In today’s world of influencer partnerships and cancel culture, a single misstep can quickly undo years of trust. Businesses must maintain the delicate balance between gaining influence and avoiding public backlash in an age where opinions are permanent.
Unlimited Liability
Partnerships between businesses and influential people that are well recognized are one of the most common forms of advertising social media is flooded with today. In an article titled “Partnership marketing — what it is, why it’s so popular, and how to do it” by the Adobe Communications Team, they wrote, “Partnership marketing is one of the best ways to reach new audiences, build business relationships, and boost revenue. A survey by DemandGen showed 96% of businesses expected an annual revenue increase directly linked to marketing initiatives within their partner networks.” Therefore, this much responsibility in the hands of partnership choices is crucial for a business’s success or failure.
Cancel Culture
Juxtaposing partnerships, cancel culture is also one of the most prevalent movements in social media today. Cancel culture revolves around removing a person, place, or thing’s status and respect following offensive behavior. Therefore, this movement is the partnership’s most significant opponent. Disregarding ethical responses or a history of well-behaved interactions, getting “canceled” can reverse years’ worth of work and mirror those effects on associated businesses. In other words, just as quickly as a brand gains trust from their partnerships they can lose it depending on possibly offensive behavior.
Photo by Skitterphoto
Ethical intolerance
While partnerships and cancel culture are both influential tactics that battle throughout the media, the proper ethics behind both are the root cause. Partnerships give power to one person, place, or thing to influence individuals, and cancel culture gives power to individuals to change the success of one person, place, or thing. Both hold too much power and raise the moral question if our society has too much ethical intolerance. While most people like to believe they have an open mind, they will also publicly take stances online to hold others “responsible.” Just as there are opinions on every subject, definitions of responsibility vary from perspectives too; so, the impossibility of everyone agreeing on a subject is nearly impossible.
Permanence of Opinions
Everything posted on the media leaves a digital footprint, no matter whether a person, place, or thing attempts to reverse it. Therefore, ethically, stepping out of line occasionally is bound to receive a response. Being digitally responsible is the most important ethical solution to our society’s dilemmas. Think about the permanence of opinions posted and their effect on others, including partnerships, before committing.
Author: Savannah Schultz
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