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4-steps 4 Steps to Take During a Social Media Crisis

4 Steps to Take During a Social Media Crisis

If you fear a social media crisis could impact your business, you are not alone.

According to this Beekeeper article, “No organization is immune to a potential crisis. From the quaintest mom-and-pop shop to blue-chip, Fortune 500 companies, each has inherent vulnerabilities that, when the right (or wrong!) circumstances arise, can balloon into a full-blown crisis.”

Are there templates?

If you have a plan in place, you’re ahead of the game. If not, now’s the time to create one. There are dozens of social media crisis planning templates. Here are a few resources I’d recommend.

As It Unfolds

Here are four steps you can take as the crisis unfolds:

  1. Identification: Is it a crisis (scenarios that would stop your business functioning) or a problem (less serious challenges)? Here is a risk matrix graphic to determine the likelihood and impact a situation might have on your business.
  2. Evaluate:
    • What is being said? What is the seriousness of the issue?
    • Who is saying it? What is the influence or authority of the person who posts it?
    • How often is it being said? Is the issue becoming increasingly visible or fading away?
    • When is it being said? Is the issue having an impact at a significant time (e.g., new site/product launches)?
    • Where is it being said? Is the issue on a public platform (e.g., Twitter) or a private group or a closed vertical social network?
  3. Escalation: Who needs to know now. The level of risk identified will lead to determining who needs to be informed. HubSpot offers a sample social media crisis response grid to help you plan.
  4. Response: What do we say and where do we say it? Learn more about writing a media statement that can be dissected and linked to social media.

Before jumping in, review these 16 precautions from Forbes.

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