Need I point out that the tweet you see below is not only a social media worst practice, but a really reprehensible way to conduct new biz lead generation?
This tweet is not being taken out of context. It does not matter which storm DotJenna was referencing. Take your pick: Joplin, MO (over 120 dead), Oklahoma City (9 dead), Dallas TX (one possible death so far), and so on. Reports have over 1,500 people missing. We could give this tweeter the benefit of the doubt and say that “capitalize” was a poor choice of words. But what do you think? Let me know in the comments below.
I can really appreciate this cat’s take on the situation:
[blackbirdpie id=”73358728589619200″]
Thanks to Michael Tomko for pointing the tweet out to me.
POSTSCRIPT: @MikeZiegler gives a thorough summary of the online “discussion” that occurred after I published this post. Have a read here.
Despicable You is a PERFECT title for this blog post. Gross. Last roofing company on this planet I would call now….
It’s always weird when local news is covering storms, and John Beal Roofing has that ad in the bottom right of the screen. I guess there’s nothing wrong with that, but it does seem maybe 10% opportunistic
BTW, have you seen Despicable Me? It looks like a good flick…
It is an AWESOME flick….great for the kiddos (okay, and grown-ups – I love it:))
wow. yes, poor choice of words, but i still think she knew exactly what she was typing. and to put “seriously” at the end shows she means business. the ONLY excuse for something like this is an auto-correct mistake. and even then, she should have the decency to (re)correct herself. a**hole is the perfect word.
The cat has its paws on the pulse of the nation
I saw this tweet from @dotJenna:twitter this morning and just about puked all over the bed. So glad that our cat, @thedailyrobert:twitter stood up to her and told her where to get off. I’m already disgusted with the snake-oil sales of “mavens” like her but this is just absolutely over the line. F to the uck her.
From what I am able to see, she is referencing a storm in Texas that dropped huge hail on the area. Still, with Joplin MO and Oklahoma City so prominently in the news, this tweet is at best misguided. At worst, it is apparently puke-inducing!
And to think this is all coming from a “social media coach,” and someone “ranked 87th (top 1%) Most Influential Person Online for 2010 by Fast Company.” Shame! Shaaaame!
Well, in this case, she “influenced” me. 🙂
In every tragedy there is opportunity — to do good and to do damage. Instead of using this self-serving, course and insensitive wording and doing damage, imagine if she were thinking how a person can help, contribute and do good in the aftermath. Instead of using a tragedy to capitalize for personal gain, use it to capitalize for community benefit. Maybe if you do something good for others, you will benefit on levels above and beyond your business.
Frankly, as a roofer (the person to whom she was tweeting)….. yeah, he’s gonna get busy after a hail storm. He’s NOT a bad person because of this. Hail storms create a need that only he or she can fulfill. This does not allow for ambulance-chasing marketing like this
Frankly, as a roofer (the person to whom she was tweeting)….. yeah, he’s gonna get busy after a hail storm. He’s NOT a bad person because of this. Hail storms create a need that only he or she can fulfill. This does not allow for ambulance-chasing marketing like this
He’s a Dallas Roofer. Roofers need hail storms because they replace roofs.
Excellent retort! Let the capitalization begin!
Doctors need people to get sick…?
Dear DotJenna,
I do not wish to belabor the point, but to be clear…. you’re saying that you were talking about a non-deadly storm, and that makes your choice of words OK? There is no doubt that unfortunate acts of nature like hailstorms drive business for those that help us put our lives back together. However….
1. I think you chose your words poorly, and
2. I think the effect of your poor choice is amplified by the high-profile deadly storms that are ripping across the country right now.
There is no hate here, and no haters.
Cheers,
Chris
I bet this is for the storms we has last nite in the d/Fw area. We were all in our safe
Places scared to be the next Joplin, but were fortunate.
I think we all know that capitalizing on weather events happens but it’s an unspoken thing. I think every company that makes money on weather events should have its employees spend volunteer time at red cross, but not in the company name!
Let’s continue to ‘keep them honest’!
“Unspoken” – exactly.
As Michael Tomko intimated in another comment, doctors don’t NEED you to get sick. It just happens, and doctors are there to help. Natural disasters drive certain sectors of the economy. On this we can all agree. Discussing storm marketing strategies in public when national news is broadcasting stories of death and destruction is simply insensitive.
It would have been a really great opportunity for her to admit that using the word “capitalize” was a little ill advised, but instead she decided to brag about how much of a boost to her Klout score this whole thing is going to be. It’s disappointing to hear from someone who “gets” social media, but she’s making money on it, so maybe I’m the one doing it wrong.
Jameson, thanks for dropping by. I would not assume that she’s making money. She has laid out the appearance of being successful, but that is no guarantee that she’s actually monetarily succeeding at it.
Oh, cool. Then my conscience and I can continue to be friends.
Dotjenna cares about her clients!!!. It was only a “hail storm” in dfw. She was trying to help her roofing clients, give her a break. I think your blog is despicable. You should apologize!
Nowhere did I say she didn’t care about her clients. I offered my opinion on her choice of words “I can show you how to capitalize on this storm.” I’m sure if your house was in tatters, you would not appreciate such opportunistic language.
So, please point to the specific part of my post that you want me to apologize for. And you having to read my blog sounds just unbearable… you should not visit it! Spare yourself.
I find that most people can behave better than this.. but loose out when the disconnect from the process.
Sounds like desperation in my opinion. A bad approach especially on Twitter honestly. Also the fastest way to ruin your name/brand by creating a bad vibe.