An assessment of the use of social media in crisis communication

Abstract

The advent of social media has revolutionized crisis communication, facilitating direct and bidirectional interactions with stakeholders. In October 2022, the Nyaradzo Group a diversified financial and insurance services company headquartered in Zimbabwe was embroiled in controversy when discussions about its funeral policies erupted on Twitter, causing widespread dissatisfaction among its customers. This discourse persisted for approximately three weeks, drawing attention to the company's challenges in handling the escalating crisis. This study was conducted to evaluate Nyaradzo Group's deployment of social media as a tool for crisis communication management. Specifically, the research aimed to analyze the strategies Nyaradzo Group employed to engage stakeholders during the crisis, investigate the crisis management techniques utilized on social media, and identify the challenges the organization faced in managing public grievances online. Premised on situational crisis communication, image repair theory, and the two-way symmetrical communication model the study assessed the strategic use of social media in crisis contexts. Data collection methods included content analysis of relevant tweets and Facebook comments. The findings indicate that Nyaradzo faces a significant gap in utilizing social media to effectively engage with stakeholders during times of crisis. Findings show that Nyaradzo Group's use of social media during the crisis reflected a limited dialogue. They were following the traditional way of crisis communication where communication was one way. Despite maintaining a social media presence, the organisation persisted in employing a one-way symmetrical communication model which ultimately precipitated public reaction and backlash. Nyaradzo Group was not transparent during the crisis, especially regarding the financial structure of the policies, cash backs, and lapsing periods. Nyaradzo also used a denial strategy which exacerbated the crisis. They also tried to initial response strategy. The initial statement did not address the stakeholders' concerns it intensified the crisis. The CEO made a direct intervention in trying to address the issue, but the stakeholders started to question the role of the public relations practitioners. The study underscores the need for organizations to refine their social media crisis management strategy and highlights the evolving responsibilities of PR practitioners in the digital era, including the imperative for targeted online training to equip them with the necessary skills for managing digital crises effectively.