How not to react to negative social conversation

If you read my BIMA blog, please go no further as this is a duplicate of a post I published there already.

If you’re a brand guardian, have you ever wondered how to respond to bloggers who make negative comments about your products or services? Have you wondered whether to react at all? If you’re an agency, have you thought about how to answer this question when your clients start to ask?

Well, one thing is for sure, you should never tell bloggers that they should remove comments about your brand or you’ll take them to court. This will only encourage them and other bloggers to highlight your silliness on their blogs. This results in a pyramid marketing campaign of bad publicity which can easily spiral out of (your) control.
The only way to influence a conversation about your brand is to get involved in that conversation. You do this by listening to what others have to say and then do one of three things. Let’s call it AED for short.

1. Apologise and explain how you will make change
2. Explain your position and solicit their feedback on your explanation
3. Defend yourself, providing constructive feedback

Damien Mulley, who’s flying in from Ireland to speak at our next Breakfast Bite and who I’ve invited to be a guest writer on this blog, was on one end of this conversation today. Take a look at Damien’s natural reaction to a marketing agency ripping off his content and their reaction to his blog post.

You don’t learn when talking, you only learn when listening.