Troll (Noun): someone who posts or mails something provocative to evoke an indignant response from the victim
The reasons behind trolling may be the noblest of all, but the fall outs of engaging with a Troll does irreparable damage to a lot of things and the Reputation of the brand is just one of those things. So how do you avoid mud slinging with Trolls and turn the tirade on its head and gain some reputation mileage from it?
Its easier said than done, but it is possible to deflect trolling attacks with dexterity and use the events to your benefit. The main issue that company executives face is the emotional burden of having to deal with the attacks targeted at important person or persons in a company. We have seen as much from seasoned journos break down unable to face what he claimed as 'sexist, racist and evil'. He even claims to have cried to the negative remarks made by his attackers! Now, we do not exactly prefer crying or publicly accepting defeat in the manner Brendan O'Neill of The Telegraph did. We have something else in mind and we are about to share it all with you.
How Severe is the Threat?
The first step about Online Reputation Management with trolls, is to think about the apparent cause behind the attack. Of course, trolls need no reason or rhyme to attack you, but there must be a starting point. Your defense against trolls starts from the time you identify that causant.
Tidbits
Types of trolls: There are several types of trolls, and the thinking, scheming ones are the most dangerous. They have the audacity to scheme against your brand and make a streamlined attack from all angles. First they gain the sympathy of people who feel wronged by you or your brand and then he uses the situation to his advantage. He will facilitate an argument among his sympathizers. The net of lies can be very ingeniously designed. Sometimes, trolls use stolen identities of innocent people on the internet, who are possibly related to the victim in some manner and carry his attack until someone raises a stink against all the chicanery. But there is no end to such things as the attacker can promptly switch identities and carry on with his slandering.
To Ignore or To Respond? Behaving Like Adults
Your next step is to see whether the troll is making a deliberate attack on something important, because most of the times, trolls have nothing better to do than sprinkle vitriol left and right, that is what makes them trolls. Once you are certain that a troll is at work, just ignore whatever he or she says. They do not deserve an iota of your attention unless the matter is truly grave, if the comments are in a domain under your control, delete them. If it is on a different domain ask the web master to pull them down. Web masters usually do help with such requests, but do not be surprised if you do not see any effect of your pleads. If the matter is quite serious contemplate legal action against the web master for allowing such content on his website and let him know as much. This should be enough to persuade them. Thus, you can eliminate the danger without responding to the comments.
Responding to troll comments require much deliberation. Behaving like adults in a volatile situation is not the easiest of things to do. A study found that:
But, you need to keep better control over your emotions and keep the response within the strict bounds of professionalism. Be as stoic in your rebuttals, but maintain your point in what you say. If the accusations are false, say so if there is even some truth in what is being said, investigate the matter and post your findings so that viewers can decide for themselves.
Tap the power of the usual suspects. Twitter, Facebook, Google+, reputed online newspaper forums, business forums, review forums are all at your disposal. Make use of those and provide a clear picture of the incident.
When To Make The Call?
Online reputation management (ORM) is a specialized profession and the people behind it are well versed in handling situations much worse than what you might be facing at the moment with your company/brand.
ORM can identify the channels used and posts countermeasures in them as well as at more vital places. Using the tools available with them, they analyze the damage done and devise a fitting strategy aimed at damage control as well as preventing further acts of that manner from being carried out.
You will have to notice whether your efforts are paying off, if they are, you will see decided improvements in the search results which ideally should be replaced by positive content injected by you, pushing the negative ones further below. If you fail to see anything of that like, pick the phone and make the call.
The more time you waste the severe the situation becomes. Online reputation management is best applied when the harm is minimal, it is like cancer which is easier to treat at the beginning but gets complicated and costlier to deal with later.
How To Differentiate a Troll From a Genuine Complainer?
Handling a genuine complainer is easy, nevertheless the potential danger of offending a complainer lurks when someone inexperienced takes the mantle for an expert and screws up big time.
Such situations when handled by experts can be used to highlight your brands customer service, therefore do not let such a wonderful opportunity pass without first consulting an expert. They will help you differentiate a culprit from a real person.
