Social media can be a double-edged sword. It can help a business grow their customer base, but it can also harm the image of the company in the event of negative mentions.
Dealing with negative mentions on social media pages can be a tricky. One wrong move, and the interaction can go viral or it can even backfire on the business itself.
Trolls and Haters
Most of the time, the so-called “trolls” will be the ones trying to deal damage to your business. For those who are just starting out in social media, they won’t attract as much as trolls compared to those who already have a large following.
Trolls just want to get the attention of either the business itself or its following. They tend to argue about practically anything about a post. Some may even bring up past issues or something totally irrelevant to what a business has posted.
Haters are pretty much self-explanatory. They do as much as damage because they dislike the brand or the company itself. If left unchecked, they can create horrendous damage by making people think that the company has ill intentions.
People Watch Companies’ Reaction
The reason why businesses need to deal with negative mentions and comments is because other people are also looking for the company’s reaction. If the company does not respond right away, it can be seen as a sign of neglect from the company’s social media efforts.
Some companies may even ban or delete comments of trolls and haters. For others, this may work, but it can also backfire. Some people may think that the business is just covering up something.
Social Media Challenges
Whenever a company engages in any social media campaign, there are challenges that will be faced. One of which is what platform to use. In the event that a company aims to target most of the social networks is that it can be time consuming.
It is imperative that there is a social media manager that handles all of the accounts. Part of their job is to handle the negative mentions and comments. For this to be handled efficiently, a response protocol and a solid social media policy should be in place.
How to Respond Properly?
Responses should be be swift, but calm. The social media manager should not panic or should not agitate the troll / hater even further.
If it is a complaint, the social media manager can just comment that they can talk about the issue privately. If it is a troll, calmly respond with wit but never agitate them.
The social media manager can thank the troll for the opinion and ask for their feedback through a private message. Responding with a serious tone and authority will most likely drive them away.
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