Top 10 Social Media Disasters of Well Known Companies — TopTenzNet
Summary
TLDRIn this video, Simon Whistler explores the top 10 social media disasters by well-known companies. From Chick-fil-A's CEO's controversial stance on marriage to Home Depot's racially insensitive tweet, each incident illustrates how even big brands can make costly mistakes on social platforms. The video serves as a cautionary tale, highlighting the importance of social media literacy and crisis management in the digital age.
Takeaways
- 🐔 **Chick-fil-A's CEO Dan Cathy's anti-gay marriage comments in 2012 led to a social media backlash and loss of a contract with the Jim Henson Company.**
- 🌪️ **American Apparel and Gap faced criticism for promoting sales during Hurricane Sandy, showing a lack of sensitivity to the disaster.**
- 👗 **Kenneth Cole Productions inappropriately tweeted about the Egyptian protests, linking them to their new spring collection, causing public outrage.**
- 🍳 **KitchenAid's tweet about President Obama's grandmother was offensive and led to an immediate apology and internal review of social media access.**
- 🍞 **Epicurious's ill-timed tweets promoting breakfast recipes after the Boston Marathon bombing were quickly deleted and apologized for.**
- 🔫 **Kmart's tweet with a promotional hashtag during the Sandy Hook shooting condolences was seen as extremely insensitive and led to public outrage.**
- 🍕 **The Onion's tweet about Quvenzhané Wallis at the Oscars was derogatory and led to an apology from the CEO for the inconsistency with their parody and satire commitment.**
- 🦍 **Home Depot's tweet with a racially insensitive image and text led to an immediate apology and the firing of the media agency managing their social media.**
- 🍕 **DiGiorno's attempt to join a trending hashtag about domestic violence with a pizza promotion backfired, leading to a quick deletion and apology.**
- 🚗 **Progressive Insurance's handling of a claim and subsequent social media response led to a public relations disaster, requiring a significant settlement with the affected family.**
Q & A
What is the main focus of this video?
-The video focuses on the top 10 social media disasters by well-known companies, highlighting instances where companies made major blunders on social media platforms.
Why did Chick-fil-A face backlash in 2012?
-Chick-fil-A faced backlash in 2012 after its CEO, Dan Cathy, made public statements opposing same-sex marriage. This caused controversy, leading to social media criticism and the loss of partnerships, such as the one with the Jim Henson Company.
How did American Apparel and The Gap mishandle social media during Hurricane Sandy?
-American Apparel and The Gap both faced criticism for using Hurricane Sandy as an opportunity to promote sales. American Apparel offered a sale to those 'bored during the storm,' while The Gap encouraged people to shop online during the hurricane, which was seen as insensitive.
What was Kenneth Cole's social media mistake during the Egyptian protests in 2011?
-Kenneth Cole's mistake was tweeting a message that trivialized the violent protests in Egypt by implying that people were protesting because of the brand’s new spring collection, leading to public outrage.
How did KitchenAid offend people during a 2012 Presidential debate?
-KitchenAid posted an offensive tweet during a 2012 Presidential debate, mocking President Obama’s grandmother's death. It was intended for a personal account but was accidentally posted from the company’s official Twitter account.
What mistake did Epicurious make following the Boston Marathon bombing?
-Epicurious posted insensitive tweets the morning after the Boston Marathon bombing, suggesting breakfast recipes in honor of Boston, which led to public outrage due to the tone-deaf nature of the posts.
What was Kmart's social media blunder during the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting?
-Kmart posted a tweet offering condolences for the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting but included a promotional hashtag for toys, which was seen as an inappropriate and insensitive marketing attempt during a tragedy.
How did The Onion make a major social media error during the 2013 Oscars?
-The Onion posted a highly offensive tweet about nine-year-old actress Quvenzhané Wallis during the 2013 Oscars, using a derogatory term. Despite deleting the tweet, it caused widespread outrage.
What led to Home Depot being criticized for a racist social media post in 2013?
-Home Depot posted a photo of two Black men and a person in a gorilla suit with a caption asking which drummer was 'not like the rest.' The post was criticized for being racist, leading to public backlash.
Why did DiGiorno Pizza face criticism for their use of the hashtag #WhyIStayed?
