While this embarrassing Twitter fiasco is a few months old, it is a great example of how NOT to use social media. Back in January, a former VP of Ketchum Interactive Communications got himself into major trouble after carelessly tweeting upon landing in Memphis, TN for a meeting with one of his biggest clients.
James Andrews was headed for his presentation on digital and social media for the worldwide communications group at FedEx, when he tweeted:
“True confession but I’m in one of those towns where I scratch my head and say, “I would die if I had to live here!”
Not only did an employee at FedEx find Andrews’ tweet, but when he responded he copied the FedEx Corporate Vice President, Vice President, Directors and all management of FedEx’s communication department AND the chain of command at Ketchum on his e-mail:
Mr. Andrews,
If I interpret your post correctly, these are your comments about Memphis a few hours after arriving in the global headquarters city of one of your key and lucrative clients, and the home of arguably one of the most important entrepreneurs in the history of business, FedEx founder Fred Smith.
Many of my peers and I feel this is inappropriate. We do not know the total millions of dollars FedEx Corporation pays Ketchum annually for the valuable and important work your company does for us around the globe. We are confident however, it is enough to expect a greater level of respect and awareness from someone in your position as a vice president at a major global player in your industry. A hazard of social networking is people will read what you write.
Not knowing exactly what prompted your comments, I will admit the area around our airport is a bit of an eyesore, not without crime, prostitution, commercial decay, and a few potholes. But there is a major political, community, religious, and business effort underway, that includes FedEx, to transform that area. We’re hopeful that over time, our city will have a better “face” to present to visitors.
James, everyone participating in today’s event, including those in the auditorium with you this morning, just received their first paycheck of 2009 containing a 5% pay cut… which we wholeheartedly support because it continued the tradition established by Mr. Smith of doing whatever it takes to protect jobs.
Considering that we just entered the second year of a U.S. recession, and we are experiencing significant business loss due to the global economic downturn, many of my peers and I question the expense of paying Ketchum to produce the video open for today’s event; work that could have been achieved by internal, award-winning professionals with decades of experience in television production.
Additionally Mr. Andrews, with all due respect, to continue the context of your post; true confession: many of my peers and I don’t see much relevance between your presentation this morning and the work we do in Employee Communications.
(Signed as a personal message by a member of the FedEx Corporate Communications team)
For me, the kicker in all of this is that Andrews was supposed to be the expert on social media. In any case it is a great reminder, that just like anything else, manners are necessary when using social media.
Here are five things to keep in mind when using social media:
1. Publishing still means publishing – Whenever you post something on Twitter, Facebook, or your LinkedIn account you are publishing information to the web. This means that with the exception of setting loose privacy settings, anyone can get access to your information.
2. Don’t use text-messsage short hand for professional uses, it won’t make clients or employees LOL – Using text-message short hand in e-mails or responses won’t make you look cool or down to earth. It’s definitely not a good way to be efficient and it will more than likely make you look stupid and unprofessional.
3. Be aware of your audience – It’s important to know the audience or target market for your blog, website, or posts. Some people are more sensitive to certain things and may take something you write out of context. While Andrews probably didn’t intend to offend anyone at FedEx, his tweet was not well received and probably taken out of context.
4. Transparent communication isn’t the same as being rude – While it is important to maintain a certain level of transparent communication with associated and the public, that doesn’t mean you can be rude. If you wouldn’t say something to someone’s face then you shouldn’t be posting it online.
5. Respect is still the name of the game – Whether your working with social media or not, respect is key. More than ever before we are operating as a global market and it is absolutely imperative to respect what everyone else is trying to accomplish.
Photo by Intersection Consulting
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