Over the weekend, Black Milk Clothing, a popular online retailer, offended their social media masses. The post that started an uproar was assumed to be a playful and harmless meme. But BM’s audience didn’t see it that way. They attempted to defend their right poke fun at themselves which turned into an upsetting social disaster that eventually led to them issuing an apology to their community. FSC reviews the situation and provides our take on the subject.
Black Milk Clothing Facebook Page / Facebook: blackmilkclothing / Via Buzz Feed article
Black Milk Clothing’s Social Media Disaster
Brooke: Although I’m not condoning what Black Milk posted or how they handled this situation, I do think that this day in age it’s interesting to see more and more brands being unapologetic for their brand culture, beliefs, and voice. I absolutely would not have handled the situation the way they did, however.
Lydia: Social media has brought about a closer connection between all kinds of people from all walks of life, for better and for worse. Because of its public nature, a post or tweet can easily go from a casual joke between a few like-minded friends to an insult broadcast to the world. With so many different kinds of people able to consume a person or a brand’s attempt at a joke, there will inevitably be some people who feel offended. Black Milk Clothing screwed up in several respects here. First they posted a joke which while not seemingly that offensive (in my personal opinion), was found to be offensive by members of their community and fan-base and also went against their own stated credo. If they had merely ignored the dissent (without deleting the comments) or responded immediately with an apology and deleted the offending post, we would not be seeing this incident at all. It was their decision to “stick to their guns” and go on the defensive that got them in hot water. A brand angrily defending itself on social media NEVER reads well, no matter how much they might be right (and they’re usually not). Black Milk needs to learn how not to take comments on their page personally…or maybe they should just call FSC!
Kate: There is usually a right time and place for everything. And social media is no exception. Black Milk posted a seemingly harmless meme to poke fun at themselves. When their fans felt otherwise, the company acted like a little kid in a sandbox that didn’t get their way. Poor handling on their part. It’s really too bad that the social media team took the path they did with telling fans if they didn’t like what was happening to shop elsewhere and unlike the brand. I don’t blame their online community for being so angry with them. Rightfully so. The BM community stood up for their beliefs, which was actually what the brand was founded on in the first place.
Mallory: Black Milk Clothing is a company that, by their own admission, would not exist if it were not for social media and word-of-mouth marketing. The original post was unfortunate, but seemed to have been posted in good humor and without ill intentions. However, the way their team handled the community’s reaction to that post was totally out of line. Deleting comments and banning people who voiced legitimate concerns and opinions was the wrong way to handle this situation. They should have immediately apologized for any harm or hurt the original post may have caused, and moved forward to repair their relationship with their community. Instead, they escalated the situation and basically told fans, “If you don’t like it, don’t shop here anymore.” By the time the company’s director of sales & marketing issued an apology, it felt like too little, too late to many. The Buzzfeed article is also proof that what happens on the Internet, stays on the Internet. Anything you post can and will be screen-captured by upset customers, so just because you delete or hide a negative comment or review, it doesn’t make the problem go away.
Side note: as a Black Milk customer myself, and someone who actually placed an order the same weekend this drama unfurled (but before I knew about it), I won’t necessarily stop wearing the products I already have from this company, or following them on social media, but it does make me much more hesitant to recommend them to friends in the future.
Lindsey: It’s hard not to cringe at some of the responses made by the Black Milk Clothing social media team to their customers. A brand should always reach out to a customer’s comment, whether it’s a complaint or a compliment, and never just start banning people who’ve disagreed with the post in question. In this case, Black Milk Clothing initially refused to offer an apology for offending customers who felt their Facebook post went against what the company’s own “commandments” stood for. Telling a loyal customer that they should unlike the page, move on, or shop elsewhere will help you lose the customers that you tried so hard to get in the first place. Cameron Parker, head of sales and marketing, said previously that “being on social media means that you can have a real great relationship with your customer” and that “talking down to your community probably tops the list,” but the way this issue was handled said otherwise. The statement that he ultimately gave, taking ownership and issuing an apology after the post was deleted, was how it should have been handled in the first place. We all make mistakes! It’s how you handle those mistakes afterwards that makes the biggest impact on current and future customers.