Distiller magazine a publication of the American Distilling Institute, the Voice of Artisan Distilling; devoted to the craft spirits industry: vendors and distillers alike.
Issue link: http://distilling.uberflip.com/i/1306663
92 distiller dialogue around the topic on your social media channels, having a series of content related to it, making continued statements about it when there are new events related to it in the news, or dedicating a portion of your sales from a specific product to the cause for the foreseeable future, etc. On that last one though, just make sure all of your messaging around it is cause first, sales second to ensure it doesn't come off as trying to capitalize on an unfortunate situation. If done right though, it can be well received and highly effective for raising money. You don't ever want to be seen as an inauthen- tic brand who jumped on the hot topic of the moment but doesn't actually care about it. If it impacted your consumers, employees, or com- munity when you first made the statement it likely still is impacting them. Showing contin- ued support and creating safe spaces for contin- ued dialogue is an important part of making a stand, so make sure you have a plan in place to do exactly that. Taking a stand on something that at times can feel far removed from your business, but impacts society as a whole can be scary. But staying silent is often far more harmful to your brand than stepping up on issues that truly matter. ere is, of course, some judgment involved, but sharing your values and speaking up will not only ben- efit society, but ultimately your brand as well. Together, all of our voices are louder and more impactful…so stand up for what you believe in and position your brand as a constructive part of the conversation and solution., END Handling Pushback & Negative Comments When it comes to handling comments to your statement here are some tips to do it with grace and to minimize the damage: Trolls Will Be Trolls • Don't engage with offensive or extremist comments. You will not convince them, and trying to will just make things worse. • Simply unfollow them and block them from your account. • You can delete their comment, but it may lead to additional backlash. It's a judgment call. • Depending on the situation you may prefer to comment vs. delete. Do so with a standard statement like, "We do not tol- erate hate speech, bullying or offensive language and have blocked you from our account." Differing Opinions Are Valid • Don't delete comments simply because they have a differ- ent point of view. If they didn't violate any of your commu- nication policies, you can simply leave the comment there and not engage. • If you do want to reiterate that you don't share their view, it's best to use a response that you can alter slightly, but use with everyone who disagrees vs. getting into the specific details of each comment and turning it into a debate. Acknowledge Your Mistakes or Misunderstandings • If someone points out something you said that may be incorrect or triggering, it's important to be open, acknowl- edge and learn. • No one, and certainly no statement, is perfect. So, if you made a misstep or maybe have more learning to do, acknowledge it and thank them for pointing it out.