Social Media: how to act in a crisis?

 Currently, social media has made a “place in the sun” for itself, regardless of the communication strategy implemented by your company. It is through this means that information is widely and quickly disseminated: Social Media Marketing has become a real promotional tool.

But in the event of a crisis, it is essential to know how to effectively manage your social media plan. Here are some tips for anticipating and planning your web marketing strategy.

1. Social media: what is it?

It’s done! Wanting to communicate about your brand without using social media is a real marketing strategy error.

If you want to stimulate the interest of your target and increase your notoriety, you must become a master in the art of digital communication, and more precisely in the management of social networks such as YouTube, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest or those more professional like Viadeo or Linkedln.

To develop your e-reputation and create links, social networks are a real godsend: you can interact with your target – in the public sphere –, attract new prospects and quickly circulate information while disseminating it as widely as possible. number.

As a result, the site’s traffic – and therefore its SEO – will increase significantly. Social media optimization (SMO) is therefore one of the keys to the success of your brand. But beware ! These advantages can quickly become disadvantages in the event of a crisis…

2. Social media crisis management strategy

Anticipate: liven up your presence on social networks

Damaging your online reputation can have a negative impact on your brand. To avoid these inconveniences, you must first of all know how to use social networks to your advantage:

• Stay reachable using your contact methods (e-mail, telephone, address, etc.) by updating your opening hours, if necessary;
• Respond to messages from your subscribers  : this is a way of taking their opinions into account and evolving with them;
• Communicate regularly via posts with relevant hashtags or videos. Also remember to study the reach of your posts: likes, comments, shares, etc.;
• Be present in your target's daily life: get news, integrate their habits. Understanding your target’s problems in the face of the crisis will allow you to respond better!
• Keep yourself informed of the competition: how is it reacting to the crisis? How does she communicate?

During: personify the relationship

Give a human face to your brand by discussing issues related to the crisis with your target audience. Tell yourself in the form of a story with an approach offering more proximity (storytelling) : why are you here? How are you coping with the situation?

Being authentic and intimate allows you to maintain relationships of trust. Stories make us want to know what happens next. Use appropriate vocabulary to hook your reader and arouse emotions. Through you, you speak about him! You need to make the reader recognize themselves through your words or your story.

In addition, it is advisable to write strong texts to highlight your brand, your product and to increase your notoriety. You must persuade through your words that your brand or product is “THE solution” to meet the needs of your target. This is the art of a good copywriter.

After: take stock!

Take stock of the crisis: this will allow you to develop your digital communication strategy.

Always with this desire to remain “authentic” and “credible”, stand out on social networks by developing a post-crisis strategy:

• Write positive content : interaction with the target, sharing feelings, taking a position, etc.;
• Work on your visuals (humor, boldness, creativity) and your videos to send a positive message;
• Take care of your copywriting, SEO, SEM strategy to get back to the top of search engines;
• Reactivate a regular schedule of your posts . To do this, use software such as Creator Studio, Hootsuite, Later, Buffer, etc.;
• Broadcast stories and lives regularly : you must focus on proximity to your audience and your authenticity. They are the “darlings” of social networks;
• Make an appointment with your targets : interact with them post-crisis by responding to their comments and giving them importance. Social networks promote close ties, so it's time to take advantage of them!
• Do not delete some negative comments ;
• Choose the right hashtags , not too popular (>100,000 results) and in the language of your audience.
• Talk about your brand but also about the world around it. If you have a swimsuit brand you can have informative content on surfing, kitesurfing, etc.

3. React quickly and effectively to the crisis

A crisis is also a test that tests your ability to modify your strategy. The more responsive you are, the more valuable your brand will become.

You will accompany your target during the events and readjust to another mode of operation to get the most out of this experience.

Digital communication is never static: you have to be reactive, creative and attentive to your audience to rebuild and consolidate yourself.