Is a crisis communications plan needed for social media managers?

 

When it comes to crisis communications in the 21st century, is the explosion of social media now requiring crisis communications plans to have an added social media component?

Did the Ablerta beef plant have a crisis plan in place before the recall? A few good practices went missing  in their communications strategies; such as, waiting too long from the time the story leaked to make a statement and apologizing to the public for their ignorance in the E-coli outburst in a timely manner.

This incident was a question of public safety, a plan should have been in place if one wasn't already.

However, there are other things such as company tweets and Facebook posts that have caught the attention of the media, not so much a crisis but perhaps a set back or even an excusable occurance.

Inappropriate company tweets have been the latest PR news and it's a career limiting move for social media managers. When it comes to social media though, is it really an accident? Or, are companies just willing to get bad press just to get any press at all?

There are some things that you can be aware of prior to posting.

1.       Be aware of the account you're posting to

2.       Be tactful.

It's really quite simple. (I've discussed it in a previous post)

Social media managers live and breathe social media every minute of every day, but if you are managing your company Facebook and Twitter accounts, don't carry them around on your smart phone. This will avoid accidently posting on your company's site when it was intended for your personal account.

Being conscious of posts and the time you post them makes you a good social media manager. Remember, not only is it your company's reputation but yours as well.