Carie LewisDirector of Emerging MediaThe Humane Society of the United States

@cariegrls // @humanesociety

And now, for the “secret ingredient”….

What’s the secret ingredient you ask?

DRAMA. And being prepared for it.

Why? This could happen to you.

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Social Media Storm Survival Tips

Tip #1: There will always be haters. Deal with it.

If you aren’t thick – skinned enough to read all the negativity,Find someone who is.

If staffing is an issue, find interns and web-savvy staff

Tip #2: Identify the usual suspects and DNFFT.

Keep a running list of haters and their handles / blogs so you know who they are when they pop up.

Some people you can turn around, but some people you can’t.

Identify these people quickly.

Know when to respond and when not to - pay attention to tone and influence

Tip #3: Build a monitoring system that works for you.

No org can afford to ignore what’s being said about them.

Brand monitoring is NOT a 9-5 job (in fact, planned attacks are usually after hours or on the weekends) so you must have a system in place.

• Dual monitors with Tweetdeck• Tweetdeck for iPhone• Tweetbeep and Google Alerts• Hootsuite / CoTweet• Text messages•“As it happens” Email alerts• Weekend “on-call” schedule• RSS feeds • Monitoring software (Radian 6, Filtrbox)• Management software (Hootsuite, CoTweet)

Tip #4: Make your commenting policy known. And fair.

We often get accused of deleting comments and members from the oppositionon our Facebook Fan page.

If you delete something, tell your fans and tell them why.

We only delete posts with profanity, spam, personal attacks, or misinformation.Simple disagreements are kept to preserve transparency.

Don’t be afraid to use blocking features – common practice.

Tip #5: Stay on top of the latest trends so you’re prepared for the next big thing.

Tip #6: Take the time to get staff and exec buy in.

Don’t just show them your fan page, get them one.

Get them using the tools if they are the least bit interested.

If not, try a more passive approach like setting up a daily digest of yourTwitter feed to their email

That way, when you find yourself in a Social Media Storm and in need ofhelp / support / additional resources – they will understand (more on that later…)

Tip #7: (and maybe the most important) Be proactive.

Take the time to build up a fan base and build trust with them so they’llCome to your defense in time of an attack

Follow and participate in hashtags / memes, and create your own

Retweet / comment back often

Follow people who mention you

Answer all incoming questions

It’s ok (not creepy) to respond to people who aren’t followingYou but that you’re monitoring. You can make good friendsThat way!

Turn these people into ambassadors, interns and employees!

Track number of mentions, comments, blog posts, and followers over time. The goal is to get more people talking about you!

Tip #8: Have a response process in place

We have a process in place with our online and PR teams:• Monitor sites in real-time, all day, every day• Evaluate what is necessary to respond to• Develop a response with PR• Deliver the response via the medium it was generated• Monitor the conversation following and engage as necessary• Alert everyone in the daily news meeting

Don’t take it personally. Always be respectful but don’t beAfraid to show some personality.

BREATHE. Get up and take a walk before you respond.

If you find yourself in a Twitterstorm

•Listen to the what — and to the who.

• It's OK to say, "We don't know.“

• Address the crowd where it's gathered.

• Tone matters.

• Explain how you'll address the specific issue

• Talk about what you’ll do to prevent it from happening again

Transparency & open communication

Have a company policy – you may think its common sense… it’s not!

It’s not new. Just add social media to it.

http://www.facebook.com/home.php#/note.php?note_id=102600213661

Crisis Communications

NEVER post something you wouldn’t want on the front page of the New York Times!

(Or something you wouldn’t want your mother or boss to see!)

My advice to employees

Thank you!

Carie LewisDirector of Emerging MediaThe Humane Society of the United States

Email: clewis@humanesociety.orgLinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/carielewisTwitter: @cariegrlsBlog: cariegrls.blogspot.com