Death By
Social Media
Facebook, Twitter et al, once considered super-effective ways to
build brands, are now at the forefront of bringing them down.
CASE STUDY 1
JUNE 12
Devorise Dixon, an American citizen, claims he was served a deep
fried rat instead of chicken at a California KFC outlet. He posts a picture on
Facebook that goes viral across the globe. KFC denies the allegations, says it
looks like a hoax.
JUNE 16:
KFC India posts a Facebook message: “KFC takes customer claims
very seriously, and they are investigating this matter.'
JUNE 22:
A DNA test confirms the product was chicken and the incident was a
hoax. KFC asks Dixon to apologise.
Even as KFC's `fried rat' finally turned out to be a canard, for a
good 10 days the brand was roasted on social media. But think of the damage
done to the brand's equity, and sales, in those 10 days. KFC's spokesperson in
India was not available for comment.
“Social media has always been a word-ofmouth medium, and where
there is word of mouth sometimes there are half-truths or hoaxes,“ says Rajiv
Dingra, founder & CEO of WATConsult, a digital and social media agency .
Brands need to have an agile crisis management team in place along
with a 247 social monitoring team to ensure that instances of mischief are
nipped in the bud before they bloom into a full-fledged crisis, reckons Dingra.
“Brands in India have a long way to go on this front.“
Ankita Gaba, a social media consultant, says consumers do not
always use the power that social media gives them to express themselves
responsibly. “More often than not, they utilise the medium to shame a person or
a brand, what can be called as social bullying.“ A brand can easily become a
victim of this public shaming.
Gaba, however, feels KFC was late in responding to the crisis. “A
late response always makes people feel that the brand is a culprit,“ she says.
While a brand is burdened under the pile of ignorance, protocols, nervousness,
bureaucracy and corporate policies, social media makes the news spread like
wild fire, adds Gaba. If KFC couldn't contain the wild fire, back home Mother
Dairy acted quickly to douse the spark.
CASE STUDY 2
JUNE 16:
The Uttar Pradesh Food and Drug Administration (UPFDA) says it has
found detergent in one of the samples of milk of Mother Dairy . Social media
starts buzzing, people start reacting. However, the head of milk, fruit and
vegetables section at Mother Dairy insists its product is safe and fit for
consumption.
JUNE 17:
The managing director of the brand posts a statement on the
company's Facebook page assuring people that the milk is safe and explaining
why the collected sample would have never made its way into the fi nal product.
The issue dies down, doesn't snowball into a crisis.
“Lead from the front and respond as quickly as possible,“ says S
Nagarajan, managing director of Mother Dairy Fruit & Vegetable.
Nagarajan was confident that if the issue was explained to people
quickly and transparently, the damage would be contained. And this is exactly
what happened.A glance at Mother Dairy's Facebook page shows that after
Nagarajan's post, people were convinced by his replies and the milk
adulteration talks duly died out.
Nagarajan underlines two crucial components of handling any social
media crisis: listening closely to the people and having a team that can be
accessible and can respond in an emphatic manner. “Brand reputation is taken
care of if one responds quickly.“Mother Dairy's response was matched in equal
measure by Nestle India's handling of the Maggi crisis. But the results were
diametrically opposite as Maggi was pulled out from the market.
Reason: the brand lacked conviction in its communication. It's not
only the speed of your response, but also the `honesty' in it which determines
the outcome.
CASE STUDY 3
MAY 20:
UPFDA finds traces of lead and high percentage of MSG in samples
of Maggi. The brand denies the allegations, says it's safe for consumption.
MAY 21:
Rumours of a Maggi recall flood social media. The brand acts
promptly and says all talks of recall are baseless and the product is safe.
JUNE 1:
Nestle India says extensive testing reveals no excess lead in
Maggi
JUNE 5:
Maggi is taken off the shelf but the brand still maintains that it
is `safe'. Loss of face for the brand and consumer trust gets eroded. Social
media is where it takes only one person to call your bluff. So it's best to be
honest, says Dingra of WATConsult. If you know you have messed up, it's best to
acknowledge, accept and apologise. “More often than not this would turn the
tide in your favour with appreciation coming your way .“ Running away, staying
silent and being defensive only adds more fuel to fire, adds Dingra.
Brands, it seems, are learning the hard way to deal with social
media.
By Rajiv Singh
BE1JUL15
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