-DiGiorno Pizza used the hashtag #WhyIStayed, which was part of a conversation about domestic violence, to promote their pizza. The company quickly apologized, admitting they didn't understand the context of the hashtag.
Outlines
📰 Top 10 Social Media Disasters by Companies
Simon Whistler introduces a video discussing the top 10 social media blunders by well-known companies. He emphasizes that social media, while powerful, can backfire spectacularly if mishandled. The video promises to explore instances where companies faced public backlash due to inappropriate or ill-timed social media posts, leading to embarrassment and potential damage to their brand image.
🐔 Chick-fil-A's Controversial Stance on Marriage
In 2012, Chick-fil-A's CEO, Dan Cathy, publicly opposed gay marriage, sparking controversy and social media backlash. His comments led to a loss of contract with the Jim Henson Company, which removed its toys from Chick-fil-A's children's meals. A suspiciously new Facebook account defending Chick-fil-A was suspected to be a PR stunt but was denied by the company. This incident highlights the risk of CEOs engaging in polarizing social issues on behalf of their companies.
🌪️ Exploiting Natural Disasters: American Apparel and Gap
As Hurricane Sandy approached the east coast of the United States in 2012, two clothing companies, American Apparel and Gap, attempted to capitalize on the impending disaster for promotional purposes. American Apparel sent an email suggesting a sale during the storm, while Gap tweeted about shopping during the hurricane, both of which were met with public outrage. The companies later removed the tweets and apologized, illustrating the insensitivity of using a natural disaster for marketing.
🎨 Kenneth Cole's Misguided Tweet on Egyptian Protests
In 2011, during the Egyptian protests, clothing designer Kenneth Cole tweeted a promotional message about his new spring collection, linking it to the ongoing turmoil in Cairo. The tweet was seen as highly inappropriate and was removed later that day. Despite an apology from Cole, the company repeated a similar mistake in 2013 with a tweet about footwear during a potential military intervention in Syria, showing a lack of sensitivity to global events.
🍳 KitchenAid's Offensive Tweet During Presidential Debate
During a 2012 Presidential debate, KitchenAid mistakenly tweeted a disrespectful comment about President Obama's grandmother, who had passed away. The tweet was quickly deleted, and the company issued an apology, explaining it was a mistake by an employee who thought they were posting on their personal account. This incident underscores the importance of social media oversight and the potential for serious missteps even by established brands.
🍞 Epicurious's Tasteless Tweets Post-Boston Marathon Bombing
In the wake of the 2013 Boston Marathon bombing, food recipe website Epicurious posted insensitive tweets suggesting breakfast recipes as a form of support. The tweets were met with public outcry for their lack of empathy and were quickly deleted. Epicurious apologized for the posts, demonstrating the need for sensitivity in social media communication following tragic events.
🔫 Kmart's Insensitive Sandy Hook Tweet
Following the 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting, Kmart tweeted a condolence message that included a promotional hashtag for toys. The tweet was widely criticized for its insensitivity, and Kmart later explained that the hashtag was part of an ongoing Twitter party that was concluded due to the tragedy. The incident highlights the risks of automated social media campaigns that can inadvertently cause offense.
🍠 The Onion's Offensive Tweet About Quvenzhané Wallis
The Onion, a satirical website, tweeted an offensive remark about 9-year-old actress Quvenzhané Wallis during the 2013 Oscars. The tweet caused an uproar, leading to its deletion and an apology from the CEO. The incident serves as a reminder that even satire can cross lines and result in public backlash.
🦍 Home Depot's Racially Insensitive Tweet
In 2013, Home Depot's official account tweeted an image with two black men and a white man in a gorilla suit, accompanied by a racially insensitive caption. The tweet was quickly deleted, and the company issued multiple apologies. The incident led to the firing of the media agency managing their social media and emphasized the importance of cultural sensitivity in marketing.
🍕 DiGiorno's Misguided Hashtag Use on Domestic Violence Discussion
During a social media discussion on domestic violence sparked by the #whyIstayed and #whyIleft hashtags, DiGiorno tweeted a promotional message using the #whyIstayed hashtag, which was seen as tone-deaf and exploitative. The tweet was deleted, and the company claimed ignorance of the hashtag's context. This incident highlights the need for brands to understand the context of trending hashtags before engaging with them.
