Understanding online firestorms: Negative word-of-mouth dynamics in social media networks

TLDR

Social media amplify word‑of‑mouth, yet they can also trigger rapid, large‑scale negative reactions—online firestorms—that challenge marketing communications. The article synthesizes recent firestorm cases, links them to social and economic theories, and extracts key factors that drive their spread. It also examines the impact on marketing and proposes strategies for marketers to manage crises of negative online word‑of‑mouth.

Abstract

Social media are, on the one hand, a highly beneficial environment for word-of-mouth (WOM) propagation of new ideas and products, and this has increasingly made them a focus of marketing communications. On the other hand, companies and their brands as well as politicians, governmental institutions, and celebrities have increasingly been facing the impact of negative online WOM and complaint behavior. In reaction to any questionable statement or activity, social media users can create huge waves of outrage within just a few hours. These so-called online firestorms pose new challenges for marketing communications. In this article, we group observations from recent online firestorms, identify related social and economic science theories, and derive generalized factors that form the basis for the proliferation of these dynamics. Furthermore, we discuss the consequences of online firestorms for marketing communications, and offer courses of action for marketers to navigate through crises of negative online WOM.