Lately there has been a big hub bub about Nestle’s fan page on Facebook. You see Nestle has a fan page just like lots of other forward thinking companies and I’m sure that they thought that this was a total win, win situation. It seems like a no brainer, go where the people are and besides its free. What could go wrong?
Well… It appears that lots of people are upset with Nestle about their environmental usage and started posting negative comments on the Nestle Facebook Fan Page. Nestle didn’t seem to excited about their critics doing so and now there is an all out battle. Both sides have said some pretty rude things to each other and so the question has to be asked, at what point is this free ride over?
It doesn’t appear that Nestle was prepared to deal with a hostile fan base on Facebook. There doesn’t appear to be a clear strategy as to how to handle an angry virtual crowd outside your virtual doors. My guess is that the Facebook Nestle Fan Page was delegated to some Jr person without much guidance. In fact I really have to wonder how much thinking and more importantly experience the PR people have with new media? My guess is not much.
My advice for you is no matter if you are big or small you must think about these things through the eyes of the New Media. I wouldn’t know where to turn for guidance in traditional print media but I get it when it comes to Social media and New Media. Make sure that the people you hire get it too. Ask for references, ask for examples of their work, and don’t settle for how things were done yesterday. Its whats going to happen today and tomorrow that is going to make or break you!
