The calendar year wouldn’t be complete without a few social media fails.
In 2012, plenty of big brands and organizations suffered serious backlashes on social networks like Twitter and Facebook for offensive tweets, questionable ad campaigns or controversial company statements. Some, like McDonald’s, attempted good-natured social media campaigns that simply took unexpected turns. Others, like StubHub’s and KitchenAid’s Twitter accounts mistakenly send out shocking tweets.
If there’s one lesson to take away from this year’s fails, it’s that brands need to be particularly careful when it comes to tying a promotion or post to a big, public event. Several of the businesses on our list were heavily criticized for posts relating to the presidential election and Hurricane Sandy, for example
