Speak now…or forever be held by GreenPeace.

In hindsight, it’s safe to say that Nestle’s run-ins with environmental stalwarts Greenpeace acted as a catalyst to reinvigorate their social strategy.

The company was faced with accusations of immoral palm oil resourcing for several years. In 2010, Greenpeace’s depicted a provocative advertisement of Nestle’s Kitkat brand.

*TRIGGER WARNING: This ad goes from 0 to 100 in terms of graphic imagery*

The company made matters worse by attempting to take the video down, citing copyright infringement. This continued to chastise their reputation as several customers began bombarding their Facebook page with condescending responses.

As Frederick Schultz of the Copenhagen Business School explains, “reputation is often regarded as a valuable, intangible asset relevant for financial success of the organization.”

Nestle resolved these matters with the institution of their Digital Acceleration Team (or DAT). This initiative utilizes social management platforms like Klout to hone in on their followers, which they view as “the world’s biggest focus group.”

This is where true tenants of social media strategy can be refined, including listening, utilizing context, conveying tone, and managing the timeliness of posts.

As Schultz advises, “response strategies should be less defensive and more accommodating, the greater the crisis responsibility generated by the crisis.”

The DAT was not only a breakthrough in social media management, but a precedent for future marketers. In conjunction with continuous partnerships with environmental non-profits, Nestle has since regained an even stronger reputation.

When developing social strategies for crisis responses, what’s essential is “not only an apology, but also sympathy,” in order “to positively shape recipients' perceptions of the organization.”

How do you keep the convo going on social? Comment below with the hashtag #TooSweet :D