🚗 Progressive's Botched Response to a Tragic Case
Progressive Insurance faced a public relations crisis when they refused to cover the difference in an underinsured driver's policy, leading to a lawsuit. The case gained social media attention, and Progressive's initial response was seen as cold and unsympathetic. The situation escalated, with social media users criticizing the company's handling of the case. Progressive eventually settled with the family for more than initially sought, but the damage to their reputation was significant.
📹 Conclusion and Call for More Social Media Disasters
Simon Whistler concludes the video by inviting viewers to share more examples of social media disasters by companies. He encourages viewers to like, comment, and subscribe for more content, suggesting that if there's enough interest, a follow-up video might be made. He also recommends other videos on the channel, such as one about misconceptions about cybercrime and another about Facebook's influence on users.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡Social Media Disasters
💡Chick-fil-A
💡American Apparel
💡Hurricane Sandy
💡Controversial Tweet
💡Public Relations
💡Epicurious
💡Kmart
💡The Onion
💡Progressive Insurance
💡Twitter Long
Highlights
Chick-fil-A's CEO Dan Cathy's comments on gay marriage led to a social media backlash and loss of a contract with the Jim Henson company.
American Apparel and Gap were criticized for promoting sales during Hurricane Sandy, showing a lack of sensitivity to the disaster.
Kenneth Cole Productions' tweet about the Egyptian protests was seen as an insensitive attempt to promote their new collection.
KitchenAid's offensive tweet about President Obama's grandmother was mistakenly sent from the company's account, causing an apology.
Epicurious faced backlash for posting recipe tweets in the wake of the Boston Marathon bombing, which were perceived as insensitive.
Kmart's tweet combining condolences for the Sandy Hook tragedy with a toy promotion hashtag sparked public outrage.
The Onion's tweet about Quvenzhané Wallis at the Oscars was deemed offensive, leading to an apology from the CEO.
Home Depot's tweet with a gorilla suit image during a football game was widely condemned as racially insensitive.
Diono's attempt to join a domestic violence discussion with a pizza promotion tweet was met with immediate deletion and criticism.
Progressive Insurance's handling of a case where they defended the driver who killed a policyholder led to a social media storm and eventual settlement.
Social media can be a double-edged sword for businesses, as it allows direct communication but also exposes them to public scrutiny and backlash.
Mistakes on social media can lead to significant brand damage, as seen with the examples of Chick-fil-A, American Apparel, and others.
Companies need to be cautious and considerate in their social media communications, especially during sensitive events or tragedies.
The video serves as a cautionary tale for businesses, highlighting the importance of social media management and crisis communication.
Viewers are encouraged to share their own experiences or knowledge of social media disasters in the comments section.
The video concludes with a call to like, subscribe, and engage with the channel for more content on similar topics.
Transcripts
hi I'm Simon Whistler you are watching
top 10's net and in the video today
we're going to be looking at the top 10
social media disasters from well-known
companies social media is a great tool
as long as you know what you're doing
with it unfortunately not everyone is an
expert and that's not just limited to
some 16-year-old with 37 Twitter
followers it doesn't matter if you're a
corporate CEO or a lowly intern
sometimes you might hit send and realize
within minutes that it was a complete
and utter mistake in the video today
we're going to look at some situations
where that happened and it led to
nothing but embarrassment and disaster
for the brands in question the top 10
social media disasters of well-known
companies number 10 Chick-fil-A back in
2012 Chick-fil-A CEO Dan Cathy decided
that it was more important to talk about
why gay people shouldn't get married
than it was to sell chicken critics
wondered why Cathy would weigh in on
something so polarizing risking the
blowback from a large segment of his
consumer base that disagrees with his
views and when his comments quickly went
viral people naturally attacked the
company on social media in the aftermath
of Cathy's interview Chick-fil-A lost a
contract with the Jim Henson company
which pulled them up at toys in their
children's meals in an exchange on
Facebook posting about Chick-fil-A
voluntarily removing the toys a teenage
Facebook user named Abby F defended
Chick-fil-A using a quote from the Bible
one Facebook user decided to do some
research on Abby F noticing that her
Facebook account was only 8 hours old
and her profile was a picture from a
stock photo website the profile was
quickly deleted after the user was
called out for it being fake many people
believe it was someone from
