The accident in Harwich/GB caused by the DFDS Seaways-ferry Sirena Seaways on June 22, 2013 – together with the DFDS Annual Report's lines on a new Social Media Strategy (p.45 and 60) – made me come up with some case studies and some suggestions for a possible new strategy. I hope that DFDS Seaways listens and acts ;-) ...

1. © Dennis M. Tomiola, 2013 – v1.1 – 25-Jun-13
A Draft Social Media
Strategy for !

2. Page intentionally left blank

3. Settings!
DFDS‘s Annual report 2012:
Communications with passengers!
„DFDS puts high emphasis on informing all
passengers about the various important matters of
their journey. (…) Developments range from service
calls prior to departure to increased social media
presence that help to fulfill DFDS’ responsibility of
informing passengers on all matters of importance.
The approach to social media is decentralized
and country specific, supported by an
overarching DFDS social media guideline that
ensures consistency across markets.“ (p.60)

4. Settings!
DFDS‘s Annual report 2012:
DFDS and Corporate Responsibility!
„Plans for 2013/2014:
Development of social media strategy“ (p.45)

5. Status quo!
DFDS‘s decentralized Social Media Channels:
Facebook-pages!
• DFDS Seaways Danmark
• DFDS Seaways UK
• DFDS Seaways Nederland
• DFDS Seaways NO
• DFDS Seaways Eesti
• DFDS Seaways Deutschland
• DFDS Seaways Sverige
• DFDS Seaways LT
• DFDS Logistics

6. Status quo!
DFDS‘s decentralized Social Media Channels:
Twitter-Channels!
@ DFDS Seaways (German Channel)
@ DFDS Seaways (discontinued GB-Channel)
@ DFDS Seaways UK (new GB-Channel)
@ DFDS Seaways (Dutch Channel)
@ DFDS Seaways (Affiliate Program Channel)
@ DFDS Seaways (Baltic Channel)
@ DFDS Logistics (Logistics Program)
@ DFDS Rotterdam (Transport News from ROT)

7. Status quo!
DFDS‘s decentralized Social Media Channels:
NO Twitter-Channel in: !
• Danish!
!
• Swedish!
!
• Norwegian!

8. Status quo!
DFDS‘s decentralized Social Media Channels:
Youtube-Channels!
• DFDS Seaways (Danish, Norwegian)"
http://www.youtube.com/user/dfdsseawaysdk
• DFDS Seaways (German)"
http://www.youtube.com/user/DFDSSeawaysDE
• DFDS Seaways (NL)"
http://www.youtube.com/user/DFDSSeawaysnl
• DFDS Seaways UK (GB)"
http://www.youtube.com/user/DFDSSeawaysUK

9. Status quo!
DFDS‘s decentralized Social Media Channels:
Google+-Channels!
• DFDS Seaways Denmark (Danish)"
https://plus.google.com/106781059659827410081
• DFDS Seaways Deutschland (German)"
https://plus.google.com/106539773614215743714
• DFDS Seaways UK (GB)"
https://plus.google.com/101844037509437363372‎

10. Status quo!
DFDS‘s decentralized Social Media Channels:
NO DFDS-Channels on!
• Instagram!
!
• Pinterest!
!
• Flipboard!
• Tumblr!

11. Page intentionally left blank

12. Case study!
Type
International Airline from Scandinavia
International Ferry Company from Scandinavia
Main Countries involved
3 - (DA, NO, SE)
≥10 - (DA, NO, SE, DE, GB, FR, NL, LT, RU, EE)
Homemarkets
3 - (plus the destination countries)
at least 10 - (plus the cargo destinations)
Type of Company
was decentralized (now more centralized)
decentralized
Social Media Approach
Central (from Stockholm)
Decentral (from all Countries)
Social Media Channels
1 per Medium
(Twitter, Facebook, Youtube, Instagram,
Pinterest)
Several per Medium
(„everybody does what he wants“)
Language used in
Communication with Users/
Passengers
mainly English
(but also Danish, Norwegian, Swedish)
all involved languages
Personnel for Social Media
Communication
2-3 (from 8am-10pm)
(in times of crisis, an extended Social-
Media-team is inforced in order to give an
extended Customer Service)
many (only during local business hours)
(at least one person in each country)

