Social media can be a double-edged sword. One minute your brand is trending for the right reasons—great campaign, happy customers, viral moment. The next, you’re dealing with a wave of criticism, whether justified or not. Bad publicity can escalate quickly, but how you handle it makes all the difference.

Take a breath before you react
First things first: don’t panic. It’s easy to feel like you must respond immediately to everything, but rushing into defensive mode often makes things worse. Take a moment to assess the situation. What exactly is being said? Is the criticism valid? Who’s saying it? Get the full picture before you decide on your response.

Acknowledge the issue openly
If your organisation has made a mistake, own it. A sincere, timely, and human response often wins more respect than silence or defensiveness. “We hear you” and “We’re looking into this” can go a long way, if you follow through with real action. If the claims are inaccurate, calmly correct the misinformation with facts, but avoid getting into public arguments.

Brief your team—clearly and quickly
This part is crucial. As soon as you’re aware of the situation, brief your staff - especially anyone who handles customer interactions, social media, or external communication. Be clear about:

• What’s happening: Provide a summary of the issue and the organisation’s response.
• What they should do: Point them to official talking points or approved responses if needed.
• What not to do: Advise them not to post personal opinions about the situation on their own social media, even if they’re trying to defend the organisation. It can unintentionally escalate things.
  
  

Encourage employees to direct any media or public enquiries to your comms team.

Monitor and learn
Continue to track what’s being said online. You might not be able to control the conversation, but you can steer it by being transparent and responsive. And when the dust settles, take time to review what happened, what worked, what didn’t, and what you can learn for next time.

Crisis handled with grace often turns into an opportunity to build trust.

 
PS If you want to stimulate your brain outside of the workplace, check out the Philosopher-in-Residence blog – out fortnightly on Thursdays, courtesy of Make Me A Plan’s Principal Planner, Anna Pascoe. Browse the latest edition
https://www.makemeaplan.com/news/on-august/