THE PHILIPPINES, DECEMBER 15, 2011: In the latest free webinar in the Certified Digital Marketer program’s Going Digital series, MRM Worldwide and Chris Lao shed light on brand interactions online.
Lao, who gained notoriety–and redemption–via social media after a news report he figured in became viral, spoke of why he decided to take up MRM’s offer to star in the BPI advertorial. The BPI Auto Loans video reliving the day he drove his car into deep floodwaters has since racked up over 100,000 views in a month, amassed over PHP 1-M worth of media coverage and caused a spike in inquiries and loan applications.
Once a simple law student, Lao shot to internet infamy and found himself facing cyberbullies. He shut down his social media accounts and found time to think abroad before returning as a brand endorser. His friends also took to the web in his defense, giving him the respect he deserved as a concerned citizen. "The campaign sped up my recovery," said Lao.
Like Lao, brands are subject to criticism and praise online, but on a daily basis. Kichi Madlansacay, Pat Cortes and Mattel Soliven of MRM’s Philippine office gave pointers on how to traverse the tricky digital path, which is new for many brands.
First, brands should evaluate what is being said about them and find out if the buzz is positive, neutral or negative. Among the sites that can help determine this are whotalking.com, socialmention.com, tweetbeep.com, technorati.com, blogpulse.com, tagbulb.com, Radian 6 and Google Alerts. Keyword phrases can be used to identify topics related to the brand.
Next is to engage and act. Isolate issues to address and determine whether to be reactive or proactive. “Being reactive is when you seed messages that will be read by the community," said Cortes. "You can also do the route of blogger engagement where bloggers can defend your brand."
"Being proactive is when the brand releases an official statement on what is going on online about your brand," continued Cortes. Another proactive method is to build up digital assets such as websites and Facebook pages.
Soliven discussed the steps to take when an online crisis hits. “Think before you act. Calmly,” she said. Brands need to determine whether to act or to let the issue slide. "If more people saying are positive things, maybe you don’t actually need to do anything," said Soliven, pointing to the example of Coca-Cola’s recent viral video "The OFW Project", which still found a few detractors despite its good intentions.
However, when there is a real problem to be addressed, the brand should respond. "Act like a human, not a robot," Soliven advised. "It’s about making amends and making the consumer realize that the relationship is important to you. The more that you act defensive…the more you alienate consumers and tick them off." On negative Facebook comments, she said: “You should never delete negative criticism. Bury it with good PR.”
Opening up the virtual floor to attendees’ questions, MRM answered questions ranging from dealing with bloggers to how chicken chain Chic-Boy should handle its social media fiasco. The recommendation for the latter: don’t do it with a defensive response but an official statement.
Chris Lao closed the session with a few words to support the passage of the anti-cyberbullying bill. "Verbal violence is no different from physical violence, or even worse," he said.
He admitted that although revenge crossed his mind, he did not run after the haters. “Was pursuing them worth my time? My main obstacle then was hurdling the bar, not get revenge," he said. "My family told me to overlook insults. That is what prudent men do.”
And what do prudent brands do? Think and act carefully when it comes to digital interactions, and bring humanity to a medium that lacks the warmth of face-to-face interactions.
For information on webinars and the Certified Digital Marketer program, visit www.digitalisnow.com.
