Strategic Communication and Reputational Crisis Management on Social Media

José Alexander Velásquez Ochoa
Universidad Autónoma de Perú, Panamericana Sur Km. 16.3, Villa El Salvador, Lima, Perú

David Alberto García-Arango
Universidad Autónoma de Perú, Panamericana Sur Km. 16.3, Villa El Salvador, Lima, Perú

Luis Fernando Garcés Giraldo
Escuela de Posgrado, Universidad Continental, Miraflores 15046, Lima, Perú

Cesar Felipe Henao Villa
Facultad de Ingeniería y Ciencias Agropecuarias, Grupo INDDES, Institución Universitaria Digital de Antioquia, Carrera 55 No. 42-90, Medellín, Colombia

Ever Bedoya
Tecnológico de Antioquia, Calle 78B # 72A-220, Robledo, Medellín, Antioquia, Colombia

Jose Alban Londoño
Tecnológico de Antioquia, Calle 78B # 72A-220, Robledo, Medellín, Antioquia, Colombia

Mariby C. Boscán Carroz
Universidad del Zulia, Av. 16 con Calle 67 B, Zulia, Venezuela

Abstract

Managing reputational crises on social media is a critical issue requiring highly individualized strategic solutions due to its rapid spread. This research presents a strategy analysis using a longitudinal panel study of 20 companies from 2021 to 2024, K-Means clustering, and correlational analysis with the 2024 Edelman Trust Barometer. The research findings show that proactive transparency and empathetic action result in a 78% recovery of sentiment and an 81% gain in trust, compared to 22% for denial and silence. Negative social sentiment significantly reduces reputational scores, with a coefficient of -2.99. There was a staggering 362.9% increase in crises on TikTok between 2021 and 2024, in contrast to a 50% increase on Twitter/X. The negative relationships of institutional trust with crisis volume on Twitter (r=-0.984) and TikTok (r=-0.974) further validate the detrimental effect of long-term exposure.

Keywords: Crisis Communication ,Reputation Management ,Social Media Strategy ,Trust Recovery ,Sentiment Analysis ,Strategic Transparency