By Tasha Cunningham
When US Airways accidentally sent a tweet that included a pornographic image to a complaining customer last month, the company committed a major Twitter gaffe. When the New York Police Department asked the community to tweet pictures of New Yorkers interacting with police officers using the hashtag #MyNYPD, the department didn’t expect the backlash that ensued. Instead of tweeting positive photos, the public posted images of the New York Police Department enacting the controversial stop-and-frisk policy, Occupy Wall Street protesters being taken down, and officers manhandling citizens on the street.
These debacles illustrate the fact that even major corporations and public agencies aren’t immune to social media blunders. And neither are small businesses. Rebounding from a social media disaster is difficult when you’re doing it on a national stage like U.S. Airways and the New York Police Department. For a small business, a social media faux pas can lead to lost sales, erosion of customer loyalty and loss of credibility.
So what should a small business do when faced with a social media crisis? Here are eight strategies (including a Starting Gate Extra at end) to help you manage and move past it.
1. Don’t panic: As a small business owner, when you’re faced with a crisis, your natural inclination is to panic. Instead, take a deep breath and keep calm. Remember that if you manage the crisis the right way, you will be able to come back from it without a major loss to your business.
2. Don’t delete: If you posted something that has gotten a negative reaction from your followers or fans, you might think that deleting it will make it all go away. It won’t. Instead, it’s going to look like you’re avoiding the consequences of your mistake. When the New York Police Department purged its Twitter page of the less than flattering photos using the #MyNYPD hashtag, it only kept the negative conversation on social media going longer. Resist the urge to delete. There are times, however, when deleting is appropriate, as in the case of US Airways and the tweet that featured a pornographic image. If what you’ve posted has been deemed racially offensive, sexist or pornographic, it is usually better to delete the post than leave it up.