up their prices and the company’s failure to communicate to customers in a timely manner, there was another minor detail missed during the planning process. The fact that the Twitter handle @Qwikster was already taken by a man whose picture is Elmo… smoking pot. After word got out about the new business name, more than 9,000 people started following this guy, thanks to Netflix. Just from adding @Qwikster on Twitter followers found that he enjoys “blazing” (smoking marijuana), his ex is dating someone else and he enjoys looking at women while riding his bike in D.C. (www.prdaily.com).
This was probably not the best planning on Netflix's part; especially since this isn’t the kind of guy anyone would want representing their company. Needless to say, this is a huge social media #fail for a company that is supposedly technologically savvy.
With the dozens of social media flops that come to mind, why aren’t more companies prepared to deal with these online crises? The Altimeter report approximates that 76 percent of social media crises could be avoided or reduced; however, companies quickly deploy the latest social media technology and aren’t prepared to deal with the consequences of their actions (or lack of actions). Due to what the report refers to as "fragmented technology," companies that have implemented advanced social media policies are unprepared. The issue is the companies’ failure to tie customer data to support systems (www.prdaily.com).
Just a few reasons why there is an issue in the social media department include: a lack of continued social media training for employees; a lack of social media crisis response plans prepared; and the use of social monitoring tools that don’t explain why the customer made their comment (which is why businesses need analytics tools as well). Oh, and I almost forgot, a lack of research of what Twitter handles are available for your future company.
Social media is here to stay, so companies need to quickly learn the ropes of social media or else face the long-term (most likely negative) impacts on their business.
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