13. Case study!
Social Media is used for
• Special Offers
(both local and global)
• Traffic/Flight Information
• Customer Contact/Service
• Emergency Communication
• Getting Social with Passengers (Photos,
Videos, Quizes, etc.)
• Special Offers
(only local, country-specific)
• Traffic/Ferry Information
• Customer Contact/Service
• very limited Emergency Communication
• Getting Social with Passengers (Photos,
Videos, Quizes, etc.)
Way of communicating with
passengers via Social
Media in emergency
situation
• pro-active
• fast
• informative
• cross-medial
• Customer Center works closely together
with Social Media folks in order to give
best Customer Support
• defensive re-acting
• rather slow
• rather limited information to customers
• mostly linking to website and telling people to
call Customer Center
*See also: „Strategisk bruk av Sosiale Medier i SAS“, presentation made by Christian Kamhaug, former Head of Social Media at SAS,
March 21, 2012 – http://en.slideshare.net/CKamhaug/strategisk-bruk-av-sosiale-medier-i-sas

14. Case study – EmCom*!
DFDS‘ Communication via Social Media in an
Emergency Situation
Incident
M/F SIRENA SEAWAYS hitting the dock in Harwich
Date/Time
Saturday, June 22, 2013, @12:00pm
Result
• Ferry and Dock badly damaged
• 489 Passengers stuck on Ferry, nobody injured
• Many Passengers stuck in Harwich and Esbjerg
• Cancelled departures from DK and GB until 28/6
*Emergency Communication!

15. Case study – EmCom!
SAT 12:00* – M/F SIRENA SEAWAYS hits the dock
SAT 13:49* –
First comment from Passengers on "
GB-Facebook-page:
SAT 16:37* – First re-action of DFDS on GB-Facebook
TIMELINE
*Local British Time is used!

16. Case study – EmCom!
SAT 18:32 – Passengers asking for news via GB-FB
SAT 18:45 (19:45 CEST) – First information on Danish
DFDS-Webpage
SAT 20:19 – First short answer from DFDS on GB-FB
SENEST OPDATERET: 22/06/2013 kl. 19:45.
For seneste opdatering om skibsinformation ring på 3342 3000 (hverdage ml. 9-17)

17. Case study – EmCom!
SUN 11:54 (12:54 CEST) – First and only pro-active
information on Danish
DFDS-FB-page

18. Case study – EmCom!
FACEBOOK
• was not used pro-actively
• UK-Facebook reacted first after 4½ hours
• DK-Facebook reacted first after almost 23 hours
with one single active posting
• very limited information and communication "
with Passengers
• DFDS relying on Passengers taking a look on "
DFDS-websites
• no coordinated information/EmCom via Facebook
(due to decentral Social Media strategy!)
TWITTER
• was not used at all!
CONCLUSIONS

19. Case study – EmCom!
à Passengers are angry with DFDS,
because they have to ask for
information on Social Media
CONCLUSIONS

20. DFDS – you can do better!

21. Page intentionally left blank

22. Draft Strategy!
How should DFDS use Social Media?!
 Basically „The DFDS way“:!
• Pro-actively in Emergency Situation (to decrease
negative mentions in online conversations)
• As an addition to (not replacement of) existing
Customer Support via Phone, Chat and Mail
• Work on your Customer Support through quick
action or reaction
• Show that you care for your Customers in good
and bad times – make people feel happy, when
they talk to DFDS on Social Media

23. Draft Strategy!
How should DFDS use Social Media?!
• Establish DFDS as an active and trustworthy
company in online conversations
• Making mistakes is OK, nobody is perfect!
• Saying „I don‘t know right now“ is OK
• Ask for Peoples advice
• Social Media is not free – spend some money
and ressources on them
• Use your Users to make DFDS even better!
• Analyse and follow-up Campaigns/Channels!

24. Draft Strategy!
How can this be achieved?!
• Think of some centralized areas within your
Social Media Appearance (i.e. EmCom)
• Let Social Media folks across DFDS work
closer together
• Have Marketing folks (or someone who has
knowledge about this) analyse and follow up
things
• Create synergies / more similar Common
Guidelines for DFDS‘ use of Social Media
à
People are using Social Media – think of Social
Media as a quick way to contact Passengers,
also when Call Center is not manned

25. DFDS Social Media Approach
– if you continue decentralized

26. Draft Strategy!
In General!
• Find your Social Media enthusiasts"
(find them in the Customer Services)
• Set one or two People in every country to work
with/on all Social Media Channels every day
(have them on std-by Sat/Sun!)
• Ensure quick responses via Social Media
• Have an „Emergency Support Team“ ready!
• Get online on the yet missing Social Media
Channels and connect the Channels with each
other (i.e. Instagram w. Facebook & Twitter)
• Create similar Guidelines to all (i.e. how you
want to „talk“ to people)

