Sunday 20 January 2013

Social Media Can Be A Double Edged Sword For Retailers




Many retailers are embracing the new way of communicating with customers as social media avenues like Facebook, Foursquare, and Twitter grow their influence. However the same avenues can catch the unwary with dire consequences.
Food chain, Subway, was recently the victim of a Facebook campaign that focussed on a Subway foot long sandwich that was only 11 inches long. In quick time over 100,000 people had “liked” the post that was calling for an explanation from Subway. We say “victim” although obviously any retailer needs to make sure its core claims are met, and Subway admitted this size discrepancy should not exist.
Subway will survive the publicity but the speed and efficiency with which this sort of adverse news can spread is a lesson for all retailers.