Handling Social Media During a Crisis: Pause, Play, or Stop?

If nothing else, the upheaval of the past few years has shown us the importance of knowing how to handle a crisis, both personally and professionally. Social media makes it quick and easy to get a message out – but it also presents a significant challenge for businesses in a few ways.

Do you make a statement? Do you stop your social media altogether? Or do you keep going on as normal? It’s absolutely critical to have a game plan for local, national and international crises.

Pause, Stop, or Play?

Every situation is different and you’ll need to evaluate each individually. Does the crisis directly affect your organization or speak to your mission? Is it of a political nature that’s too sensitive to speak on? Are you practicing what you preach on the issue?

Start by pausing to ask yourself these questions – and then come up with an actionable plan. Just make sure to take a look at the posts that you have scheduled to go out in the meantime to ensure that you aren’t being insensitive to the issues at hand.

Why You Need a Brand Plan

Before you do anything else, consider your brand. Not every brand is going to address social or political crises – and if you’re not doing anything regarding them (donating, volunteering, advocating, etc), sometimes it’s better not to post at all.

People don’t want to see vanity posts regarding crises. A big example of this is the Black Lives Matter movement. Back in 2020 when everything started to come to a head, small businesses and large corporations alike jumped on the movement and posted Black Lives Matter on social media.

While movements like these often appreciate solidarity, it doesn’t mean much without something to back it up. Posts about Black Lives Matter that didn’t include information about donations to organizations like the ACLU or proof of some kind of action strongly turn people off.

What to Do Next

At this point, you have a few different options.

• Post about the crisis and back it up. If your brand prides itself on timely social media and is comfortable taking a stance, do it. Just make sure you provide proof.
• Don’t post about the crisis at all and continue on with your non-offensive posts. Most of the time, you can get away with this without any repercussions as long as your lack of response is on-brand.
• Pause your social media for a couple of days in respect. Regardless of whether you choose to pause or not, you should always review what you have scheduled for social media to avoid a potential misstep.

Pink Dog Digital Can Help You Manage Your Social Media Crisis

While we have outlined steps to take during a social media crisis, not every crisis will look the same. However, no matter what the crisis looks like, Pink Dog Digital can help you put together a social media crisis management plan and support your brand even in the worst situations.

Get in touch with us today through the contact form on our website, email us at pinkdogdigital@gmail.com, or give us a call at (410) 696-3305.