Good social media manager it is recognized in critical moments on the page.

Everyone is good when things are booming, the contents are liked and shareable, happiness lights up the hills with its warm sun and you hear the birds singing their melodies. Then comes the first negative comment to one of your much studied content, and the house of cards begins to show signs of sagging.

When users are happy and likes pour in, everything is easy and beautiful. But those who work in the sector every day know that in managing their own or company pages, one sometimes (often) runs into a heterogeneous, not to say difficult, audience. Not to mention almost completely indecipherable, sometimes. And how do you survive an unpleasant interaction or more a day without wanting to see the world burn next? Without discovering yourself in front of the mirror making an interpretation that, Joaquin Phoenix, get off?

Community management is not an easy job. You already know. There first thing to do when you get a negative comment is to breathe hard for a few seconds, and try to rationalize the message you received. Is it justified? It does not make sense? Is it a real slander? It does not matter. Take a deep breath and step back from the keyboard if necessary.

Zen in the art of social media management

You are a gentle and quiet person. You are zen. Negative comments can't hurt you, provided that you are able to face them with determination and - above all - with common sense. Now that you have touched the strings of your soul and you have understood that the negative comment you have just received cannot compromise your psychosomatic balance, you must reply. You always have to. Don't address this person in private until you do so in public, in front of everyone, so that the rest of your fans have seen and felt that you are there, that you are a real person, capable of accepting criticism and willing to face it methodically. And head held high! (not tested)

• The first rule of SMM is to reply as soon as possible. Regardless of whether it is a positive or negative comment, responsiveness is essential. An average user expects you to respond between 30 minutes and 4 hours according to Spout Social stats. Brands have an average waiting time of 10 hours. In case the comment is negative, this time frame should be the shortest. First because a Unattended negative message can become a time bomb, ready to explode at any moment with new people joining, and throwing more fuel on the fire. Timeliness shows that your brand has the situation under control. Even if it may not be true. In the event of a known hot situation, it is important to agree with the company on a preemptive response process capable of immediately defusing the bomb. For example: “We are very sorry for what happened, Giorgia. Why don't you contact us privately and explain exactly how it went, so we can put you in touch with the relevant office?”
• Don't ignore negative comments. By ignoring them, you could trigger another chain reaction, which is that of the default insult when any publication takes place on the social page or blog. Don't ignore because the angry user might decide to push the envelope!
• Try to put yourself in the interlocutor's place. Yeah, fine, she didn't have to write such mean things, but have you really tried to put yourself in the shoes of the person who commented so mean? Sometimes, something really good can come out of the worst of the worst. If you manage to extract a good teaching from a negative comment, don't fail to observe it in the comments, avoiding sarcasm and irony when not in line with the brand's attitude.
• It is NEVER a personal matter. The customer doesn't hate you and probably doesn't even remember your face or what your logo looks like. Probably he's had a bad experience with support and doesn't know where to leave his feedback, or even worse he's had a bad day. The user does not comment negatively because he has nothing to do, but because he wants to emphasize discomfort. Never delete comments, for any reason, even when they are blatantly offensive and do not contain an iota of objectivity.

"Shut up and swim!” (cit.) Let's bother with a great classic of animation because the motto applies perfectly to the current situation. Shut up and swim - there is no point in complaining, there is no point in ranting or insulting. take the keyboard, smile and respond politely. Kindness and courtesy defuse the bombs and give you a positive image. Rational. Proactive. Just what you need to stay afloat!