In fact, there are still no reliable research results on the damage a shitstorm really causes in companies. In my opinion, those who are hit hardest are those who are unprepared and fall victim to a personal attack and have no strategies to deal with it professionally. Politicians are used to attacks and controversy. Companies have communication experts, at least the larger ones.
If, on the other hand, a company is not prepared for a communications crisis - and unfortunately many medium-sized and smaller companies still aren't - then the shock is usually great and people desperately look for short-term support. This doesn't just apply to typical shitstorms, but to every type of corporate and communications crisis. But even the best PR consultant can't step in in a matter of minutes and become the spokesperson for a company or organization that they don't even know. That's why every company really needs a crisis PR concept with contact persons. (See also the section "Can you prevent it?")
Even if this article is about professional (corporate) communication, a private individual who is suddenly subjected to mass bullying via Twitter or Facebook is probably the most affected. Of course, it is of little consolation to the individual that the risk of such an attack is relatively low. In addition to formal support, it may be best to have a network of confidants around you. Anyone who is suffering from a shitstorm or cyberbullying or thinks they are suffering from it as a private individual should definitely facebook data get help from others. Psychological counseling centers can also be a first port of call, for example!
How do you know that something is brewing?
Good monitoring and suitable early warning systems should ensure that a company finds out in good time that something is going wrong with its communication. If you only send content in one direction but do not measure and monitor it properly, you will probably find out about dangerous developments far too late. Regularly checking social networks (and not just the distribution tools for your own content) is a must. Communication in the digital age is no longer a nine-to-five job. Decision-makers must also be available at weekends and outside of office hours in case something goes wrong.
This is also why it is important to monitor not only quantitatively, but also qualitatively. The mere fact that a company is suddenly mentioned more often than average in social networks does not say anything about the quality of the comments. Therefore, a sentiment analysis must always be carried out, which classifies the comments in gradations from very negative to neutral to very positive.
A good network around a company, which includes good personal networking of the protagonists, increases the probability of finding out about a brewing shitstorm as early as possible.
This also shows that those who stay away from social networks for fear of backlash are not reducing the risk of a shitstorm, but rather the risk of not finding out about something in time. Because, as mentioned, the triggers can also lie elsewhere than in statements made on company accounts; and there is hardly a company today whose employees are completely absent from the web. A possible worst case scenario: an employee of a company triggers a shitstorm with a statement, but there are no company profiles or pages on social networks to officially comment on it.