How To Handle Tragedy On Your Company’s Social Media Channel

In light of the recent hurricanes, earth quake and tragic events in Las Vegas, we thought it would be an appropriate time to discuss how to handle a tragedy with your company’s social media. Above all else, you want to make sure that you are being respectful. Less is more and simple is best.

Here are the major things to consider:

Look at your social media calendar for that day. Pause all content for any major disasters or tragedies. You do not want to be the brand posting about your newest #MeatlessMonday when every other brand is either not publishing or publishing messages of support and/or condolences.

Craft a post. Write a post for your platforms that expresses a point of view from your company. Do you use family-related tone, for example? You would want a post that read something like, “From our family to yours…” or “Our hearts are heavy” or “We are all thinking and praying for [community] today.” Make it heartfelt. Do not use it as a chance to market your products. Ever.

Do not make it about you. Post-hurricane is not a time for “retail therapy.” Refrain from inserting your products or business into this conversation unless it is directly related. For example, a foundation raising funds or sending its staff to help.

Refrain from commenting about specifics. Discussing details of the event will be read as inappropriate.

Tie to a charity or cause if appropriate. Share how the company is going to be involved in any subsequent efforts. We would recommend sharing this information after the first day of a tragic event. For example, thoughts and prayers to hurricane victims the day of and a few days later discuss how your company intends to help. Always follow up and share how you helped if you are asking your customers to participate with you or make a contribution through you.

Being in the moment when you are managing your company’s social media channels is crucial to avoiding any missteps in tragic situations. For this reason, our team has news alerts set, combs trending hashtags on Facebook and Twitter and watches the news daily. Being aware of what is happening in the world is so important to your brand’s social media success.

October Holidays To Use In Your Social Media Content

October brings a whole host of big “holidays” – Halloween, Breast Cancer Awareness Month, National Kale Day (yes, it’s a thing). Using these holidays when they’re appropriate for your brand or business can be a great way to stir up engagement. Slotting these days into your calendar in advance also allows you to develop strong content ahead of time and fill out your calendar.

Let’s get to it!

Adopt a Shelter Dog Month

If you want to have a fun internal communications play, or showcase what it’s like to work for your company, utilizing this month theme can be great! Have a photo contest at the office – let your employees submit their fav pet photos and everyone vote on the cutest (or have different criteria, i.e., cutest, smallest, biggest, most handsome/prettiest, etc.). It’s something fun for your staff and it shows a fun side to your company culture.

Breast Cancer Awareness Month

While this is the biggest and most likely best known October Month ‘holiday,’ we would implore you to treat this one delicately. Make sure that you are participating in this content in a genuine way and providing value to the cause (not just your audience). Make a donation. Show your internal team participating in a walk. Have everyone wear pink one day at the office in solidarity and share those images across social media.

National Vegetarian Month

If you are a food brand or retail location, think about sharing content all month long that features vegetarian products and/or recipes! It does not need to be the only focus, but it can be front and center for the month. You know people love their #MeatLessMondays! Also, if you manage a Pinterest account, move a Vegetarian board to the first slot in October. If you don’t have one yet, create one! And, make it the first board you see when you look at your account.

National Homemade Cookies Day – October 1

Cooler weather will have people ready to bake! This is a great chance to start a contest if appropriate for your brand. You could even use it to have a fun little internal battle for the best homemade cookie! If you don’t want to run a contest for National Homemade Cookies Day, sharing photos across social media that will have everyone drooling will suffice! You can also share recipes prior to the day to help your customer prepare themselves for the ‘holiday’ celebration.

World Vegetarian Day – October 1

The perfect day to launch your Vegetarian Month campaign! If you don’t focus on Vegetarian Month, sharing recipes and general content around the day is perfect.

National Kale Day – October 4

We weren’t kidding, it’s a thing! Share all those recipes that make people actually want to eat kale! (Can you tell one or two of us aren’t that into kale over here? We really do want you to share delish kale recipes, just for our sake!)

Columbus Day – October 9

Everyone loves those Columbus Day sales! Make sure to promote the sales ahead of time (before that weekend shopping routine kicks in) and again the day-of.

National Angel Food Cake Day – October 10

If you are a food brand or retail location that can make use of this day, go for it! Share how your products can be used in an Angel Food Cake recipe, share beautiful photos, or even challenge your customers to share their own creations!

