Negative comments on social media are increasingly becoming a problem for companies. We show you what to look out for when dealing with them and how your team can respond to them correctly.
.1. Monitor social media channels - recognize negative comments
There are a number of companies that set up social media channels and use them for various campaigns, but otherwise pay little attention to their own channels.
The various channels must be regularly checked and monitored so that a company can react quickly to negative comments, accusations or even emerging shitstorms. For example, social media monitoring tools can be used specifically for this purpose
.2. No work for the intern - consistency required
Many companies still neglect their own social media channel and are happy to leave this area in the hands of new and inexperienced colleagues or even interns. Nothing could be worse.
Because social media has such a huge impact that it shouldn't just be used based on gut feeling and with constantly changing users. A fixed social media strategy and, above all, clear communication guidelines are particularly important for a consistent presence.
3. Correctly classify negative comments on social media
Your social media team should be able to read negative comments correctly and categorize them correctly. If a customer is dissatisfied with a certain product or service and is venting because of this, the criticism is often justified or can at least be discussed.
However, competitors also leave negative comments to damage your company. There are also so-called trolls who try to gain attention by posting as many negative comments as possible. They often exceed legal boundaries. As a company, you can and should react confidently and use the executive power to take a clear stance against this type of user.
Communicate this openly to deter further free riders at an early stage.
4. Delete, reply or ignore?
Negative comments on social media must always be noticed. But how you respond to the comments depends, among other things, on the classification mentioned above. You can either delete troll comments and unfair or false claims, ignore them or even reply to them. It all depends on the sensitivity of the social media team and the reputation of your account.
Founded criticism should always be answered if possible.
Because there is a lot of potential hidden here for your company. If possible, you should have insulting or inflammatory comments deleted at an early stage. This is because they can permanently destroy the image on social media and experience has shown that they only attract other users of the same type.
5. remain open to criticism - never get personal
Negative comments on social media can stem from a customer's personal dissatisfaction. As a company, you should therefore scrutinize every comment and consider whether it could be due to your services that such a comment has arisen.
As a company, it may be difficult to appreciate negative comments and see them as encouragement for your own improvement, but it is still well worth it. After all, a company that is open to criticism and actively responds to its customers is always rated more positively than companies that simply ignore criticism or allow it to be deleted.
Negative comments can therefore help you to improve your own products and services. It is important that you also express this to dissatisfied customers. Respond to negative comments, show that the criticism has been received and that you want to change something. You will be surprised how good the feedback on social media will be to these responses.
6. Clear communication can help - used skillfully
As a company, the customer is king, but you don't have to shy away from unjustified criticism. If you are well established on social networks and have built up a certain reputation, you can also respond offensively to supposed campaigns against you and to trolls.
It is important not to come across as arrogant, but to always respond founded on the basis of facts. A clear stance can quickly marginalize some negative comments if the user realizes that these were just troll attempts. A good sense of proportion for the various comments and the general mood is particularly important here in order to strike the right tone.
7. Lively social media channels are more trustworthy
If your own channel is only used to disseminate prefabricated advertising or respond to criticism from users, this does little to build trust. It is important that users associate a positive connotation with the account so that the reaction to negative comments can be correctly classified.
An active account, which engages in various topics and actively communicates with users, appears significantly less ad-driven and therefore more authentic. Take a look at the social media accounts of Dr.OettkerPizza, BVG or SIXT on Twitter to see the differences.
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