Before I had even poured my morning coffee, major gay blogs were posting news of a sponsorship of a controversial festival hosted by the notorious “pro-marriage” organization National Organization for Marriage by a Rhode Island Tim Hortons.
My own small tweets on the subject were replicated and reproduced at a rate I’ve never seen. A quick look at the search function on Twitter for “Tim Hortons” reveals that instead of talking up the new blueberry blossom doughnut or their morning double-double – people are pissed off about a Rhode Island franchisee.
Some have argued social media moves to quickly to pass judgment without fact. This is true to an extent. And, it is exactly why corporate, union and NGO communicators need to be part of the conversation.
The failure today is Tim Hortons’ absence from the conversation.
Tim’s is a massive brand in Canada. Battling perhaps only Canadian Tire for the top spot in Canuck’s minds when asked to name a uniquely Canadian brand. Can they afford to be missing in action? What could they have done to prevent this from growing?
A good example of fast action and open communications recently came from the CBC communications office. Lobby group Friends of Canadian Broadcasting sent a press release accusing executives of wanting to move The National to 11pm and replace it with US TV.
This was prime fodder for a #CBCFAIL “hashtag” on Twitter and a viral word-of-mouth reaction. That is, until the CBC moved all gears into motion and stopped the rumour dead. Here – from my vantage point – were the most critical steps the CBC took and Tim Horton’s failed to take:
1. Regular monitoring of social media
2. Freedom for their staff to correct the virtual record
3. Good use of corporate executives and spokespeople to deny the release – online, in person and on the phone
4. Fast, effective and efficient staff who responded to bloggers, citizens who tweet and media
I think the clock is ticking for Tim Hortons – every minute their Twitter account lays silent this #TimHortonsFAIL campaign will grow.
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