Jewish American Heritage Month

Posted By richards on October 22, 2014

When DiGiorno tweeted, "You had pizza. #WhyIStayed," Twitter lit up with criticism of the brand.

The hashtag "WhyIStayed" is associated with domestic violence.

In response to the firestorm its tweet unleashed, DiGiorno peppered its Twitter feed with apology after apology, all of them essentially like this: "A million apologies. Did not read what the hashtag was about before posting."

The furor around DiGiorno's gaffe and the company's extensive blast of apologies demonstrate how vital it is to hone one's ability to use social media to apologize for mistakes.

"Social media apologies are important, as brands don't want to seem impervious to their mistakes," said Jarone Ashkenazi, account manager with PMBC Group.

"When a mistake arises, the issue is amplified online, so brands must come up with a dignified and appropriate apology for mistakes they make," he told CRM Buyer. "Furthermore, a social media apology is important because it will protect the brand's image."

Apologies are a central part of human communication. They smooth over wrongs and facilitate the kinds of changes that are necessary to keep relationships functional -- whether those relationships are personal or professional. In many ways, personal and professional apologies can be similar.

"A good apology says what it was you did wrong," said Susan McCarthy, cofounder of SorryWatch.

"It doesn't' say 'I'm sorry for those unfortunate events.' It doesn't dance around, saying the circumstances are regrettable. Maybe there should be an explanation, but there shouldn't be a long explanation about how the company is a victim," she told CRM Buyer. "You should say how it won't happen again."

SorryWatch -- a website dedicated to documenting public apologies -- was started by McCarthy and Marjorie Ingall to track both effective and ineffective apologies.

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Mea Culpa: Social Media Apology Do's and Don'ts

Category: Ashkenazi
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