Almost every major company will eventually face a reputation issue. As a prominent example, Facebook recently experienced a scandal regarding a data breach. On this episode of The Sigrun Show, I welcome Joanne Sweeney-Burke to discuss how Facebook's PR crisis should have been handled.
Joanne is a former broadcast journalist and PR lecturer who has pivoted her career to becoming a highly sought-after digital marketing expert and consultant in Ireland. She is the founder of the Digital Training Institute, a full-service digital marketing agency dedicated to helping entrepreneurs achieve greater success by mastering the skills of digital and social media marketing. Additionally, she is the author of Social Media Under Investigation: Law Enforcement and the Social Web and the host of the JSB Talks Digital Podcast.
Joanne joins me to discuss the current scandal around Facebook's PR crisis, the CEO’s approach to doing business and the sharing of data, and the impact that this scandal has had on the company from a business and PR perspective. She explains what Mark Zuckerberg should have done in the beginning phases of the data breach scandal breaking international news, how the approach he decided to take impacted the trust of his Facebook users, and the impact that legislative changes can have on the future of the company. She also shares tips on what small business owners can do to protect themselves from potential PR crises and best practice strategies you should use when faced with a PR crisis.
When the chips are down - you need to rise up. - Joanne Sweeney-Burke
In This Episode of The Sigrun Show:
- How the Facebook data breach scandal has impacted the company
- How the scandal regarding the alleged data breach initially developed
- Concerns regarding trusting Facebook after the data breach scandal
- Why working behind the scenes to fix the problem was a massive mistake
- Potential reasons why Facebook did not announce the alleged breach sooner
- Predictions for the safety of Facebook user’s data in the future
- The impact that this scandal may have on the future of Facebook ad targeting
- Keeping trust and transparency top of mind when creating Facebook ads
- The best approach to handling a PR crisis
- How small business owners can protect themselves before and during a PR crisis
- How to rebuild trust once it is lost
Resources Mentioned:
- Google Alerts
- Talkwalker Alerts
- If You Had One Hour With Mark Zuckerberg, What Would You Ask? Here’s What I Learned About The State And Futrue Of Facebook, Data, Politics And Bad Actors – article by Brian Solis
Key Takeaways:
- Track online mentions for your brand.
- Establish what the crisis is once it breaks.
- Establish who is involved.
- Establish who you need to inform.
- Establish the facts.
- Establish what facts you still need to find out.