McDonald’s recently published a Twitter campaign with #meetthefarmers as the hashtag. It went well. Then they added two tweets with a hashtag, #McDStories, which begged a more cynical audience.
As a result, McDonalds started getting hammered with negatives.
Acting quickly, McDonalds removed #McDStories, but kept #MeetTheFarmers.The change in the tone of tweet responses was instant and warm. It was a valuable lesson for all of us involved in social media marketing.
There are two main identifiable issues here when engaging with people on Twitter 1) A small number of users can trash a campaign – don’t set yourself up. 2) Don’t expect others to take your brand as seriously as you do.
In a recent interview with PR Daily, McDonald’s director of social media Rick Wion, said “You don’t control things. You can only hope to steer things in certain directions”.
So what can we learn from these Twitter crises that appear to pop up nearly every day?
When PR Practitioners use Twitter to market brands, we need to keep five social media rules in mind. 1) Be aware of consumer power. 2) Try to make sure tweeters walk away with a positive experience. 3) Educate consumers on-topic. 4) Entertain so they feel good. 5) Encourage customers to participate in clever competitions.
McDonald’s clambered out of this crisis well by quickly changing tactics.
Image via Doctor Housing Bubble
[...] “I know exactly what people are going to do if we tell them to use a specific hashtag for a particular campaign:” One thing we have to be aware of when it comes to social media is you have to look at ALL potential scenarios – no matter how unlikely they are. This is a key practice in crisis communications – we have to be aware that we may be implementing a hashtag for a particular purpose, but it can be misinterpreted in other ways. Look at what happened with McDonald’s and their hashtag “McDStories.” [...]
Hi Karen, thanks for your comment. You are absolutely right: plan carefully, then act. Regards, Peter