What To Do When The Internet Hates You
After facing the business end of an internet shitstorm this week, here's tips for companies finding themselves in similar situations.
• Apologize early, and often. Post that apology on your site and in the main forums where you're being discussed. Don't just say "oops," express true contrition.
• Change. Listen to your critics. Parse out the good suggestions. Incorporate the best in your new ways. Announce them publicly, and quickly.
• Go to their living room. Jump into the forums where you're being criticized most heavily. Respond to questions, and clarify previous statements. Speak in reasonable, measured tones. This strengthens your position, and divides the extremists and moderates who will begin to eat each other.
• Know when to shutup. After certain point, you've said all that can be said and anything thereafter can and will be used against you. So, shhh.... Stop pouring gas on the fire.
• Read poetry. Some will never believe your apology, or look on your change of heart with suspicion (It doesn't help if you made snarky comments when people entreated you to alter course before...). Take solace in Emerson, who wrote, "A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds, adored by little statesmen and philosophers and divines."
• Try not to suck again.
— BEN POPKEN
[Photo: decaf]
Post a comment
Comments:
Fix the comment features, switch to something that isn't to fidgety. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't, sometimes it takes awhile, etc.
Hey, as long as we're complaining, fix the "Read More" thing... it shows up improperly in Firefox overrunning the last line of text in the story.
I was thinking it would be nice to offer a "parachute" to people who fire off an ungraceful response after being featured here. Especially small businesses and individuals without the benefit of a staff attorney or public relations department. It's pretty easy for someone to turn a bad day into a ruined reputation. As fun as that might be for the rest of us, it's not always the best way to bring about a positive resolution to a bad situation.
Instead of immediately posting those unfortunate legal threats and similar responses, why not reply with a guide on "how not to respond" to this sort of thing. Offer a single opportunity for the sender to redeem himself. Hopefully, they'll see the light and respond favorably. If not, it's all fair game.
I have no pity for the mega-corporations. I do feel bad for the small-time operation whose Google results are forever marred by one bad customer experience and a subsequent series of poor choices. Is there any reason not to offer one last chance to walk it back before they're tossed into the meat grinder?
Ingen, it only looks improper if you use popup blocker. consumerist doesn't have the obligation to make itself look pretty when you circumvent its displays.
Read More error shows up for people using Ad Blocker. I've been meaning to chat about that.
I used to listen to BBC online all the time. They teamed up with Real players and for awhile I could only get about 30 seconds of every broadcast before it would crap out. I went to their website and called their service number (not easy to find). They made it seem like it was my fault. I think they just weren't adequately prepared to have that many people access their services. I hate it when it's "my fault" but it's really not.
I once attended a John Grey(sp?) lecture and he gave a three step lesson for men to get out of any misdeed:
1] Own it.
2] Apologize for it.
3] Sincerely state you will not do it again.
It seems to apply to blogs as well.
Real Player blows, I hate it. Shame on you for not needling them into posting it as (easily savable) flash video.
I recommend you send this out to every small business owner that becomes the subject of a complaint. At least you could say you warned them...
Oh, and don't forget to copy legal@weddingdepot.com