Combat Negative Social Media Comments with Tried and Tested Strategies

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Combat negative social media comments with tried and tested strategies and ensure that social media incidents don't get converted to a full-blown crisis.

Lars Voedisch, Principal Consultant and Managing Director of PRecious Communications, was honoured to speak at the Social Media & PR 2020 Conference organised by Pacific Conferences. He highlighted how businesses can combat negative social media comments with tried and tested strategies and ensure that social media incidents don’t get converted to a full-blown crisis.

Combat negative social media comments with tried and tested strategies and ensure that social media incidents don’t get converted to a full-blown crisis.

Using recent cases and statistics, Lars provided practical solutions and insightful tips to tackle the notorious social media problems and use social media to your advantage. With the shift of purchasing power towards the Millenials and Gen Z, most ‘customers’ have a strong online presence. The raging wildfire of social media has made it imperative for brands to communicate their personality and promise through social media. Traditional forms of media are becoming increasingly obsolete. The rise of social media, however, brings about its minefield of issues. Brands must tread carefully, or risk causing their demise.

Social Listening can help brands use social media effectively and rise above the noise. There are many aspects of Social Media Monitoring that need to be considered meticulously before selecting Social Listening Tools. To add to that, brands also need to be conscious of fake news and unnecessary negativity. It is paramount to assess sentiment thoroughly and ignore spam. It is of utmost significance that brands understand that not all feedback requires action and maintain a ‘thick skin’ while listening to feedback.

Social media mistakes can quickly spiral out of control, and preventive measures need to be implemented. Humour, though great for established brands, can be a double-edged sword if caution is not maintained. With the pace of communications now, brands can be built or destroyed within hours.

Watch the SlideShare of the presentation below to gain a better understanding of the peril that social media can be.

Here are some of the key takeaways from Lars’ presentation on ‘Don’t Let Social Media Spiral Out of Control: Combat Negative Comments with Tried and Tested Strategies’

Brands NEED to communicate their identity and promise online
Social Listening tools can help brands stay on top of their social media game
Inaccurate Sentiment Analysis, Over-Listening, and Spam can add a spanner in the works for social media progress
Response to negative feedback should be timely and thoughtful
There is no point in responding without an action plan
The best apologies are honest and straightforward
Prevention is better than cure

Several experts from the marketing and communications field shared the stage with Lars. These included:

Carolyn Camoens, Managing Director, Asia, Hume Brophy
Julian Chow, Head of Digital, Archetype
Stuart La Brooy, Senior Marketing Director & Creative Innovation, Asia, Diageo
Daniel Feiler, Senior Director, Communications, Asia Pacific, eBay
Nicola Eliot, Director, BBC StoryWorks APAC, BBC Global News
Lukas Snioka, Senior Strategist, Digital & Social, Ogilvy
Vivian Koh, Area Director of Public Relations & Content, Asia Pacific, Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts
Karoline Lem, PR & Marketing Manager, foodpanda
Pan Huiyan, Regional Content and Community Lead, Shopee
Sandy Tantra, Brand Storyteller, Asia Pacific, Google
Puneet Pal Singh, Head of Communications, Southeast Asia, Cisco
Uma Rudd Tan, Creative Director, Weber Shandwick
Abhishek Thakur, Marketing Leader, Asia Pacific Geography Marketing, HPE
Siddarth Das, Global Director, Digital Engagement, WWF
Vernia Lim, Public Relations Director, Asia Pacific, JLL
Sarah Wan, Marketing Lead, Singapore, Klook