Social media and emergency notification. Be careful.
Posted by ERMS Corporation on Thu, Mar 08, 2012
There aren’t many people who would disagree social media should be a consideration
for any organization’s communications plans. And many industry experts agree it should also be part of a crisis communication plan. It certainly could help foster a tighter relationship between marketing, internal communications, and business continuity teams. At ERMS we agree, but with caution.
When should Social Media be used with your Emergency Notification system? When your organization wants to rapidly and simply communicate the same message to a mass audience as well as stakeholders (system members):
- to expel rumours and maintain a consistent message in response to an unplanned event
- to announce a product recall
- to announce early severe weather warnings
- to announce closures due to unplanned events
- to provide guidance, as a good corporate citizen, during an unplanned event
- to warn people of a potential threat of violence
Social Media should not be used for emergency notification purposes when:
- messages are meant for smaller audiences or specific groups
- the message contains confidential information
- confirmation of receipt is desired
- two-way communication may be required
- when you need to provide a post-event report including response and reply metrics
If your organization has decided social media support should be part of your emergency notification you need to remember it is not a replacement for social media monitoring tools.
Contact an ERMS representative to find out how ERMS supports publishing of emergency and crisis communication to social media.
Want to find out how 250 of your peers are using social media and whether or not they think it’s effective? Click to read the Continuity Insights Special Report “Crisis Communications 2012: Social Media & Notification Systems” or watch the webinar.
