- Choose only communication channels that best match your goals.
- If the news turns sweet or sour, monitor and measure across your channels to find the real issue. Only then do you respond with the corporate answer.
- Engage when the news is good, engage more when the news is bad.
Okay, let’s take these one at a time.
1. Choose only communication channels that best match your goals.
Just because Facebook, MySpace, YouTube, and Twitter exist doesn’t mean that your company should employ them as communication channels. Remember when all the buzz was about the power of newsletters. Well, 95% of those companies who launched newsletters found them to be a lot of effort for very little return.
I also like what Jim Tobin of Ignite Social Media says in his presentation. One of his clients said to his management team when they wanted to engage in all sorts of social media. “It’s like a puppy. Are you gonna feed the puppy? Take care of the puppy? Nurture the puppy?”
So, do you have the resources and commitment to employ all of these channels? Respond to all of the questions, comment on posts, and generally be in four conversations at once? I think not, no matter how big you are. So, focus on what communication channels hit the target, write great content, engage, and do it well. To start, choose no more than two.
2. If the news turns sweet or sour, monitor and measure across your channels to find the real issue. Only then do you respond with the corporate answer.
Ad Age wrote an excellent synopsis on the Motrin Mom problem. As you’ll recall, Motrin created an ad aimed at young Moms carrying their babies around in slings. Message: take Motrin because you probably have a sore back or hips from lugging junior around. It back-fired and Motrin yanked the ad after only a few days.
Research indicates that: 1). not that many people were paying attention. Twitter, where much of the firestorm lived, is responsible for only .15% of the Internet audience. The ad received less exposure than a one 30-second spot on a cable news network. 2. 35% of the audience that was paying attention was offended by the television ad. So, 65% of the interested audience was positive or neutral on the ad.
Measure before you react. Don’t react because your VP of Marketing has 10 emails in his inbox lambasting an ad. Get a bigger more accurate picture.
3. Engage when the news is good, engage more when the news is bad.
Many companies fall all over themselves to respond when the news is good. ” Thanks so much.” ”Working hard to develop good products.” ”Appreciate your loyalty to the brand.” Many employees respond because it is very hard to make a mistake. Senior management simply hears of the good news and grins.
However, when the new media news turns bad, everyone in the company is called into a meeting and kept there for hours and hours. “What is our response?” “We must speak with one voice.” And once it comes out of committee the response is canned, wooden, legal…and useless.
When the news is bad, make sure it is bad. Measure while you are initially responding. Find out where the bad news is coming from and learn who the Influencers are. While doing that, measure the entire Internet with regard to that issue so you get a 360 degree read.
Tell the truth. If you are getting to the bottom of the issue, tell the Influencers. Tell them when you will get back to them. And when you do, have real information.
If you made a mistake, communicate that. And quickly follow that up with what steps you are taking to correct those mistakes. If you didn’t make a mistake, then find where the misinformation is coming from
and take action with that source. If you are not at fault…be a rock, but continue to communicate.
And have several people carrying the message into the market place. Remember, companies are groups of people. Portray yourself as a large concrete building talking with one Wizard of Oz voice and you will receive even more heat.
Be human.
Paul Kirwin, Founder and CEO of Channel Signal
