Bad buzz risk is certainly and rightly the one that most discourages brands from developing a true digital presence. When it comes to bad buzz, the brand finds itself, at least apparently, completely dispossessed of its communication discourse. Suddenly it is the public that controls this discourse, but from a purely negative point of view: where the buzz provides a very fruitful visibility for the company, the bad buzz has the effect of doing exactly the opposite, since it can go that way Far from destroying the reputation of even the most solid company.
Fortunately, storytelling can be an excellent ally: not by telling nonsense, of course, but by delivering a speech that allows the brand to weather the media storm and capitalize on the bad talk to keep moving forward.
In this article, I’ll tell you why I think storytelling is emerging as one of the most powerful tools related to dealing with bad buzz, as with any form of crisis management in general.
Storytelling: an effective crisis management technique
No matter what crisis the company is in, storytelling offers an operational answer that is both structured and particularly effective.
What is a bad buzz? It is a negative word-of-mouth phenomenon on a brand or company, conveyed and amplified in particular through social networks. The origin of the bad buzz, i.e. the outrage of Internet users, may or may not be based on this. What is essential, however, is that the discourse or discourses conveyed by digital rumors thus assume the value of truth.
Many companies faced with this prefer to remain silent about it: What is the point of reacting at the risk of making the situation worse?
but that’s exactly what you shouldn’t do: on the contrary, the company must speak up and counter the discourse with a controlled discourse. For this, storytelling is an excellent ally.
Understand the dynamics of a bad buzz
The dynamic is simple: we can isolate 4 stages.
- A user reacts negatively to an action or word from the company
- The Internet user posts his dissatisfaction on social networks
- This dissatisfaction is passed on by other internet users who add their own dissatisfaction
- It is the snowball effect: the negative rumor swells on social networks and the situation is no longer controllable for the company.
In this context, the company has no other choice: it has to produce discourses if it wants to get out of this situation.
Storytelling to get out of the bad mood through narrative discourse
Storytelling’s contribution to dealing with a bad buzz doesn’t involve inventiveness and imagination: let’s be clear, only the truth will save you. But storytelling’s contribution will be to propose a structure to bring this truth into discourse.
Take the example of Samsung a few years ago and its bad reputation related to defective batteries in its Galaxy Note: the way it handled the crisis remains a textbook case of storytelling’s contribution in that management.
There are two situations to examine:
The bad buzz is justified
How to structure your speech in this context:
- Acknowledge your mistake: This is the most important one
- Explain in what context it happened
- Please indicate how the company intends to fix this error
- Show how the company will use this incident to move forward
The bad talk is unfounded
How to structure your speech in this context:
- Repeat the truth firmly
- Explain why there may have been a misunderstanding or misunderstanding
- Describe the truth and its positive effects and why bad talk leads to great risks
- Show how the company will use this incident to move forward
Of course, in any case, it is important to be accompanied by a communication professional in the formalization of these speeches, which are strategic in resolving the situation.
Far from being a fatality for the company, the bad vibes must on the contrary be addressed head on so that the latter can escape from it. But let’s not forget that bad buzz can also be a particularly powerful marketing tool, and there are many instances of companies that have decided to create them to work on their visibility.
In any case, get professional help.
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