Instagram Plays Defense with Offensive Comments

During the last week of June, Instagram introduced a filter that blocks specific offensive comments from posts and live videos. You can enable this new feature in your profile settings and let Instagram decide what comments are appropriate or inappropriate, or manually enter specific keywords. Any comment posted with a keyword that you have listed will be hidden from your Instagram post. Not only does this filter eliminate offensive comments, it also reduces obvious spam from posts and live videos that users often receive from bots.

Check out Instagram’s blog for directions on how to access and enable the new filter.

While the addition of this filter is beneficial for business profiles in that it will help reduce offensive comments from frustrated customers, there’s still a chance that comments may make it through to your Instagram post. In this case, remember these key takeaways when responding to negative and offensive comments:

• Always have a communication strategy! If someone is frustrated with your business and expressing their concerns on your social media page make sure to have a response that is thoughtfully prepared and addresses their concerns.
• Respond promptly when possible. The end-goal of responding to frustrated customers is to turn their negative outlook of your company into a positive one. Making them feel overlooked by reacting to their comment hours later will only add fuel to the fire.
• Think before deleting comments. If there is a random comment on your page that seems more like spam, uses strong profanity, or doesn’t make any sense at all, it may be best to delete it. If it is a comment from a customer who has a legitimate reason for their frustration the best course of action is to ALWAYS respond.

Need help crafting a strong communication plan? Reach out to us! The team at 3Seed is ready to help.