In social media, as in any public relations, the goal is to create positive public awareness for your product or brand. Unfortunately, DiGiorno’s social media department embarrassed themselves and their company and ended up eating humble pizza pie.
Photo courtesy of catiebenenson.wordpress.com
The food company set a perfect example of what not to do when managing a social media account. During Ray Rice’s suspension over his alleged acts of domestic violence, the Twitter hashtag; #WhyIStayed was created for people to share stories about domestic violence in their own lives.
In an attempt to be relevant, DiGiorno delivered what many believed to be an insensitive comment by tweeting: #WhyIStayed. You had pizza.”
To give DiGiorno the benefit of the doubt, it is likely that whomever made this post was unaware as to what exactly this hashtag referred, and wrote this tweet with comical intentions. However, most did not find it funny.
Social media failures made by companies, as well as individuals, are seen nearly every day. In order to avoid these mishaps, one must be very informed, sensitive, and careful: full of care in addition to creative and clever. This can be a lesson to anyone who is in control of his or her own, or someone else’s, social media account.
If DiGiorno’s social media folks were paying closer attention to the media and the surrounding media atmosphere, they would have avoided this insensitive and very public, social media mistake!