Managing Reputation on Social Media
Social media can be an immensely powerful tool for customer relations, and it is typically the main communication platform between a consumer and the brand. Your social media posts reflect the essence and personality of the company, which is why one post that seems off can affect views of your entire brand. These are a few tips for reputation management of your social media channels.
Hire a Social Media Manager
If your company is serious about having a social media presence, you should consider hiring a social media manager. Managing social media is its own difficult responsibility, and it can be helpful to have one staff member who is dedicated to this task. This person can spend their time not only creating consistent content for your brand, but also monitoring all channels and responding to comments.
Respond to All Comments – Negative Included
Responding to comments on social media posts is always recommended for a company that hopes to have a good relationship with customers. While it can be tempting to ignore negative comments, it is actually best practice to engage with these commenters similarly to how one would engage with positive commenters.
When responding to negative comments, remain positive with your language and, most importantly, try to be helpful. If the reviewer has a legitimate concern with a product or service, respond with advice or a message that you have “sent a DM” (direct message) to their account for more in-depth help. If a reviewer has general grievances, ask what you can do to help! Not only will this reflect positively on your business, but it can also foster consumer loyalty.
Avoid deleting negative comments. This does not reflect well on your brand and makes it seem as though the brand cannot handle criticism.
Be Mindful of Current Events
Something important to remember when managing social media for a brand is that sometimes there are bigger things happening in the world than your brand’s posts. Be mindful of the climate and current events, and don’t post during these times when it would seem tone-deaf and insensitive. Make sure to pause all scheduled or sponsored content as well. While it may seem necessary to post about the situation and offer support in some way, sometimes these types of posts come off as performative and meaningless. Consider posting about the situation if the message is something your brand truly represents.
Have a Crisis Management Plan
One of the most important aspects of crisis communication is timeliness, and often this comes from being prepared. Every company should have a crisis management plan in place, and often in these plans social media is used as the first line of communication to consumers. The la
Posted: Aug 30, 2022