Mele’s Musings

Negative online buzz, monitor it don’t ignore it

Are you ready for the bad buzz? Are you ready to do something about it?

Picture: Google Images

Article excerpt: So your new product launch has been scuppered by a bout of negative reviews and consumer criticism. Instead of sticking your head in the sand and bemoaning the day you ever heard of buzz marketing, there are things you can do. Many marketers are well prepared for positive online buzz and relish good reviews and user-generated feedback being banded round the Internet. There are some, however, who are unprepared for negative buzz and look the other way when faced with it. What some marketers don’t realize is that how they handle negative buzz will affect how consumers see their brand almost as much as the initial bad review. Therefore, negative buzz needs to be monitored and responded to just as efficiently as the positive. This is especially true for high commitment products such as cars, mobile phones and long term subscription services – items that the consumer will have to live with for a long period of time. For these types of product negative buzz will be the most destructive as it puts an element of doubt in the consumer’s mind. So what can be done about negative buzz? Indeed, is it worth addressing the issue at all when research indicates that just 12% of Internet users find UGC on message boards and such like “trustworthy”. The rest: bizreport.com

Musing: Maybe the best part of this article is a link to a site I have never heard of but that has an interesting value proposition: www.getsatisfaction.com. Check it out. The article brings up a really interesting point about how and when to address bad buzz. Two key ideas: 1) deal with it quickly, particularly if it has to do with a service that has long-term implications, and 2) make sure your advertising is in line with the product or service delivery. If it’s not, your customers will rail you for it.