You’re cancelled.
Cancel culture. Remember when people used to say, “any press is good press” and “the only thing worse than being talked about is not being talked about at all”?
Those days are long gone!
We are existing in a media world where employees and customers – happy and disgruntled, have a platform to share their experience, which may not necessarily align with your own perception.
As passionate communicators, we want our clients to post new, authentic content that inspires action. But if you find you are increasingly stressed about going a little off beat, here are some points on how to avoid being cancelled.
One: social media is fast, lightning fast.
Scandals aren’t made via the newspaper anymore, they are broadcast live over TikTok streams, Instagram stories, and Twitter feeds. Instantly. For the entire world to see.
What can you do?
You need to increase your social listening. You must have your finger on the pulse of conversations not just on traditional news platforms, but on social media as well. Social listening will give you an understanding of how news and trends will be received and talked about. If you are ahead of the curve, you will be able to respond quickly.
Two: a company take-down from the inside
Former or current employees who don’t feel heard, will find their platform online. There are websites like Glassdoor where employees can rate their experiences, or they can leave negative Google reviews. You can be certain that they will take to social media.
In some instances, we are seeing former employees from five plus years ago joining action groups and receiving mass amounts of attention on social media.
What can you do?
Internal communications are as important as external communications, and it is a lot easier to manage the fallout of an unhappy stakeholder internally before they take to the media.
Internal policy for addressing concerns needs to be a top priority. Often, as previously referred to, disgruntled employees want to be heard and have had their concerns taken seriously. A formal process will give employees the comfort of knowing that they are being listened to and provides your company with the opportunity to learn potential areas of improvement through their feedback.
Additionally, all employees should attend diversity and inclusiveness training.
Three: beyond the veil of branding
There is no hiding behind statements about your Environment Social and Governance (ESG) policy, you need to be well advanced in your action by now.
Industry professionals are asking for transparency as no one wants the risk of being associated with a company who is unethical. If you are associated with an unethical service provider, the media will find out.
What can you do?
Be prepared with data about your company; the internal make up, boards, governance policies and leadership positions, that show you are investing in inclusive workplaces. If you have been making statements about female board participation for example, show that you are serious with the actions that have taken place to get there.
Carefully scrutinise suppliers and ask them for information about anything that could be sticky. For example, if your business uses offshore tech workers, you must be able to verify with 100% certainty that all ethical standards are complied with.
To keep content fresh, interesting, and entertaining, you are going to need to take risks, but it can be delicate game to avoid a PR disaster. Knowing that you have your bases covered before designing your media strategy will mitigate issues. You might even find some inspiring new content through the process.