Scary Tweets: When Personal and Professional Twitter Accounts Get Crossed

pumpkins
October 31, 2012
Several weeks ago KitchenAid and StubHub experienced highly publicized Twitter “oops.” These were just two of the latest in a series of tweeting blunders committed by major brands and organizations.Remember this: You can delete a tweet, but you can’t take it back or prevent followers from taking screenshots.

Remember this, too: Always double-check the name of your Twitter account before posting a tweet at work.

It’s a very good idea to choose different platforms for your personal and professional Twitter accounts. For example, if you use HootSuite for your professional account, use TweetDeck for your personal account. You’re less likely to confuse the two systems, thereby keeping you and your brand out of hot water!

American Red Cross (@RedCross)

“Ryan found two more 4 bottle packs of Dogfish Head’s Midas Touch beer…. when we drink we do it right #gettngslizzerd.”

Damage Control:

The Red Cross used a little humor to diffuse the situation, following up with the tweet: “We’ve deleted the rogue tweet but rest assured the Red Cross is sober and we’ve confiscated the keys.”

Twitter (@Twitter)

“I don’t know how Enrique Iglesias ended up in my iTunes but Escape is a catchy f*!#$%’ song! http://bit.ly/bcY3wm Sing, Enrique! Sing!”

Damage Control:

Even Twitter itself can fall victim to tweeting mishaps. The employee responsible for the mis-tweet followed up on her personal account: “I shouldn’t assume ALL of TWITTER appreciates the musical stylings of Enrique Iglesias the way I do.” Twitter (@Twitter)

U.S. Secret Service (@SecretService)

“Had to monitor Fox for a story. Can’t. Deal. With. The. Blathering.”

Damage Control:

Although it seems odd that the Secret Service would have a Twitter account in the first place, a spokesperson made a statement to the press following the incident: “An employee with access to the Secret Service’s Twitter account, who mistakenly believed they were on their personal account, posted an unapproved and inappropriate tweet … We apologize for this mistake, and the user no longer has access to our official account.”

Chrysler (@ChryslerAutos)

“I find it ironic that Detroit is known as the #motorcity and yet nobody knows how to f*!#$%@ drive”

Damage Control:

Chrysler posted: “Our apologies – our account was compromised earlier today. We are taking steps to resolve it.”

KitchenAid (@KitchenAidUSA)

“Obamas gma even knew it was going 2 b bad! ‘She died 3 days b4 he became president’. #nbcpolitics”

Damage Control:

This tweet, posted during the Presidential Debate on NBC, was followed with: “Deepest apologies for an irresponsible tweet that is in no way a representation of the brand’s opinion. #nbcpolitics.”

StubHub (@StubHub)

“Thank f*!# it’s Friday! Can’t wait to get out of this stubsucking hell hole.”

Damage Control:

StubHub tweeted: “We’ve deleted an unauthorized tweet made from this Twitter handle. We apologize to all of our followers for the inapropriate language used.” No sense of humor there.

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