Online Negativity – Embrace the Dark Side
As Michael Fauscette describes in his post How to Deal with Negativity Online, there are a few different types of online negativity you may be required to deal with (Real Issue, Constructive Criticism, and Unwarranted Attack)- regardless of whether or not your company has an online presence. This post focuses mainly on the third type. You’ll need to be honest with yourself or get an unbiased third party opinion to decide which of these types applies to your situation.
Regardless of what’s been said about you or your company, there are 5 rules of the road that will keep you from escalating the situation and making it a total disaster.
1. Monitor your Brand – This should be obvious, but a LOT of people and business aren’t doing this. How do you monitor your brand? The easiest way is to set up separate Google alerts for your company, brand name, product names, and your name. Have it email you any mention of these on a regular basis. This will allow you to see (nearly real time) when other sites on the web are talking about you, your company, or your products. There are software platforms that can help with monitoring if your company or product line is too extensive for Google Alerts to be effective.
2. Respond Quickly – So you’ve received a Google alert that someone has posted a negative review or comment about your company or product. If the negative statement is a real issue or constructive criticism, respond immediately. You want to become part of the conversation while it’s still relevant. Be honest. Admit if you’ve made a mistake and respond with how you’re going to correct it. Thank the person for their feedback – and ultimately, change the process that caused the problem.
3. Don’t Argue – The worst possible thing you could do (well maybe not, but close) is to argue with the person posting the negative content. Even if they are dead wrong and the inherently evil, do NOT argue with them. It makes you look bad to customers and potential customers that see the post in the future. It’s OK to respond, but if you’re angry, write the post and wait 24 hours before posting. Read it again and have an unbiased 3rd party read it too. If you still think it’s a good idea, then consider posting. It’s also not a good idea to attack your competitors online. It makes you look like a bratty 3 year old.
4. Be Transparent – Don’t respond to any comment anywhere online as “anonymous.” It’s like going to a town hall meeting to voice your opinion dressed in a full feathered chicken costume. Plus, it’s unprofessional. Even if you use a screen name instead of your real name, you should be transparent as far as the company you work for or represent. Under no circumstances should you ever “fake” a comment. Your readers will see right through it.
5. Damage Control – If the negative content is egregious enough, you may have to actually do some damage control. If the attack is unwarranted and defamatory, you’ll need to contact the site where the information was posted (see their contact page or do a Whois lookup for the domain owner). The first step is to ask them to remove the defamatory content. If this is unsuccessful, you may need to get an attorney involved. Hopefully it won’t come to this, but if it does, stand up for yourself.
In summary, I’ll revive an old marketing saying from the 80’s. “Any press is good press.” The concept still applies. A contested post or even a customer rant can be a positive if you play your cards right. Embrace it and turn it into something that will work for you. Need an example? Think back to 2009 when a disgruntled United Airlines passenger posted a You Tube video outing the company for throwing his guitar across the tarmac. Did United Airlines argue or ignore it? No, they contacted the passenger and asked permission to use his video in customer service training. Did that un-do the negative damage the video caused the company? Absolutely not. But United wanted to learn from the incident and incorporate processes to be sure similar things didn’t happen in the future. You can’t control what people say, you can only control how you respond.
Absolutely great advice! Having recently been through an incident most would classify as defamatory, I can personally attest to the validity of steps 1-5. Step 3 was particularly wise; waiting until the emotional storm passes helps to take only rational action.
I have to admit however, that I am now somewhat inspired to where a feathered chicken costume to the next town-hall meeting…it may be just the niche I need…hmmm…