Social media is speeding everything up, creating challenges and opportunities for marketers. This is especially true (sometimes painfully so) when a public relations issue comes up. Though social media can make an issue spread faster, smart marketers also see the opportunity to use that speed to quickly correct the issue.
During his BlogWell presentation, General Motors’ Joe LaMuraglia shared how they did just this. After an internal draft memo was leaked that seemed to indicate Chevrolet’s management team was forbidding employees from using the brand’s “Chevy” nickname, LaMuraglia’s team used social media to clear up the misinformation and avoid a PR crisis.
A few of LaMuraglia’s key tips:
- Video allows for greater authenticity. GM originally responded to the misinformation with an “official statement” — but bloggers and brand fans weren’t impressed. LaMuraglia’s team then stepped in and filmed an executive offering a plain-English, authentic explanation of what had happened and posted it to YouTube — which significantly reduced the online criticism.
- It’s about the message, not the production value. LaMuraglia’s video was shaky and lacked the production quality of a traditional corporate video — but because the message was genuine, it still worked just fine.
- It’s OK to say, “We were wrong.” LaMuraglia explains that it’s OK to admit when you’re wrong and that in doing so, you build long-term credibility with fans and critics alike.
And if you like this presentation, be sure to check out our upcoming BlogWell in Philadelphia on Nov. 9.
Twitter
Facebook
Linkedin
RSS
[...] the original: Andy's Answers: How General Motors used social media to avert a … [...]
[...] the original: Andy's Answers: How General Motors used social media to avert a … [...]
Here's a link to the Alan Batey video:
http://www.autoblog.com/2010/06/11/video-gm-tries…
What was the crisis? People couldn't say Chevy? Is that a crisis? A crisis is when your friggin' company goes broke and the federal Government has to bail you out! That's a crisis.
[...] SmartBlog on Social Media: Andy’s Answers: How General Motors used social media to avert a crisis [...]
[...] este articulo de Andy Sernovitz, uno de los profesionales mas famosos en el area de Word of Mouth Marketing, me llamo la atencion, [...]
[...] ineffective without a plan to respond to negative material or to capitalize on positive mentions. Andy’s Answers: How General Motors used Social Media to Avert a Crisis is a video showing how traditional communication tools (press releases and sophisticated corporate [...]
I think this is a good example how social media could either hurt you or help you. High speed spreading information is what marketers want. However, the speed of spreading information for social media is too quick for most people to confirm the messages are correct or not. Therefore, even if the messages are incorrect or may thread a company’s brand image, the company is not able to control the consequences. General Motor (GM) in this case reflects how companies shall react when this crisis happened. They admitted they were wrong even if they were not. Then, the media they posted online that was more convince people that they concerned this issue indeed and transfer consumers’ focus from the “Chevy” issue to their video. Personally, I think GM’s strategies were good for companies to avert their damages of brand reputation. As we known, social Media is like a double-edge sword that could either help or hurt you. I think social media authorizes consumers more power than before as LaMuraglia said from the video, “the companies own trademark but the customers own the brand."