#AskJon: Is it a good idea to use social media in times of crisis? [VIDEO]

In the past, folks — companies, organizations — were not inclined to use social channels during times of crisis, because of the commentary and questions that they would get on those social platforms. Now, however, companies and organizations are more used to using those social platforms in a way that they used to use their websites. In the past, when there was a crisis, companies would put out a statement. They invariably would put those statements on their websites and they drive all of the media questions and all of the public questions to those websites.

Now that social platforms are used as regular communications outlets, folks are more inclined to post those statements directly on Instagram or on Facebook. And, then manage the commentary offline in ways that are more safe than answering those questions in public. So, I would say, and we’re seeing this more and more often, that if you are used to managing your social platforms on a daily basis, putting that commentary, putting those quotes immediately on social platforms, is a good way to reach your audiences and the public.

Jon Newman

In 2002 Jon cofounded The Hodges Partnership and has helped to grow it into one of the country’s largest public relations firms (based on O’Dwyer’s annual rankings). Jon has taught communications as an adjunct professor at VCU, speaks regularly at conferences and meetings and blogs and tweets about public relations and marketing issues.

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