The reasons behind trolling may be the noblest of all, but the fall outs of engaging with a Troll does irreparable damage to a lot of things and the Reputation of the brand is just one of those things. So how do you avoid mud slinging with Trolls and turn the tirade on its head and gain some reputation mileage from it?
| Handling Irritating Trolls with ORM |
Its easier said than done, but it is possible to deflect trolling attacks with dexterity and use the events to your benefit. The main issue that company executives face is the emotional burden of having to deal with the attacks targeted at important person or persons in a company. We have seen as much from seasoned journos break down unable to face what he claimed as 'sexist, racist and evil'. He even claims to have cried to the negative remarks made by his attackers! Now, we do not exactly prefer crying or publicly accepting defeat in the manner Brendan O'Neill of The Telegraph did. We have something else in mind and we are about to share it all with you.
How Severe is the Threat?
The first step about Online Reputation Management with trolls, is to think about the apparent cause behind the attack. Of course, trolls need no reason or rhyme to attack you, but there must be a starting point. Your defense against trolls starts from the time you identify that causant.
Tidbits
Types of trolls: There are several types of trolls, and the thinking, scheming ones are the most dangerous. They have the audacity to scheme against your brand and make a streamlined attack from all angles. First they gain the sympathy of people who feel wronged by you or your brand and then he uses the situation to his advantage. He will facilitate an argument among his sympathizers. The net of lies can be very ingeniously designed. Sometimes, trolls use stolen identities of innocent people on the internet, who are possibly related to the victim in some manner and carry his attack until someone raises a stink against all the chicanery. But there is no end to such things as the attacker can promptly switch identities and carry on with his slandering.
Your next step is to see whether the troll is making a deliberate attack on something important, because most of the times, trolls have nothing better to do than sprinkle vitriol left and right, that is what makes them trolls. Once you are certain that a troll is at work, just ignore whatever he or she says. They do not deserve an iota of your attention unless the matter is truly grave, if the comments are in a domain under your control, delete them. If it is on a different domain ask the web master to pull them down. Web masters usually do help with such requests, but do not be surprised if you do not see any effect of your pleads. If the matter is quite serious contemplate legal action against the web master for allowing such content on his website and let him know as much. This should be enough to persuade them. Thus, you can eliminate the danger without responding to the comments.
Responding to troll comments require much deliberation. Behaving like adults in a volatile situation is not the easiest of things to do. A study found that:
Compared with teen SNS users, adults are somewhat more likely to stand back,
not get involved, and ignore the Offensive Behavior.
For instance, 45% of adult SNS users who have witnessed problems
say they frequently Ignore Offensive Behavior online,
compared with 35% of SNS-using teens who say they Frequently Ignore Offensive behavior.
But, you need to keep better control over your emotions and keep the response within the strict bounds of professionalism. Be as stoic in your rebuttals, but maintain your point in what you say. If the accusations are false, say so if there is even some truth in what is being said, investigate the matter and post your findings so that viewers can decide for themselves.
Tap the power of the usual suspects. Twitter, Facebook, Google+, reputed online newspaper forums, business forums, review forums are all at your disposal. Make use of those and provide a clear picture of the incident.
When To Make The Call?
Online reputation management (ORM) is a specialized profession and the people behind it are well versed in handling situations much worse than what you might be facing at the moment with your company/brand.
ORM can identify the channels used and posts countermeasures in them as well as at more vital places. Using the tools available with them, they analyze the damage done and devise a fitting strategy aimed at damage control as well as preventing further acts of that manner from being carried out.
You will have to notice whether your efforts are paying off, if they are, you will see decided improvements in the search results which ideally should be replaced by positive content injected by you, pushing the negative ones further below. If you fail to see anything of that like, pick the phone and make the call.
The more time you waste the severe the situation becomes. Online reputation management is best applied when the harm is minimal, it is like cancer which is easier to treat at the beginning but gets complicated and costlier to deal with later.
Handling a genuine complainer is easy, nevertheless the potential danger of offending a complainer lurks when someone inexperienced takes the mantle for an expert and screws up big time.
Such situations when handled by experts can be used to highlight your brands customer service, therefore do not let such a wonderful opportunity pass without first consulting an expert. They will help you differentiate a culprit from a real person.
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