On Monday, 6 January 2020, this was posted on Facebook:
By Tuesday, 7 January 2020, Big Blue responded:
It’s incredibly disheartening to think that employees or department heads who could have spotted this, and prevented the shirt from ending up on Big Blues’ shelves, failed to do so. Despite the awareness people are trying to create around the unjust treatment of women and children, there are members of society who continue to turn a blind eye.
We live in a world where news is spread so rapidly that a single facebook post can lead to a complete product recall in the space of a day. This is just one of the many reasons businesses and corporations have to be aware of current affairs and social injustices and take action to fix it. Social media and technology means information spreads faster and people whose voices were once overlooked are now finally able to rise through the noise.
Customers vote with their money, and if what you are selling goes against what they believe in, they will not buy in! People are making an effort to create awareness around social and environmental causes and tend to favour brands that are aligned with their values and avoid those that are not.
In order to ensure that your customers know who you are and what values they should align with you, you should consider creating a social responsibility mission – come up with a concise way to express your core values and ensure that the everyday decisions you make align with this. The evolution of social media means that CSR (“Corporte Social Responsibility”) should not be seen as an option, but a necessity.
It is best practice to have clear social media and response policies in place and ensure that all employees understand and are aligned with the values of your business. Reputation and professional image is more important than ever. Customers tend to look online for information about a business and make decisions based on what they find. Customers may decide to use a competitor if they find negative posts, comments or reviews about your business. Social media and response policies are imperative guidelines for how your business handles various online crises. So, while you cannot control what is posted about you, you can control how you respond and mitigate any reputational damage that may occur.
You can contact us if you would like us to draft or review your social media or response policies, or for more good, clear, precise advice.
