Mumbai: In 2017, Airtel launched an ad promoting its high speed internet services. The idea was that people would use Airtel 4G on their smartphones to learn new skills. This was touted as the ‘Airtel University’. Netizens had other ideas. Everywhere on social media, the ad was mocked and the whole idea of the ad was ridiculed. Needless to say, Airtel had to withdraw the ad as soon as possible before things got out of hand.
For brands, social media is a paradox that they cannot overlook. We have brands that have built their entire customer base solely through the power of viral reels, while on the other hand we have reputed brands that have lost significant market share because they weren’t careful about what was going on online.
In 2018, Dolce and Gabbana, a reputed Italian fashion brand, lost millions of dollars and permanently damaged their reputation in China when a video showing a Chinese model struggling to eat pasta was circulated online allegedly by co-founder Stefano Gabbana. This was hours before a multi-million dollar fashion show was scheduled by the brand in Shanghai. Not only did they have to cancel the show, major retailers dropped the label. This was in a market where they used to make about 30% of their annual sales.
Today, Dolce and Gabbana is operating in the red, where it hasn’t been able to regain the trust of their loyal customers in China, despite their best efforts.
Even a delayed response to false rumors circulating online can become a PR disaster. On April 9, 2017, United Airlines forcefully removed a passenger from an overbooked flight. Other passengers recorded the incident and posted it online, where the company’s official handles responded well. By the time the flight landed, more passengers tweeted about the incident and within hours, the incident became viral, with more than 125,000 mentions on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook. Social Media tracking firm Brandwatch estimated that the incident got a whopping 1.4 billion impressions online in just a few hours of the incident.
When the stock market opened on 11th April, United lost almost $1.4 billion in market value. At this point, the company’s CEO had to publicly apologise to the passenger in question, but the damage was done. Approval ratings for United dropped to 69% from 91% before the incident, and even though the CEO promised to change its policies, discussions of the incident lingered on.
United had all the resources they needed to get themselves out of this situation, but others aren’t that lucky. You never know when a false tweet or comment can snowball into a disaster for your brand’s reputation that has taken years to earn, permanently damaging your reputation. That’s why every brand has someone who keeps a watch on whatever’s going on online, both about the brand and its competitors. Feedback from genuine tweets, comments and reviews can help you grab opportunities, counter threats and help you grow.
Social media remains the most powerful tool for customer interaction, feedback and purchasing behaviour. That’s why many marketing managers now double up as PR agents as well. They have to keep their eyes and ears open to sense threats, grab opportunities or deal with threats that may come from time to time. Now that AI-generated content has flooded Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, how it manages to reshape public opinions and brand narratives remains to be seen.
