How A Facebook Post Could Put You Out Of Business

Have you ever deleted or edited your post on social media because it was not appropriate?
Have you ever been disappointed with your friend's or favorite brand's awkward post?

When I was in the late teenage and the early twenties, I often found many of my friends wrote a post on their social media to blame someone unknown (probably that 'unknown' person would know the post is toward him/her while reading), which made me uncomfortable. That behavior disappointed me a lot because I think it was not cool at all to be afraid to talk out so attack someone in that dirty way.

The more social media gets popular, the more likely it becomes a double-edged sword. It is a cost and time efficient, convenient, and fun way to communicate with others for you as an individual or as a brand. It's also a great tool to express yourself. However, at the same time, your own words could fatally harm you. If you realize you make a mistake, take an action as soon as possible. As a famous proverb says, there is no use crying over spilled milk. Clean up as quick as possible and be careful not to spill the milk again.

 A Terrible Ad Parodying 9/11

A local mattress brand, Miracle Mattress, in San Antonio, Texas, did something terribly wrong. It posted a video ad on its Facebook page promoting a “Twin Towers Sale” that parodies the World Trade Center towers collapsing.

In the video, two employees stand in front of two towers of mattresses and an American Flag, while the store’s manager saying 'yes, every mattress is at a twin mattress price'. The employees then fall down over the mattress towers with surprised reaction, and the manager screams and then throw the last line, “We’ll never forget,” with a smile.

This video provoked a crowd furious reaction. Many people blamed the company saying that 'it disrespected the families who lost loved ones and continue to struggle with the pain of this tragedy every day of their lives'. On its facebook page, hundreds of angry comments were left under not only the deleted video but also other past and later posts.

Apology, Apology, And Apology...

I couldn't find the exact date of when the video was posted, but based on the labor day promotion on 9/5 and the posted apology letter on 9/8, I assumed the tragedy happened 9/6 or 9/7. Speaking of the reaction time, Miracle Mattress very quickly responded and apologized. As soon as it recognized that something wrong, it took an action. Then how did they show their sincerity?

On 9/8,  Miracle Mattress apologized using its Facebook page and uploaded a letter.

On the following day, the company announced to close the store indefinitely to avoid any further distraction during the period of 9/11 anniversary.

A week later, the owner posted another letter describing what the company learned from this case and the future plans to help people suffering from terrorism and traumatic loss.

The store manager, the owner's daughter, who was on the video also apologized with tears on news interview.

Heena's Review

Definitely, this video ad crossed the line. A tragedy cannot be parodied for any reason. I was very surprised that this commercial was approved and went online without intervention. Who on earth thought of using a terror attack on a mattress commercial?

Regardless, I appreciate that the company responded quickly and put a lot of effort to recover. In any case of crisis, a real quick response and a sincere apology must be the first things to be done. The owner announced apology several times sincerely and quickly. The store was closed for a while to regret its wrongdoings and to cool off the steam. In addition to that, Miracle Mattress made a donation to Tuesday’s Children in New York to support youth, families, and communities impacted by terrorism and traumatic loss.

This crisis could have been avoided if there was a sturdy marketing plan. Marketing should be responsible for PR, since PR is a part of marketing tactics. Miracle Mattress should have evaluated its commercial before let it go online with the questions such as listed below.
'The content (9/11) of our post is relevant to our goal (sales)?'
'Does it match our marketing concept?'
'How is it like to be in the long-term?'
'Is it ethical?'
'Who would like/dislike this?'

Not only companies and brands but also celebrities and politicians make terrible mistakes on their social media these days. Actually we, as normal individuals, also cause social media crisis. We have to think twice before let our words go out. Once a mistake happens, take a quick action and apologize.