Social media has proved to be a powerful tool in many spheres of life. It is the fastest way of communication, and it is great to build your brand presence. Social media is an incredible way to stay connected and, during a crisis, has proved as an aid to help thousands of people.
The recent covid -19 pandemic has given a revamp to social media altogether. During a crisis, people always are in a dilemma about how to post or adjust their presence and continue their marketing. The greatest thing about time is it changes; so, if your boat is in a storm, hold for some time, and you will sail through.
Here are ten best social media practices that you should follow in times of crisis.
Take a Critical Look at your Content and Messages
We must do a course correction when we know we are in the wrong direction. A crisis is a time to do a little introspection and make an attempt to correct our fault lines. It is time to shut off the bots and automated tools and look at every post with a critical eye. The aim is not to find fault but look from a follower’s perspective.
The area where you need to look in a bit more is the comment sections. Knowingly or unknowingly, if there are comments that have been to target anyone, friends or competitors, remove them. Your content and comments must be in sync with your communication plan. Look at the analytics and try to gauge the point where things would have gone wrong. There is no harm in making mistakes; the lessons must remain with you and improve you in all fields of life.
Don’t Stop Posting
If you are down doesn’t mean you are out!
In times of uncertainty, continue having an active presence on social media. Even during difficult times, many people would like to hear from you and buy your products. Let them know all about your hours of operations and what products are available for them to buy.
You can also devise new methods for home delivery and alternative payment modes. In case there has been a cancellation or rescheduling of events, you must announce for your followers. You can also create a FAQ page where you must include all questions posed by audiences and try to satisfy them with genuine reasons. communicate to the point and don’t indulge in lengthy discussions.
Transparency Gives you Authenticity
Many brands and businesses have changed due to the covid-19 pandemic. The major reason for amendment in customer dealing is for the safety of customers and employees.
If you have undergone any changes, announce them. A transparent approach is appreciated, and customers realize that the changes are for a cause. If you provide home delivery, no contact delivery, or curbside pick up, let your clients know. If you are charging a little more, then also let everyone know. Authenticity is built on transparency.
Look for New Ideas
It has been noticed that difficult times are the best time for new ideas, creativity, and generosity. When live shows got canceled, people have devised new ways to get connected with online events. Shutting down of schools and classes gave way to e-learning.
Try and invent new ways to demonstrate your operational ideas and practices; a good way is by streaming live videos. You can also make a demo video on how to order your products and safe practices. There can be numerous ways to enhance your presence. Look for virtual tours, demo videos, and case stories about your employees and your challenges.
Adjust your Social Strategy
Insight tools are excellent tools to see where you stand. These tools are like a mirror that shows a true reflection. Use these tools to adjust your social strategy. In times of crisis, people are looking for content that will offer training, information, support, and Hope. Look for positive ideas to leave your mark and content that can be of genuine use to your audience.
Look for positive stories that make people believe in the cohesive strength of society. A good option is to collaborate with individuals who are helping people in these difficult times. Sponsor a few voluntary organizations that are working day and night to help needy people.
Don’t Lose Hope
A crisis is like a storm, and most people are unsure about their future; it gives a gloomy picture and keeps people unsettled. If you are posting about the miserable picture, you are adding fuel to the fire. No matter how hopeless today the situation may be, remember it will change.
If you want to share information about the pandemic, be sure to post authentic information. Most stories are made up to gain mileage of the situation. It is always better to give stories of Hope and positivity to the world than to create a phobia. Be vigilant, and don’t let your brand get into all the negativity and fake posts.
Keep Track of your Activities
Keep notes of all your activity on social media, track and introspect your content and posts. Watch out for the queries your customers want to know; ensure you have given a satisfactory reply. Keeping track of your actions and posts will make you conscious of the content and its value.
Try and create a critical response for your social media marketing strategy. It is better to upskill yourself in times of crisis and look for different methods other brands have devised to create an impact.
Make a Crisis Checklist
A crisis checklist may not help the crisis get over, but it will help you gear up to deal with the crisis. The first question that you will ask is what to include in the checklist? The first thing you need to do is look at your ad campaigns; are they doing any good in the crisis? If not, pause them; it may not be a good time to invest in ads.
Take a look at your schedules and see which all must be canceled or amended. Take a look at automation tools and analyses if they are solving any purpose? Check your social media groups and see if they are still hearing or going deaf. Check your website and look for possible changes. Lastly, keep track of your messages, emails, and voicemails.
Plan Ahead
Good planning will help you overcome the crisis. Plan your content and events. If you feel it is not the right time to go with a new launch; reschedule it. It would be best if you also plan for sound security of data breaches and adverse comments. A crisis is a difficult time, and there are massive attempts of cyber-attacks and negative comments.
Plan for the worst, and you will be able to deal with it. Also, remember, a crisis has inbuilt opportunities, good and sound planning will give you the key to open new doors.
Time is Crucial
Crisis management is a race against time. Whenever there is a crisis for your brand, an instant social media response is the key to get over it. In all cases, the aim should be to respond within a couple of hours. If you will waste time responding to any statement or fail to give out a complete plan to your audience, there will be a lot of negativity and criticism floating on social media.
A timely response will fill in the void and give your customers and followers assurance from your side. It also includes product criticism, negative comments, frustration by a customer, speculations about your brand, or even a drop in sales. Don’t let a small issue turn into a crisis, take timely and appropriate action to save valuable time of dousing a big fire on social media.
Conclusion
The only permanent thing is a change. All days are not the same, and there will be crises coming and going. Some situations will be short-lived, while some are extended, like the covid-19 pandemic.
In a crisis, your social media feeds should try to mitigate the problem. It takes common sense, a strong mental balance, and an analytical approach to deal with any crisis in the social media spectrum and life. We hope these ten points will give you the correct approach about the best way to use social media to deal with a crisis. If you have more suggestions, please do share them with us.