27. Draft Strategy!
DFDS on Facebook!
(Customer Support / Broadcast Channel)!
• Offer an excellent and extended Customer
Support (i.e. 8-22) – have a backup person in
every Customer Call Center, if something goes
wrong or specific information is needed
• Post local and DFDS-wide Offers"
(you can also add other local Offers across the
National webpages – i.e. DK-GB Offers might
be interesting for People in the Baltic)
• Post job vacancies
• Give travel hints for all relevant countries
• Videos & Pictures from Users and inside DFDS

28. Draft Strategy!
DFDS on Twitter!
(Customer Support / Broadcast Channel)!
• Get a DK, SE and NO Twitter-Channel!
• Perfect way to offer an quick, excellent and
extended Customer Support (i.e. 8-22)
• Post job vacancies
• Press news
• News and Campaigns

29. Draft Strategy!
DFDS on Youtube!
(Broadcast Channel)!
• Show Product Movies
• Special Offers / Adverts – „as seen on TV“
• DFDS „Behind the Scene“ Movies
(I do not know, how the Movies are produced, if on a
separate national basis or one-for-all, and if you have them
internally or externally produced – but, if possible, you could
create some synergies here, too!)
✔
already achieved

30. Draft Strategy!
DFDS on Google+!
(Broadcast Channel)!
• Show Pictures of DFDS-ferries, Destinations,
DFDS-coworkers
• Make announcements like you would do as on
Facebook
• Mostly same content as on Facebook, but not
as detailed as on FB
• Monitor/Follow discussions/comments from
users

31. Draft Strategy!
DFDS on Instagram!
(Broadcast Channel)!
• Show Pictures of DFDS-ferries
• Pictures of Destinations
• Pictures of DFDS-coworkers
• Create Picture Contests with various topics
• Get People involved with DFDS in a Social
Way!

32. Draft Strategy!
DFDS on Pinterest!
(Broadcast Channel)!
• is not used so commonly
• Mostly Pictures/Photos as eye-catcher
• Pin to other Ferry- or Tourist/Travel-related
pages (VisitDenmark, etc.)

33. DFDS Social Media Approach
– if you think of centralizing it

34. Draft Strategy!
In General!
• Create a Social Media Team that works "
across the countries and on all Channels
• Set People to work with/on all Social Media
Channels every day (and have at least one
person on stand-by Sat/Sun!)
• Ensure quick responses via Social Media
• Have an „Emergency Support Team“ ready!
• Get online on the yet missing Social Media
Channels and connect the Channels with each
other (i.e. Instagram w. Facebook & Twitter)

35. Draft Strategy!
In General!
• Create Common Guidelines to be followed by
all (i.e. how you want to „talk“ to people)
• Follow the same channel-specific outlines as
mentioned earlier
• Use Social Media more aggressive than
you used it until now!

36. Draft Strategy!
FINAL TOPICS THAT MIGHT HELP YOU TO
DETERMINE YOUR SOCIAL MEDIA STRATEGY!
• CENTRALIZED VS. DECENTRALIZED"
"
Is one single Social Media Team better than
several on a national basis?"
"
(in emergency situations it might be better with
one single person/team, because you can
react faster to peoples need for information
and do not need to have two (or more) teams
doing and writing the same!)

37. Draft Strategy!
FINAL TOPICS THAT MIGHT HELP YOU TO
DETERMINE YOUR SOCIAL MEDIA STRATEGY!
• „THE DFDS WAY“"
"
Which values and attitudes does DFDS want to
reflect on Social Media and in general?"
"
How would you like to be recognized as by
your Customers?"
"
(is DFDS just a multi-national Ferry Company
with no specific „home“ or does DFDS have
some specific roots, i.e. does DFDS want to be
recognized as a specific Danish/Scandinavian
Company?)

38. Draft Strategy!
FINAL TOPICS THAT MIGHT HELP YOU TO
DETERMINE YOUR SOCIAL MEDIA STRATEGY!
• FACE THE CONSEQUENCES"
"
No matter what you decide or what way you
choose for your future Social Media Strategy –
all of your decisions will be noticed by your
customers! They will be the first to give you
„thumbs up“ or „thumbs down“

39. Draft Strategy!
Some Expected Results of a new and improved
DFDS Seaways Social Media Approach!
• More satisfied Customers"
(because of an improved Customer Support!)
• More traffic to your Websites
• A stronger brand amongst Customers
• Less negative mentions in online conversations
• Growing passenger rates in the future?

40. CONTACT DETAILS!
• Dennis Tomiola, v/ Dagmar Krähmer, "
Byvangen 57, DK-3790 Hasle
• Phone: +41 76 381 58 70
• E-Mail: dennis.tomiola@me.com
• Web: http://www.dtomiola.dk
• Twitter: www.twitter.com/dtomiola
• Instagram: www.instagram.com/dtomiola
• LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/dtomiola

41. Thank you for listening,