Social Media during a crisis

The coronavirus has arrived at a time when Social Media has never been stronger, and the world has never been more connected in the way that it is today.

We are having to deal with two viruses at once – COVID-19 and Social Media which acts as a catalyst for fake news and panic promotion.

As a worldwide population, it is unlikely we have ever experienced something this wide-spread before or will ever experience again. So how can businesses be using social media effectively and positively, when there are no rule books on how to do so?

Here are some Top Tips to keep up appearances positively on Social Media!

1.Escapism

As people are confined to the realms of their own home without much access to the outdoors it is important to break up their newsfeed from news articles, with pictures and articles that can transport them away. This can include landscape shots, peoples faces, top tips and videos that provide a certain escape to the viewer.

This is a soft approach but at the same time promotes your businesses ideals and services without coming across as promotional.

2. Avoiding Humour

Although there is a lot of doom and gloom on our newsfeeds currently, filling it with humour at a time like this, especially from a business angle, can be easily scrutinised by the public and media. Although you may see it as harmless, on the other end of a screen someone could perceive it as being insensitive. Keep your jokes until after the Health Crisis and focus on some positivity instead!

3. No Politics

Unless your business is involved with politics, keep away from sharing your views on the current situation. A business should not be seen to be taking sides or promoting a news story, you never know what could be real or fake news! Even on your personal accounts, if you have your company listed in your bio, posting controversial comments can come back to bite you!

4. Be social on social

Let’s use social media for its desired intention – to be social. Communicate with your followers, share constant updates on your progress and be interactive. People need reassurance at the moment so if you are in events for example and don’t know whether a certain event is going be cancelled be transparent and share your knowledge with your followers so they feel in the loop. As long as people that are interested in your business feel they are being talked to, they will more than likely feel reassured and stay loyal.

5. Avoid the present tense

When creating content, either dig back into the archives and post a throwback or talk hypothetically about the future, talking about the present at the moment can also be deemed insensitive and come off as promotional. This allows you to still share relevant and positive content without causing a stir!

We hope these tips will prove useful to you and your business and can help you keep up a presence on Social Media!