Putting Out the Fire: Why You Need a Reputation Policy in Place.

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Putting Out the Fire: Why You Need a Reputation Policy in Place.

How it happened and Why it’s important to have a reputation policy.

Our client was getting ugly complaints from all over social media. Not from a troll per se, but from an influencer who only wanted “certain” people to partake in her product giveaway on behalf of our client.

That being said, our agency works diligently at building a solid online presence for our clients. We were proud of the traction and the visibility this brand was getting.

Suddenly, we got an urgent phone call.

We ran a giveaway campaign with our trusted influencers and one of them shockingly was spewing hate speech. Anyone that knows social media knows that this is fodder for trolls. It requires immediate attention.

Our client was very distraught, their reputation and everything they worked and was in jeopardy. It was not fair, they didn’t know this influencer (who gave them a sterling review) would single out an ethnic group on a Facebook post!!!!

My partner’s first reaction was to put the client at ease while we solved the problem. We put our heads together to brainstorm to turn it around and make a positive outcome to this crisis. Here is what we did.

We have a reputation crisis to manage, so let’s take action ASAP!

  • We dropped everything, developed an action plan and swung into action. First, we crafted a pointed e-mail stating that our client and its agency were extremely upset at her racial post. We asked to take down her review, cancel the giveaway and delete all social posts relating to the campaign (including the abhorrent message. In short, we wanted all association with our client removed.
  • She pushed back and said she was “free” to post and control her social pages. But, she got so much push-back from readers, she took it down.
  • Then we wrote a press release about the incident without naming names to further blunt the incident and to disavow this attitude.
  • We wrote an apology statement and posted on social media.
  • We alerted the blogosphere and told them we do not support this kind of behavior.
  • Influencers everywhere ganged up on this blogger and totally respected our client’s action. In fact, they wanted to promote the client’s product and give it the love it deserved.
  • We rinsed and repeated all steps above.

Managing your reputation on Facebook

Give respect to get respect

The results were positive. We gained respect from our community for taking a stand against something that most people disagree with: HATE

What do you need to do if this happens to you?

  • Outline a reputation policy and share it with your employees. If you are unavailable someone will be able to address the issue and put out the fire.
  • Take a stand from the get-go. Do not be afraid to let your followers know what you stand for. If you send a clear message about who you are they are likely to support you over any troll.
  • Build trust in your followers. Build confidence with your customers so they will trust you and stand by you. For example, a disgruntled shopper complained about our client’s services. The problem was addressed swiftly and promptly. But, she was still not happy. She posted her verbose complaints on social media. The client’s fans jumped to their defense.
  • Select your influencers with care. Know who they are and what they believe in. There are many reputable influencers that have been in business for years. They are professional in handling your branding needs.

I felt compelled to write this article to help others see how important it is to have a solid reputation management in place especially in today’s business climate. Let me know if you had to manage a sudden brand crisis.

I’d love to hear your thoughts.

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