Friday the 13^th – October 13^th

Is it bad luck? Is it good luck? Ask your customers!

World Egg Day – October 13^th

There are so many things one can do with the simple egg. Share your brand’s favorites with your customers, ask for photos, etc.

National Pasta Day – October 17 (also World Pasta Day, October 25)

Get your customers ready for the day ahead of time. Think about sharing instructional videos on pasta making. A Facebook Live with a chef where your customers can ask questions about making homemade pasta, pasta sauce, perfect ravioli stuffing – excellent value-added content! Also, now we are hungry.

National Candy Corn Day – October 30

Candy Corn crafts! Recipes! Photos! If your retail location sells Candy Corn or it’s relevant to your brand/business/audience, don’t skip it!

Halloween – October 31

There are so many things to do with Halloween! You can have a costume contest related to your brand (tease this early to prep your customer for participation). You can have a costume contest in your office and share the results. You can share costume ideas related to your brand! Be sure to plan a piece of content for this day regardless of your brand though – you don’t want to look like your company forgot the day!

Wacky September “Holidays” To Use For Your Food Brand

A new month means a new content calendar! September is another moment in the year that brings new fresh starts – new school years, new television, new football season, and the arrival of autumn.  September is full of great wacky “holidays” especially for food brands. Here are some ideas on how to use these holidays in your food brand’s favor this month.

September 1: Cherry Popover Day

Food brand or food store, a baked good holiday is a good holiday for you! If your brand is related to flour or baking supplies, or especially cherries, go on and post some cherry popover ideas!  We also recommend asking your customers to share photos of their creations and/or their favorite recipes. Think about photography! The more beautiful the photo, the more likely you are to interrupt their scroll.

September 2: International Bacon Day

Bacon is having its moment! Besides the obvious sharing photos and recipes, content around bacon products could also be shared. Bacon flavored floss, anyone? If there is a conflict with your brand, stick to recipes and photos. You could even ask for customers to drop a hands up emoji if they had their bacon today!

Sepember 4: Labor Day

It’s important to remember actual holidays for what they are intended (such as the difference between Memorial Day and Veteran’s day). Here are some examples from other brands who successful (and tastefully) celebrated labor day on their social channels.

September 5: Cheese Pizza Day

Pizza lovers will rally behind this one! Spend your day on every social platform you use and dedicate it to pizza: the history of, recipes, toppings, emojis. Make all your customers hungry!

September 6: Read a Book Day

If your brand has a CSR program related to education this is a big opportunity to show your customers how you support the organizations with which you’re involved. You could also use it as a moment to talk about cookbooks, food memoirs, healthy living books, etc.

September 7: National Salami Day

Salami brands, get ready! Challenge your customers to make a cheese dish for an appetizer tonight, share a recipe, show how to use salami in a unique, new or uncommon way.

September 10: Grandparents Day

What recipes did your grandparents always make for you? What foods remind you of your grandparents? Such a fun way to engage your customers! Making them nostalgic creates an emotional connection with your brand. Additionally, challenging your customers to call their grandparents, make them dinner, etc, can be a great way to engage them.

September 10: Swap Ideas Day

If you’re open to hearing what customers have to say about your brand, this can be a great way to get some feedback! Or you can present a challenge to them, such as, what should we do with this spot in our office?

September 13: Fortune Cookie Day

Give everyone in your office a fortune cookie and have them all post photos of their fortune cookies using a branded hashtag! Repost your favorite photos on your social channels.

September 13: Peanut Day

Allergy awareness? Making your own peanut butter? How to boil peanuts? Traditions of peanuts in a ballpark? If it works for your brand there are plenty of angles to take with this one!

September 18: National Cheeseburger Day

Get one more in before fall is here! Ask for recipes, share unique toppings, share ideas to take that all American classic into fall!

September 19: International Talk Like a Pirate Day

How long can your customers do it? Challenge them and find out! We wouldn’t recommend talking ALL day like a pirate on your channels, but the first post or most of the day on Twitter gets our approval.

September 22: First Day of Fall

Is it now socially acceptable to consume all of the pumpkin things? Hopefully if your food brand has pumpkin you’ve already been promoting it, but if you haven’t, now is the time! Tell people to be on the look out and ask them if they’ve started using their pumpkin candles and drinking pumpkin coffee already!