Susan Boyle's PR people are probably wishing they had re-read their promotional hashtag after missing its alternative message to Twitter users.
Causing great mirth on the social network on Thursday, the unfortunate choice of hashtag #Susanalbumparty to promote the singer's new album event has spawned a wealth of mock invites to the party and ridicule. Gawker reports the rumour-bashing site Is Twitter Wrong (run by @flashboy) managed to track down the original tweet from Susan's account, which was hastily changed to #SusanBoylesAlbumParty.
Since we're aware of the potential pitfalls of an unfortunate Twitter name or hashtag (remember to cap up US for @GuardianUS everyone!), SuBo's PR fail (some may call it genius) prompted us to revisit some previous so-called PR "hashtag fails", including:
1. #McDStories: Back in January, McDonald's #McDoStories hashtag backfired when instead of offering "good news stories" about the fast-food chain, users began flooding the tag with claims of fingernails in burgers and other nasties.
2. #WaitroseReasons: When the supermarket asked shoppers to complete the sentence: "I shop at Waitrose because …" using the hashtag #WaitroseReasons in September, it perhaps should have expected the subsequent tirade of jokes about the brand's posh image – though many have said the way Waitrose responded turned the campaign from disaster to success.
3. #QantasLuxury: Airline Qantas won the accolade of PR disaster of the year at the end of 2011 after opening up their promotional hashtag #QantasLuxury at a time when thousands of passengers were stranded overseas.
4. #MadeMeSmile: Vodafone was left bemused when Twitter users redeployed the PR #mademesmile tag to publish tax avoidance allegations direct to the company's website.
Hey everyone @vodafoneuk are giving away prizes for the best tweets with hashtag #makesmesmile. Anyone have any good ones?
— UK Uncut (@UKuncut) December 12, 2010
5. #AskStevieG: The hashtag designed by Adidas staff probably should have predicted the types of questions Twitter users would post to the Liverpool footballer – the social media equivalent of scoring an own goal.
Over to you – what are the best and worst PR hashtags you've seen this year, and does SuBo's PR contribution top them all?
Your favourite #fails
Readers in comments have been posting their favourite Twitter hashtag fails which also demonstrate a need for some serious proofing from social media teams.
freeclimb suggests #rimjobs from Blackberry maker RIM, added to job opening tweets.
SubhajitBanerjee remembers the abuse of the #AskTony tag which was promoted for a Q&A with Tony Blair over the interfaith harmony week.
Switzerland has picked #hobbitch for the promotion of the Hobbit with its country code, thanks dudelsac.
And a fantastic shout from PorkBoy - who told us about Chester Literary Festival's #epicfail with the hashtag #CLitFest. Delightful!
Comments (…)
Sign in or create your Guardian account to join the discussion