Whenever an individual or business makes a terrible mistake using social media, we at Windy City Strategies want to make sure we call it out, in order to help us all avoid similar social media gaffes in the future.
Today’s lesson comes at the expense of Microsoft, who shortly after the tragic death of singer Amy Winehouse, tweeted, “Remember Amy Winehouse by downloading the ground-breaking ‘Back to Black’ over at Zune…” with a link to their Zune music service. C’mon Microsoft.
You could have been more subtle than that. After all, her album sales increased 37 times after her death, jumping to the top of the charts. Apple simply posted an image of Winehouse on the front of their iTunes store with the caption, “Remembering Amy Winehouse.” Amazon posted a brief obituary and a link to her music.
All similar tactics. But, Microsoft’s just wasn’t subtle enough.