How to be Effective with Social Media During a Crisis

The first step during a crisis is to remain calm and establish control. 

• Pause all scheduled social media posts to maintain control over the narrative. Nothing derails social media crisis communication quite like an accidental comedic post going up when the tone needs to be serious. 
• Recall the crisis management team to ensure communications are synchronized and all members know their assigned roles. 
• Publicly acknowledge what's happening. Consider doing a live media broadcast to give credibility to the message and direct people to official platforms. If going live is not a feasible option, consider a pre-recorded video or an alternative like Facebook Premiere. 
• Post a long-form response on the official website to create a place for reporters and key stakeholders to find the comprehensive story. 
• Remember to stay calm. Enough chaos is centered around the crisis itself. You don't need to add to it. 

The next step is to assess mission impact. Social media listening will tell you how your users are talking about the situation and monitoring will show you public response in real time. Any indication of mission impact through a public platform should be supported with comprehensive data. 

• Remember to have a plan in place to lead the discussion if audience sentiment changes operations. 
• Compare normal operational time periods against the crisis time period to gauge the severity of the communication environment. 
• Focus on factors like lost followers, specific complaints and the viral reach of negative sentiment surrounding the mission. 
• Identify key performance indicators for successful crisis management and establish a measurement scale to evaluate the negative conversations generated. 
• Determine how to measure impact on overall mission sentiment, as well as overall mission impact of the crisis over time. 

The third step is to reflect on responses. Even when the crisis begins to dissipate, a semblance of normalcy returns. Use this opportunity to evaluate messages and responses. Bring the team back together and do an immediate after action or hot wash of what worked and what didn't. 

Consider: 

• What were the strongest aspects of the crisis plan? 
• Where was the existing strategy unhelpful or less impactful? 
• Are there any processes or templates that need to be revised? 
• Do any new systems or guidelines need to be created? 

Unfortunately, the internet has a long memory, and negative news and complaints can linger far past the end of a crisis. 

Evaluate your position moving forward. Figure out how you would communicate and respond. Determine whether or not the situation warrants a passive or active posture. This is where active monitoring can augment a communication strategy, which will allow you and your team to evaluate sentiment over time and manage negative feedback while examining possible trends. 

Ask: 

• How will you manage or participate in the long-term conversation about this crisis? 
• Do continual updates need to be provided long-term to any audiences or stakeholders? 

Finally, update the crisis management plan. Perform a thorough assessment of all the previous steps and weigh them against the team's performance. This should be an open and candid discussion between team members. Glean the inputs from your team and make any changes to the existing crisis management plan.