Page 398 - Social Media Marketing for Dummies

classes. In other instances, periodic electronic communication or in-person
“lunch and learns” can be more helpful. Use whatever approach has worked
for other similar initiatives in your organization.

» Do continuity planning.
In lots of large organizations, a person is never in one job for a very long time.
You may be charged with developing and implementing a governance model
today, but you may be in another job a year from now. Therefore, a key task is
to identify people in the governance structure who know enough about the
model and practices to be able to take over from you if your role changes.
» Keep legal departments involved.

Some participants in the social media governance model may feel that the
legal department needs to be only peripherally involved. With the FTC (Federal
Trade Commission) and other governmental organizations playing a stronger
and stronger role in defining social media policies for companies, legal
departments need to be actively involved. Stakeholders with vested interests
should also be included. Don’t leave them out.

Dealing with a Social Media Crisis

As a brand, you may do something that angers your community and you may be
hit by a social media crisis. Something may happen to one of your products or
services that results in a sudden, sharp backlash from people across the social
media ecosystem. If and when this happens, knowing how to respond in the first
24 hours and the first week is absolutely critical. Companies have saved or lost
many millions of dollars simply by how they responded to a crisis. Don’t make the
mistakes that others have.

If you’re hit by a social media crisis, the following are key steps to take immediately:

1. Bring together an emergency response team.
This team is usually a combination of marketers, consumer relations profes-
sionals, PR teams, product managers, and consultants. The core emergency
response team should be identified, established, and empowered to make all
decisions regarding the crisis.
2. Listen to the community.
Using the social media tools discussed in the earlier chapters, try to under-
stand the extent of the backlash and whether it is increasing or decreasing
over time. Also, pay particular attention to the complaints and whether there’s

382 PART 5 Old Marketing Is New Again with SMM