Chick-fil-A's public relations
department but they denied that they
were behind the account number nine
American Apparel and the Gap the leadup
to Hurrican Sandy in the fall of 2012
was an anxious time for the east coast
of the United States residents knew that
a big storm was coming and the only
thing they could do was board up their
homes and hope for the best in the end
Sandy was the second most costly
hurricane in US history with 62 billion
in Damages and 125 US citizens were
among the 285 people who died amazingly
not one but two clothing companies used
the impending disaster to shill some
clothing American Apparel sent an email
to people living in states where the
storm was supposed to hit suggesting
that if they were bored during the storm
there was a 36-hour saale a lot of
people believe that this was just the
controversial company's way of getting
more attention the other company that
decided to take to the internet there to
sell some clothes during the storm was
the Gap as the storm was touching down
in New York they tweeted all impacted by
# Sandy stay safe we will be doing a lot
of gap.com shopping today how about you
followed by a link to their new store in
New York City they later took down the
tweet and apologized for it number eight
Kenneth Cole in February of 2011 violent
protests were in full swing in Egypt on
February the 3rd clothing designer
Kenneth coold Productions sent out the
following tweet from the company's
official account millions are in uproar
in # Cairo rumor is they heard our new
spring collection is now available
online KC this was complete with a link
to the company's website making things
even worse the Casey sign off indicated
it was Kenneth Cole himself who wrote
the Tweet the Tweet stayed up until the
late afternoon before finally being
taken down Cole apologized for it on his
Facebook and Twitter later that day but
the company never seemed to learn its
lesson in the fall of 2013 when troops
were possibly going into Syria they
tweeted boots on the ground or not let's
not forget about sandals pumps and
loafers # Footwear number seven kitchen
a during one of the 2012 Presidential
debates President Barack Obama started
talking about his grandmother who had
died the week of the 2008 election
that's when the appliance seller
kitchena posted a very regrettable tweet
saying Obama's grandma even knew it was
going to be bad she died 3 days before
he became president you may wonder why a
company like kitchen aids would take
that kind of stance in such an offensive
way after all they should just be
worried about selling more mixers and
fridges being so disrespectful to the
president over a tragic event is a good
way to alienate a whole lot of potential
customers well it was apparently tweeted
out by accident the person who did it
thought they were posting it on their
own Twitter feeds which with that
spelling makes you wonder how that
individual ever got access to the
company's social media in the first
place kitchena immediately apologized on
Twitter and tweeted a public apology to
Obama's Twitter account number six
Epicurious on the 15th of April 2003 two
pressure cooker bombs exploded near the
finish line of the Boston Marathon three
people were killed and an estimated 264
were injured brothers diar and Taman SV
were responsible for the bombing with
Talan shot and killed shortly after the
attack while dok Kazar was sentenced to
death this past spring the bombing was
tragic and shocked the country but that
didn't stop Epicurious a popular food
recipe website from deciding to post
some Tweets in response the next morning
the first one read in honor of Boston
and New England May we suggest whole
green cranberry scones then half an hour
later another tweet said Boston our
hearts are with you here's a bowl of
breakfast energy we could all use to
start today both of these tweets had
links to breakfast recipes on Epicurious
there was an uproar over the
insensitivity of the tweets which
Epicurious quickly deleted and
apologized for posting number five Kmart
on December the 14th 2012 20-year-old
Adam Lanza killed his mother and then
drove to Sandy Hook Elementary School in
Newtown Connecticut once inside he
systematically shot six adults and 20
children before taking his own life the
crime was as horrifying as it was
senseless around noon that same day the
story was reaching and shocking National
audiences discount department store
Kmart posted a tweet that said our
thoughts and prayers are with the
victims of this terrible tragedy # pray
for Newton # CT shooting # fab5 toys the
Tweet was going so well until the end
wasn't it people were outraged that
Kmart would include a promotional
hashtag to sell toys in a condolence
message regarding one of the most brutal
mass murders of children in American
history Kmart said that they didn't use
the hashtag for promotional reasons but
because at the time the news broke they
were having a Twitter party using # fab5
toys using the hashtag in the message
was supposed to let people know that the
party was over because of the tragedy
