How Not To Use Twitter
February 1, 2010 at 10:51 am
Back in the heady days of summer, I applauded Toyota Ireland for their use of Twitter and their innovative idea to promote the Toyota iQ by giving 4 bloggers the to drive and blog about for 6 months. They reached out via Twitter and selected four people (including myself) who would blog monthly and post about their experience of using the car. Good for link love and great for PR. It was an inspired idea.
Today I’m sorry to say that the very same people are to be noted for how NOT to use Twitter.
There has been a lot of media coverage over the weekend about the car recall Toyota. Toyota have had to recall several models due to an accelerator problem. On Newstalk this morning they were talking about the Toyota car recall. I’m sure it was on all the media – for many people (like me) I’d expect to be hearing about it online too. While the Toyota Ireland website has some information in its news section. There is nothing on Twitter.
There are countless examples of organisations failing to use Twitter during times of crisis management. The Channel Tunnel at Christmas was the most recent example and countless commentators have written about the lessons to be learned. Here in Ireland, Bord Gais are simultaneously lauded for their blogger/Twitter outreach programme last year, but knocked for forgetting all about it when people were wondering what was going on with the stolen laptops.
Now Toyota is making the same mistake.
Screenshot of Toyota Ireland’s Twitter page this morning, not a word about the recalled vehicles:
This is probably because Toyota Ireland have outsourced their “Twitter management” to an agency. The agency isn’t showing any pro-activity by contacting their client to see if they want to use this important channel to communicate with their audience. Toyota, God bless them, are probably running like headless chickens dealing with the crisis. I place the blame on the agency. They sold the Twitter concept in to their client, they should at least be assisting their client to use this new medium in this difficult time. I would love to be writing a post this morning applauding Toyota for their use of Twiter in communicating with clients.
Correction: I’m told that the agency:
ran the IQ competition with them on Twitter. We did not sell in Twitter to them as they already had their Twitter account running. We have no other involvement with their twitter account.
My mistake. I was obviously buying the portfolio propaganda which said:
Eighty:Twenty were briefed to create an innovative launch campaign for the Toyota IQ without any supporting media spend.
And no, I’m not being harsh, someone is not responsible for the management of the Twitter iQ launch campaign.
Last week I tweeted about my last Toyota iQ post and whoever was twittering for Toyota tweeted back (a day late) asking me (very directly I thought) if I was going to buy the car. As I had already had a discussion with Toyota themselves about this (and decided I needed something with a bit more poke), I went to DM on Twitter to say no. I didn’t want to embarrass my car benefactors by stating publicly that I didn’t want the car. But I was amazed to see that Toyota Ireland wasn’t following me, so I was unable to DM.
If you look at who Toyota Ireland is following – it’s a list of other Toyota offices and PR people. Not one of the bloggers they gave a car to. No car enthusiasts. No target market. Nothing.
If you look at the recent Twitter stream – the conversation is about pushing sales messages, every couple of days:
The only chat comes at the start and that’s when I told them they weren’t following me. And they got my name wrong.
So it’s another one to enter the Twitter Hall of Fail.
I really don’t understand how so many can get something so easy so wrong.
Tags: toyota car recall, toyota ireland twitter fail, twitter fail
