Reflection on Social Media Case 1: McDStories


Hashtags can be a very powerful tool for businesses using social media. They can be used for campaigns and a way to rally people around ideas, products, and connection. There are many pros and cons to using hashtags. Personally, I believe the most salient pro is how hashtags allow people to join a conversation and have dialogue. The hashtag groups certain topics together, so it promotes a space for people to rally around concepts and to come together. You can see this through hashtags that emerged due to events across the world like #prayforparis #notmypresident and so forth. Naturally, this sphere can bring controversy and cons. People could overuse hashtags, so they lose their value. On the contrary, users could misuse them.

This misuse is called hashtag high-jacking and has become a major problem for businesses who incorporate them. One infamous example of this is Mcdonald’s campaign #McDStories. They were expecting their beloved customers to share the wonderful experiences they’ve had at their institution, but that wasn’t the case. Instead some of the reactions were mortifying to the corporation. Knowing my generation and the freedom that comes with twitter, this didn’t shock me.

They could have avoided the gravity of this situation in many ways. Felber PR and Marketing  gave several tips such as avoiding controversial topics in your hashtag unless you’re ready to fight back. They expressed the importance of playing devil’s advocate and thinking of every situation where your hashtag could be twisted. Whether it be naivety, ignorance, or just lack of thinking things through, Mcdonald’s did not engage in this. Instead they thought of all the wonderful stories and connections that could come from this campaign. As a result, they had a PR disaster, which led to them cancelling the hashtag. Secondly, they left the hashtag too open ended, so it was relatively easy for the internet “trolls” to twist the hashtag.


When you use hashtag’s efficiently, they can be beneficial for businesses or the sharing of ideas. However, it’s important to remember that social media creates a platform for sharing and involving all sorts of ideas and opinions, wanted or not. We are a driven people, but we are also a meme-loving people, so businesses must be on their toes; always prepared to combat against the internet trolls.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Reflection on Social Media Case 8: Pastor's 10% to God

After a Pastor refused to pay an 18% tip because they paid 10% to God, so why would they pay that tip to the server, the receipt was posted on Reddit and resulted in over 4000 comments, primarily negative. Although the server was fired, I believe the Pastor's reputation was damaged more. The receipt was very hypocritical to many Christian belief's and I find it interesting that the Pastor accused the server of damaging their reputation because they did it to themselves, the waitress just showed it to people. I think this reminds us that we need to be a little kinder and definitely more aware of how our actions affect others. The server was fired because they shared personal information and a transaction of a customer. I think this was justified because that is against Applebee's policy and I think the policy is there to protect the customer. Technically, the server shouldn't have shared the receipt, but I'm happy they did because I don't think people realize how
Read more

Virtual Reality and Social Media

Image
Virtual Reality (VR) is a new technology typically used in video games. " Virtual reality allows developers to artificially create simulations and real-life situations or experiences. Coupled with a virtual reality headset, users are immersed into these simulations in a way that makes it seem it’s actually real."  VR is the future of social media in my opinion. It's common for people to play video games with people across the world, so communicating with others through a virtual reality would be completely possible. It is common for VR video games to include an avatar for yourself and I think this can move into social media because VR allows you to be anywhere without going anywhere. I think that if people create avatars of themselves you will be able to interact with people all around the world in this virtual reality. Consumer's social spheres will expand because they will have an opportunity to interact with those from other cultures and backgrounds int
Read more

Reflection on Social Media Case 7: Anthony Weiner’s Post

The US Congressman Anthony Weiner sent sexually explicit photos to a 21-year-old woman through direct messaging on twitter. Other inappropriate content with other women and minors unfolded. In the beginning he tried to deny the allegations, but with the pressure and stir of social media he came clean with the truth. Social media does create a sphere where if you're hiding something, it will be brought to the surface. Especially if millions of people are looking for that truth. This can effect reputation, but I think there is a more important issue to focus on here. Anthony Weiner (an unfortunate last name for this topic, but here goes) sexually harassed several women. Whether his intentions were pure or not, if these actions were not wanted by the women, this is considered harassment. Social media has created a whole new world for this issue. In the past, sexual harassment or assault has been a topic that has been very taboo and I believe this was because of the sexism that exist
Read more