Social Media and Loss of Control

One of the challenges posed by social media is its inherent opening up of who is able to speak on any given topic or issue.

This is great if you happen to be one of the few people who posts a funny video that happens to go viral, but not so great if you are a company who is desperate to control everything about your online image. However, if you can maintain a bit of a sense of humor, and keep a few key principals in mind, you will be in a better position to withstand the slings and arrows of outrageous participation.

One of the great truisms of PR is that "you never get a second chance to make a first impression." While this is certainly true for any person or product, it's also true to say that for most products "any news is good news" or in other words, as long as people are talking about you and your product, it doesn't matter what they're saying because at least they're talking about you.

However, in most cases, companies and organizations still focus on the first truism outlined above, and they forget about the second. In this case, when the conversation about a product or company turns negative (as it almost invariably does, because you can't please every person all the time) companies tend to run screaming away from social media, considering it a failed experiment. But what are other options to deal with bad word of mouth while maintaining an open social media campaign?

First of all, you must recognize that social media is always going to take more time than you think. Especially when word of mouth is not on your side, you need to take extra time to carefully consider and respond to the concerns of your detractors.

Secondly, recognize that not every criticism carries equal weight. Some people are going to be forever difficult to please, others just want to stir the pot and create drama. The fact is, that if most reasonable people see that you are considering critique and making an honest effort to do best by your customer, they will recognize when other people are being unreasonable or trying to stir up trouble.

Finally be transparent in your dealings with other people and be as authentic as possible. Secrets do not hide well on the Internet. People appreciate truth and accountability, and if you do not provide these things you will be called out. It's only a matter of time.