Planning for a social media crisis for your company isn’t a nice to have; it’s a must-have. If you don’t think so, consider these common situations below. Does any sound familiar?
Whether you own a nonprofit, small business, or mid- to large-scale business, you have probably heard about one of these happening to someone just like you.
4 Common Social Media Crisis
- Multi-channel crisis – This happens when more than one channel, e.g., web, social media, radio, television, etc. promotes a problem for your brand. It has the potential to go viral, in a negative way, if not addressed quickly.
- Emerging crisis – This happens when trends start to escalate in your industry. It could be anything from a broccoli shortage to a product recall. It left unanticipated and dealt with quickly, it could escalate into a larger scandal.
- Industry crisis – This is common when a brand, product, or industry experiences a boycott. Or, when a major malfunction happens across an industry.
- Fake news – Each person on social media has the ability to spread false statements about your brand, products, employees, company culture, and more. Using social media and search engine listening tools can help you tackle this one head-on.
Time is of the Essence
Creating a crisis communication plan is not something you want to do when the crisis is unfolding. It’s something to be planned and tested beforehand, plus updated on a regular basis.