I’ve blogged about social media crisis communications previously; the very first step in social media crisis management is to be prepared. In addition to a good social media marketing plan you also need a strong crisis communications plan that incorporates  monitoring and application. Here are six things to consider before you encounter a seemingly out-of-control situation in your social media channels.

1. Contemplate worst cases. Part of your social media crisis communications plan should include playing out scenarios. What are the worst things that could happen if things spun out of control in social media? People would be angry? You’d lose customers? Your brand would be damaged? You’d lose consumer trust? Address each of these issues now and how work to solve these problems.
2. Monitor overtime. Have you noted an a few more dissatisfied customers blogging, tweeting and commenting than usual? Did something happen recently that could qualify as “an incident” that someone got on tape and uploaded onto social media channels? You should have in your plan a monitoring strategy that can be ramped up to 24 hours a day and a communications process to text or call key strategists and spokespeople if something must be addressed immediately.
3. Don’t panic. If you see trouble brewing, don’t let your emotions get the better of you and lead you to acting in a non-strategic fashion. Don’t grasp at straws, don’t respond in a knee-jerk fashion to the tense online conversations, and don’t lose your cool. If you feel anxious about what you’re reading and seeing in your social media channels — particularly if it starts looking like complete anarchy — go back to your plan for grounding.
4. Respond strategically. You have to be agile in a crisis communications situation and often push yourselves past your comfort zone to defuse the situation. Your plan is a good focal point for your communications efforts when things go awry, but you also need to observe any new dynamics that are occurring that you may not have anticipated. Be strategic about any responses you put out there. Most individual questions from a crowd that is demanding answers do not need to be addressed individually. Instead you could compile them into a FAQ to cover broader ground and keep things neutral and even-toned. You will have to make decisions on the fly but keep your strategy in mind.
5. Sit it out. As Kenny Rogers said, “You have to know when to hold ‘em.” Sometimes your voice inserted into the negative social media conversations will have the affect of gasoline on a fire. Not everyone wants to hear you defending yourself or your company. Not everyone needs to hear the desperation — or frustration — in your voice by the words you choose in heated moments. Just wait. If you’ve done a good job of building trust in your social media-hosted communities, your community could actually begin policing itself. Your supporters may respond to the naysayers in positive ways, helping to defuse the situation before you even have to get involved. Some things do work themselves out, but knowing how much to get involved — and what to say when you do — takes experience and finesse.
6. Be respectful. No matter what you end up saying to your social media-based audiences, always take the high road, never say more than you need to, and make sure every sentence you put out there is even-toned and highly respectful of others. Sometimes people just want to hear themselves vent. Other times, people just want to jump on the bandwagon of the frenzy. If someone has a legitimate gripe, quickly and appropriately responding while respecting other people’s feelings is the best approach. Not sure how to start? Why not start with “I understand and respect your feelings in this matter. I hear what you’re saying.” Now calmly provide information that addresses the issue.

How prepared are you for a social media communications crisis?

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We’ve all learned that good news travels fast online, but bad news travels faster. Now, with social networks, blogs and microblogs, the speed with which bad news can travel online is staggering, as everyone can get in on the conversation almost instantly. What can any of us — individuals, organizations and companies — do to handle a social media communications crisis?

After publishing my 10 Golden Rules of Social Media, I’ve been asked by a number of people what to do when things go wrong in the social mediasphere. Anyone who is putting themselves out there using social media tools is bound to encounter moments of crisis — some as large as the Domino’s fiasco, others as small as an old-fashioned person-to-person flame war.

My advice is to plan now. Don’t wait for that communications crisis to take place before planning for how you’ll handle the fallout when something bad (inevitably) happens. Here’s a blueprint you can use for your own plan.

1. Pay attention. Whether you are using Google Alerts or Twilert or any other monitoring service to see when your name or brand name is mentioned, setting up “digital listening posts” is essential to help learn about not just the good things people are saying about you, but the bad things as well. Getting an early “heads up” can make all the difference in the world between crisis and total disaster.

2. Review context. Before you panic and jump the gun to respond to what might appear to be a crisis, dig a little deeper to make sure you understand what is being said and why. You don’t want to enter the conversation until you have a firm grasp on the issues being raised.

3. Address promptly. Timeliness is everything when dealing with and defusing the crisis. Every day, every hour, every minute you agonize over what to do — or ignore the situation altogether — is time wasted.

4. Acknowledge first. Once you figure out what has happened and what some of the emotions are behind it, make sure to address these issues or emotions in your responses. Like any good interpersonal communications, start with statements like “I understand you’re frustrated” or “We realize this is a confusing situation.” Give credence to the other party’s feelings and perceptions. They may not be correct, but they are valid in that they’re what they believe and feel.

5. Don’t overthink. Running through committees, endless drafts and approval processes to get a response out there can cause far more damage than good. As long as you have taken the time to assess the situation and can take a rational, respectful tone in your response, even an awkward response is OK to start with, and buys you time to continue to respond to the problem.

6. Be open. If you’re upset, nervous, worried, shocked — don’t be afraid to express that as well. People want to see a human response to a crisis, not an overproduced, formulaic or canned reply. When there is a crisis, there are people involved. Pretending there are no emotions mixed in the mess is a surefire way to lose credibility with others. Domino’s CEO responded pretty quickly and openly. However, check out his response to the crisis. The CEO never once looks at the camera. If you are going to be open and forthcoming in your response, at least look straight at the camera at some point. Even when reading from a teleprompter, you can set it up so your eyes are directed at the camera. Otherwise, you’ll look shifty and untrustworthy.

7. Fix the problem. If the crisis is bringing a problem to your attention, admit it, address it and fix it. If something is wrong and you can make it right, do it. If something isn’t really wrong but someone perceives that it is wrong, don’t dismiss their concerns. Take every exchange seriously, and do your best. That is all anyone can really expect. If you make sincere efforts and consistently take the high road, you stand to gain some goodwill, even if the problem is not entirely resolved.

8. Tell your story. Telling your own story throughout the “fixing” process is another good way of helping defuse the issue. Giving updates such as “We’re still looking into that bug that caused your data loss,” and “Please contact us privately so we can make amends to this situation” lets anyone paying attention to the situation see something is being done, even some of it has to happen “behind-the-scenes.”

What other things should we think about when it comes to crisis communications in a social media-powered world?

Related research and analysis from GigaOM Pro:
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