Subway Response Mistakes to Avoid on Your Social Media

If you buy a 12-inch sub, are you likely to measure it if it seems a little short? We all don’t appreciate being short, but where is the line drawn when we are called to action? And to what degree will these Subway response mistakes to a social comment go?

Subway restaurants received some inputs on these questions, though they did not explicitly ask the questions.

Before we continue, let me ask you a question. 

What works best for your negative, viral social media response design in your business? We would love to hear what it was.

Would you do us a favor and post it in the comments section below? Be the one who starts a conversation.

With the advent of the Internet, the number of marketing options available to both budding and experienced entrepreneurs has become staggering.

Their customers are applying their measuring tapes after an Internet posting that claimed a short-shifting of the worldwide chain’s famous footlong sub.

The controversy began Tuesday in Australia when a customer bought a footlong sub and then pulled out a tape measure and found the sub measured only 11 inches long.

His action was to take his dissatisfaction with Facebook, where he posted a photo of his sub alongside the tape measure on the company’s page with the caption, “subway pls respond.”

Screengrabs taken of his image and reposted online show the photo quickly received more than 131,000 likes and thousands of comments.

Related post: Some Great Story and Storytelling Examples to Study

So what should have Subway done for an early response to this viral social media by its customers?

Here is what we would recommend to Subway executives:

It just is logical that you occasionally deal with negative customers, no matter how good you are. How well you deal with these customers will determine whether you are dealing with a crisis or a non-issue.

Response time in these situations is critical also. Here is a short video on social media response times.

So it is wise to have a response plan defining how you would respond before you receive any such comments. Note that part of the response plan requires action prior to receiving negative comments from customers.

Here is the response plan we recommend:

Listen and accept

But don’t censor. Listen carefully and try to understand your customers’ viewpoints.

Respond directly 

 Early response time really matters. Time is critical and you have very little.

Always be transparent

Explain without offering excuses. Remain calm under fire at all costs.

Fix the problem

If there is one. Acknowledge the issue and communicate your solution.

Look for and create opportunity

Can you turn the problem into an opportunity?

Don’t neglect to spend time finding the opportunity from your adversity … it often will not jump out at you.

Funnel comments/concerns

Keep your staff informed and engaged. Keep everyone in the loop and up to speed.

Build a community

A community of passionate defenders. Let them defend you with their views.

Humanize your brand

Create a brand personality through laughter and having fun in the workplace. Always wear your enthusiasm and your passion.

Know when to walk away

Be prepared to walk away if it is a lose-lose situation and you see you are not making headway. When is the issue over? Sometimes it is obvious, sometimes not … but monitor closely for a while.

Remember … your customers are not always right, but they always have the right to choose. And they do, they will tell their friends about their experiences and their choices.

The bottom line

With companies today, contending with new dimensions of competition– shaping malleable situations, adapting to uncertain ones, and surviving harsh ones – all require new approaches.

Team coaching is one of the new collaborative cultural norms in creating high-performing and faster-moving teams, and within collaborative communities, to lead in the imagination age, in today’s fast-changing world.

Need some help in capturing more customers from your social media marketing or advertising? Creative ideas to help the differentiation with your customers?

All you get is what you bring to the fight. And that fight gets better every day you learn and apply new ideas.

When things are not what you want them to be, what’s most important is your next step. 

Test. Learn. Improve. Repeat.

Digital Spark Marketing will stretch your thinking and your ability to adapt to change.  We also provide some fun and inspiration along the way.

More reading on social media marketing and advertising from Digital Spark Marketing’s Library:

Improve Telling Stories by Employing These Remarkable Examples

Find your Content Marketing Creative Ideas

Creative Ideas Can Add to Publix Social Media Marketing

Social Media Campaigns to Stimulate Learning

Mike Schoultz is a digital marketing and customer service expert. With 48 years of business experience, he consults on, and writes about topics to help improve the performance of small business. Find him on Facebook, Twitter, Quora, Digital Spark Marketing, and LinkedIn.