#FAILPROOF Your SocialThe 9 types of Social Media Fails and How to Avoid Them

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July 11, 2013

Your Presenters:

Kate DunhamContent Marketing Specialist

uberVU

Elisabeth MichaudSocial Media Marketing/Community ManageruberVU

#failproof

@gatorkates

@emichaud

Interact!Use the hashtag #failproof

UpdateFollow us on Twitter for ongoing updates: @ubervu

Questions?Submit questions anytime through GoToWebinar – time permitting, answers will be at the end

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About uberVU

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The #FAIL: what is it?

A brand that made the mistake

If you failed, how to recover gracefully

How to avoid it

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FAIL: fighting fire with fire

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The culprit: Amy’s Baking Co.

Make sure all of your posts are words that the brand can stand behind

Avoid the fail:

Be empathetic, but keep your emotions in check

Don’t feed the trolls

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Recover from this #FAIL by:Put out that fire!

Apologize, wait a bit, remove the errant posts, then move forward.

DON’T lie and say your accounts were hacked.

Consider: a new community manager, or at least new content-approval systems, if the comments

you made were hurtful or offensive.

Photo Credit: Lars P. via Compfight cc

"Don't even think of using social media when you're angry. Don't be defensive, address the issues and try your hardest to help. Say sorry and be humble. Don't use CAPS LOCK." 

- Mike McGrail, Social Media Today

FAIL: being shady

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The culprit: Chick-fil-A

Don’t delete comments that are not malicious

Avoid the fail:

Respond to both positive and negative comments

Don’t attempt to manipulate your audience with fake fans or comments

Have a clear moderation policy

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Recover from this #FAIL by:Keep it classy!

Own up to it and apologize for any wrongdoing.

Be clear: reiterate your page’s moderation policy, or create one if you haven’t already.

Stand behind your brand: draw attention to company values that show the behavior was just

a lapse in judgment--NOT a company-wide problem.

Photo Credit: flequi via Compfight cc

FAIL: not checking yourself (before you wreck yourself)

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The culprit: KitchenAid

Slow down!

Avoid the fail:

Double check EVERY post—are you sending it from the right account? Are you sending a public tweet or a private message?

Consider using different management tools for personal and private accounts

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Response from the senior

director of branding, KitchenAid

FAIL: playing “the lazy game”

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The culprit: Celeb Boutique

Double check your spelling and grammar

Avoid the fail:

Customize content for each social network

Do your research! Check all hashtags before using

Test all links before posting

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Recover from this #FAIL by:

Keep it in check and don’t be lazy!

Take action quickly to minimize the impact: If you messed up, It’s ok to poke fun at yourself

& then re-post it the correct way.

Be humble: admit your mistake. It’s ok to delete the erroneous post, but since social happens fast, explain yourself, too. Apologize where necessary.

Photo Credit: Anil Jadhav via Compfight cc

FAIL: lacking the sensitivity gene

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The culprit: Belvedere

Use common sense

Avoid the fail:

If you’re not sure if your content is offensive, don’t post it

Don’t EVER use a tragic event as an opportunity to plug your brand without providing value

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Recover from this #FAIL by:Show your sensitive side!

Beg for forgiveness! Apologize for the content (and not just for offending people).

Make the recovery bigger than the #FAIL: get support from others in your organization

to support a relevant cause, etc. Break out the big guns!

Photo Credit: GraceOda via Compfight cc

FAIL: begging for attention

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The culprit: General Electric

Make sure your voice and strategy match your brand

Avoid the fail:

Make sure all content is relevant to your brand

Focus on creating valuable content for your target audience

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FAIL: playing with emotions

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The culprit: Papa John’s

Don’t rely on empty likes to push your content

Avoid the fail:

Don’t force engagement with charitable causes

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Recover from this #FAIL by:

Earn their attention and engagement!

Take action the moment you realize you’ve fallen into a content rut. Distinguish between playing on

emotions the RIGHT way and the WRONG way.Change up your content strategy! Arm yourself

with copywriting and graphics resources to create better, more relevant content in your brand’s

voice. Photo Credit: Johan J.Ingles-Le Nobel via Compfight cc

FAIL: no checks and balances

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The culprit: HMV

Choose your community manager based on trust

Avoid the fail:

All team members should monitor social activity

Have a backup for your community manager

Make sure more than one person has access to social accounts

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Recover from this #FAIL by:Balance it out!

Remove employee content that may reflect poorly on your brand.

Change your social account passwords ASAP!

Update internal social media policies as necessary to ensure this doesn’t happen again in the future.

Tighten it up! Remind everyone who has the “keys” of brand guidelines/rules and help them keep it top-of-mind.

Photo Credit: alltagskunst via Compfight cc

FAIL: getting caught with your pants down

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The culprit: Tesco

Keep a constant watch on the mentions of your brand

Avoid the fail:

Delay all social media efforts while you work on your response plan

Cancel any auto-scheduled tweets or posts (in times of crisis or tragedy)

Establish a clear chain of command for handling a response

Acknowledge the problem immediately

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Recover from this #FAIL by:Pull those pants up!

Check the content of future scheduled posts—make edits or delete posts that don’t fit with your

response plan.

Plan & execute your crisis response, acknowledging the problem quickly.

Continue to monitor & respond to posts until things die down—this may mean extra hours or

hands on deck to help you handle things.Photo Credit: Micah Taylor via Compfight cc

Q&A#failproof

Thank you!

Elisabeth Michaud@emichaud/@ubervu

Later this week, you’ll receive a link to the recorded webinar and slides.

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Kate Dunham@gatorkates

Avoid a #FAIL with our in-depth e-book: http://ubervu.com/resources