Social media can make or break you. Facebook and Twitter interactions with customers can create a lot of positive hype for your company’s product or service. However if you make even one unintentional blunder, thousands of followers are bound to see it, thereby setting you back in both dollars and customer loyalty. Some companies have mastered the art of this customer-brand interaction, while others are still learning the ropes. Below are 11 examples of how not to generate buzz on social media.
1. McDonald’s: #mcdstories
In their January attempt to interact with customers and promote the brand, McDonald’s promoted two trends on twitter: #meetthefarmers and #mcdstories. Much to the company’s dismay, Twitter users took hold of the second of the two hashtags to dish their McDonald’s horror stories. Essentially, McDonald’s paid to promote a trend that only resulted in bad publicity.
2. Snickers Investigated for Paying Celebs to Tweet
Earlier this year, the popular candy bar company paid several celebrities in the UK to tweet pictures of themselves eating Snickers bars. While it was a good-intentioned attempt to promote the brand, the campaign did not sit well with the UK’s Office of Fair Trading, which requires companies to explicitly spell out when a product is being endorsed. Moral of this story: cover all your bases before launching a campaign.
3. NRA Posts Pro-Gun Tweet After Aurora Shooting
This blunder is all about bad timing. American Rifleman, a journal affiliated with the NRA, posted a pro-gun tweet just as the mass shooting in Aurora, Colorado was unfolding. Though the tweet had been pre-scheduled through Hootsuite, it still struck a nerve for many. Both the tweet and the account were deleted later that day.
4. Celeb Boutique Ignites Firestorm with Aurora Tweet
Online store, Celeb Boutique, posted a promotional tweet with the Aurora hashtag to take advantage of the day’s trending topic. Clearly, they neglected to take the time to research the story behind the Aurora hashtag, resulting in one insensitive tweet and tons of bad publicity.
5. The Chick-Fil-A Controversy
After the company’s founder openly stated that he is against same-sex marriage, critics blasted Chick-Fil-A on many social networks. In fact, the company’s Facebook page was briefly taken over by posts that had nothing to do with chicken. In this case, social media amplified an already negative bit of publicity.
6. Microsoft Gets Political
Instead of posting from his personal account, one Microsoft employee who manages the Twitter account dissed conservative talking head Ann Coulter. The accidental tweet was a response to former U.S. labor secretary Robert Reich and it went like this: “@RBReich your granddaughter’s level of discourse and policy > those of Ann Coulter.”
7. KitchenAid Anti-Obama Tweet
After the President mentioned his grandmother during the first presidential debate in October, an employee posted the following from the company’s account rather than his own: “Obamas gma even know it was going 2 b bad! She died 3 days b4 he became president. #nbcpolitics” The company quickly issued an apology and removed the tweet.
8. StubHub Drops the F-Bomb
Here’s yet another example of employees posting from the company’s account rather than their personal handle. This tweet was up for an hour before the company deleted it and issued an apology: “Thank f*** it’s Friday! Can’t wait to get out of this stubsucking hell hole.” Yikes.
9. American Apparel Teases Hurricane Sandy Promotion
The fashion apparel company saw a natural disaster as a promotional opportunity, by offering 20% off for those states affected by Hurricane Sandy, in case they were “bored” during the storm. Customers quickly criticized the ad on social networks such as Twitter.
10. Gap Angers Storm Victims with Hurricane Sandy Tweet
Similar to American Apparel, The Gap encouraged those hunkering down for the storm to get online and shop their boredom away. The company eventually took down this tweet and offered somewhat of an apology.
11. Macy’s Blasted for Relationship with Donald Trump
After offering to donate $5 million in exchange for President Obama’s college records and passport application, Macy’s customers pressured the company to sever its relationship with Trump. The retailer’s Facebook and Twitter pages were bombarded with anti-Trump comments as a result of his shocking publicity stunt.
[article via Mashable]
Which company do you think had the biggest disaster?