Number Four The Onion precocious young
actress quenan Wallace was nominated for
best actress for amazing portrayal of
the character hush puppy in the Beasts
of the Southern Wild at the 85th Academy
Awards in 20 3 the hugely popular
satirical website the onion had been
live tweeting the proceedings but
Unleashed one particular message that
shocked its followers when it called
Wallace well they see you next Tuesday
the Tweet said everyone else seems
afraid to say it but that quen Wallace
is kind of a right # Oscars 2013 calling
a 9-year-old something that ugly did not
go over well in the Twitter verse even
if it was from a comedy website an hour
later they deleted the Tweet but it did
little to subside The Rage of the
internet the next morning the CEO of the
onion apologized and said that that type
of tweet was not consistent with their
commitment to parody and satire number
three Home Depo on November the 5th 2013
Home depo's official account tweeted a
picture of two black men on either side
of a white man wearing a gorilla suit
with the text reading which drummer is
not like the rest see more at @ colg
Gamay piics at hgam day.com # hdgame day
#f footall the Tweet was also meant to
promote their sponsorship of ESPN's
college game game day the popular
Saturday morning college football
preview show they quickly deleted the
Tweet but a screen capture was tweeted
to the NAACP after the post Home Depo
posted many many tweets trying to
apologize they also said that they fired
the media agency in charge of running
their social media accounts number two
Diono when the video of former NFL star
Ray Rice punching out his then fiance
was made public the hashtags # why I
stayed or # why I left started trending
leading to an organic disc discussion on
social media as thousands of women spoke
openly about domestic violence it was a
real honest conversation held by victims
around the world and proved eye opening
for others to see that even in
contemporary times spell abuse is still
such a prevalent problem and then Douro
had to just spoil everything the frozen
food company best known for its slogan
it's not delivery it's dionio tweeted #y
iay you had pizza they immediately
deleted the Tweet insisting that they
didn't understand what the hashtag was
before jumping on the trend now they
just need to apologize for not
understanding what pizza is actually
supposed to taste like number one
Progressive social media can be a
two-way communication between business
and consumer unfortunately for
Progressive this became a major problem
in 2012 in 2010 an unidentified driver
ran a red light and killed a young woman
named Katie fiser the dri was
underinsured but Katie's policy had a
clause that it would cover the
difference unfortunately Progressive
refused to pay normally if an insurance
company doesn't pay out what they are
supposed to the insured can sue the
insurance company unfortunately the
Fisher family lived in Maryland where
you can't sue insurance companies in
order to get the money they had to sue
the driver of the car whose lawyer was
from Progressive's legal team Fisher's
brother wrote about his frustration with
the company under the headline my sister
paid Progressive Insurance to defend her
killer in court the post went viral and
people bombarded Progressive social
media accounts in response to criticism
Progressive took to Twitter using an app
called Twitter longer which allows a
tweet to be more than 140 characters
saying this is a tragic case and our
sympathies go out to Mr Fischer and his
family for the pain they've had to
endure we fully investigated this claim
and relevant backgrounds and we feel we
properly handled the claim within our
contractual obligations it was a pretty
cold response which only made the
situation worse actor Will weaton Made
progressives tweet into an audio file
with a text to speech application making
it sound like a robot was saying the
words and said dear Progressive
Insurance PR bot this is what you sound
like you inhuman monster Twitter loucher
were also banned Progressive from using
their app because they said Progressive
was using it to spam after that Fiasco
Progressive tried to switch gears and
blame Nationwide which covered the other
driver in the end Progressive ended up
settling with the Fishers for more than
the $75,000 they were looking for in the
first place so those were some of our
favorite screw-ups on social media by
big companies we'd love to hear about
others leave us a comment below and if
we get enough of them we'll probably
make another video like this so I'd love
to hear about them also click like it
helps get this video in front of more
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you do want to check out another video
right now I'd really recommend you watch
the 10 the top 10 ridiculous
misconceptions about cyber crime it's
another good video about technology also
there's another one about Facebook
messing with our heads if you get time
check that one out as well and again
thank you for watching
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