Bad news. Trolls have evolved.
We’ve known for some time that social network algorithms favour emotive content that makes people want to act – whether that’s sharing, liking, subscribing, commenting or clicking on a link – the more engagement content gets, the more it’s recommended to others.
And so, we’re seeing more content creators and influencers turn to rage farming.
- Step 1: find something about a brand, product or entertainment franchise worth criticising.
- Step 2: make a video, host a stream or write a social media post full of the most inflammatory language possible.
- Step 3: create an eye-catching image mocking the brand and craft a perfectly venomous headline for your content.
- Step 4: profit! (As people flood join in with their rage or share/comment on the content expressing their outrage at it being so horrible.)
It’s…an experience as a consumer.
It’s depressing.
It makes people not want to explore other perspectives at all. Sticking instead to trusted, ‘safe’ channels and creators who they already subscribe to/follow.
It creates and reinforces social media bubbles.
Which is a problem, because we need to be able to see valid criticism and discuss things that we disagree on, but what we’re talking about here is not valid criticism – it’s using rage to generate income at the expense of other people.
Why this a problem for brands?
- It stokes hate for a brand – often around good things that it has done, such as include diversity in its advertising, hire a diverse range of actors or tell stories that reflect the experiences of minority communities.
- It reduces word-of-mouth advertising. If you’re part of a community that’s passionate about something and that thing is being attacked by influencers who have millions of fans, you’re often extremely cautious about saying anything positive about what you love (because chances are you will be attacked for it).
- It puts employees – especially those who use social media to communicate with fans – in the firing line. You don’t have to look very far to see these people get terrible abuse.
- It can change the brand for the worse. Some leaders will panic and try to “win back” the people who are abusing their employees and customers by making choices that they’ll approve of – which alienates the brand’s supporters and employees.
How can your brand deal with rage farming?
- Hold true to your values
- Train your employees to handle massive backlashes that start on social media
- Support employees via a healthy culture that supports mental wellbeing
- Provide a space for your communities to thrive away from hate and attacks, somewhere that lets employees see that people love what they do
- Communicate confidently in support of your values, employees and customers. Show these people that you ae proud of the good work your brand does and that you won’t give in to hate culture.
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Photo by Andre Hunter on Unsplash
