May 16 2008
Blogging up a storm
The blog storm - learn how one bad blog can lead to weeks and months of bad press, or how social media activists can take a little bad news and ignite an enduring corporate PR crisis
It used to be that companies could count on a "bad news day" a few times a year. Ah, the good old days. Today, activists, critics and watchdogs are using the latest social media tools to mobilise public opinion rapidly and keep the unsavoury discussion topic in the public eye for weeks, and possibly longer.
Custom Communication, the organisers behind the Social Media Influence conference [http://www.socialmediainfluence.com/social-media-influence-co.html] on 4 June in London, have posted a fascinating case study into a real-life blog storm that bedeviled a major global consumer brand for over a month earlier this year, and continues to smoulder today. The full details are here on the Social Media Influence news blog. [http://www.socialmediainfluence.com/2008/05/case-study-the.html]
As the chart here indicates, the blog storm grew in ferocity from week-to-week. Even though mainstream media missed out on the initial story, bloggers were able to push it onto the news agenda, culminating in calls by politicians for an investigation into the matter a full five weeks after the matter first caught the public's attention. Because the company was slow to respond to the mounting uproar online, it lost the ability to influence the message, and the resulting controversy endured for over a month and threatens to reignite again.
This was not an isolated incident. Influential social media commentators are shaping public opinion on matters they care about, creating a debate online that can, if unwatched, turn into a nasty blog storm for a company.
At the Social Media Influence, we will address this and
other issues companies should know in dealing with the perilous and promising
world of social media. For details on how to register, click here.
