Social media is the biggest marketing tool available to your NFP. It can also be the greatest avenue of criticism and slander. Managing the balance between the two can, at times, be a time consuming and frustrating job.

The so-called “keyboard warriors” will almost certainly appear on your social media outlets at some stage. They believe it is their right to publicly call you out on an issue, regardless of whether you have done anything wrong. It is, of course, their right to have an opinion, however, it isn’t their right to slander your organisation or become abusive towards you or any of your NFP members, in the name of boosting their ego.

When these situations arise, it is important that you handle the situation calmly and with structure rather than a response that will only inflame the situation. It is easy to become emotional over a cause you are passionate about, but social media is not the place to use those emotions to respond to a troll/keyboard warrior. Only common sense and a pre-determined policy are the ways to deal with this sort of conduct online.

Here are a few tips to help you manage this type of behaviour on social media:

1. Choose your battles. A one off derogatory comment isn’t worth responding to if you know that it is completely incorrect and that it is merely an opinion, albeit not a very good one. Leave it alone. If it is detrimental to your cause or offensive to your readers, delete the comment and send a private message to the poster to explain your position.

2. Stand by your organisation. If you are called out on a topic or issue via social media, you need to respond with the truth. Don’t buy into a slanging match about; directly meet the criticism or comment with the truth. Keep it professional and on track with the message of your organisation. If the comment is correct and your NFP has in fact gone against something it has previously said or done, then you should acknowledge the comment and respond with the reasons why there has been a change.

3. Don’t play the blame game. This is not a schoolyard. It is social media and as such the power for a post to go viral is a very real issue. Be aware of the impact your response will have and how it will be viewed by everyone that follows your organisation on social media, not just the one person you are responding to. Don’t point fingers, don’t blame others; if it is your fault take the blame and wear the response. If not, explain the facts and leave it at that.

4. Create practical procedures. Ensure you have procedures in place that all members of your organisation adhere to when responding on social media. This keeps a consistent message across your brand and ensures you don’t end up with someone being a little too passionate in defending your cause.

What are your tips for handling negative social media comments for your NFP?