The Hershey Company (hersheycompany.com) impresses me in many ways. There is a sense within the brand to serve the customer and the community. Every good company will have crisis moments. Hershey continues to impress with an engaging crisis management ability.
Caroline Cakebread discusses the four ways executives are thinking about brand safety in 2018. She lists four rules:
- Don’t over-react.
- Stay true to your customer-not the trolls.
- Stop talking, and start taking action.
- The hysteria won’t last.[1]
A simple twitter search reveals three potential crisis moments that could easily spin out of control. Within a ten-day period, Hershey addresses a packaging issue, a discontinued product issue, and an employee’s inappropriate posts on social media. Yet, we see Hershey doesn’t overreact, focuses on the customer, takes action, and realizes the hysteria will not last, nor should it be flamed. Let’s examine the Hershey Company’s response to each issue.
The first issue is a packaging issue. On July 8, a customer posts a picture on twitter of a Hershey package of Hershey Nuggets. When the customer opens a package chocolate nugget, they find a pair of scissors. Hershey produces millions of candy packages weekly, and in the packaging process, a pair of scissors fell in a bag. It is hard to believe someone in quality control or in the store shelving the product did not notice the weight, but mistakes were made, and the package was sold containing a pair of scissors. Hershey’s twitter response followed the guidelines by responding with an action within 24 hours and simply stating, “Please send us a direct message (DM) with the UPC and manufacturing code, as well as your contact information. Thanks!”
The second issue is a complaint from a customer trying to find a product that has was discontinued and no longer available. The claim includes the necessity of the customer’s desire because of their child’s peanut allergy. Interestingly, the parent is reaching out while most Hershey products would come with a qualifying disclaimer that peanuts were present where the chocolate was processed. Upon closer examination, Hershey has a processing plant that is specifically allergen-free and promotes such allergen-free products on their website (thehersheycompany.com/en_us/whats-inside/allergens). Hershey’s response was quick and light-hearted “hi there! We’re sorry to say that we are no longer making Hershey’s spreads, but we’ll add your vote to bring them back!” It appears that Hershey addressed the crisis. I believe it would have been appropriate to add the link to the website revealing how to find other allergen-free Hershey products.
The third issue is indeed a crisis of employee expressing inappropriate actions on social media. On June 30, a person posted on twitter three screenshots of posts by a 23-year-old Hershey Company employee showing racists, misogynistic, and transphobic ideas on social media. The employee reveals in his bio his age and that he is a Hershey Company employee. The current climate of sensitive cultural issues could have easily escalated with quick and knee-jerk responses. Hershey stays true to their crisis management plan and responds with “Hi Shay. We have flagged this to the appropriate members of our team. Thank you.” The customer is the primary receiver, there is no over-reaction, and direct action is being taken.
I do not know if Hershey has read Caroline Cakebread’s four rules of don’t over-react, stay true to your customer-not the trolls, stop talking and start taking action while remembering the hysteria won’t last. What I do know is the Hershey Company is successfully delivering these four rules as a crisis management plan. It would behoove all social media managers to take rules and apply them in every crisis management plan. Keep developing great social media and never underestimate the power of a plan.
You know I love ya, Don
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