That’s when the BP oil spill began. Fifty-two days later it’s clear that it’s a crisis unlike any other country or company has faced before. As you would expect, BP has used all of the typical crisis management PR tools in order to keep up with the situation – if not get ahead of it.

In addition to traditional print and TV advertising – which curiously isn’t running in the Gulf markets – Beyond Petrolium has purchased oil spill-related keyword terms on major search engines, they have set up a Facebook page and have used their Twitter account to communicate their response efforts to the world.

So why isn’t it working? Why does every communication coming out of BP seem disingenuous and self-serving? Why do they appear aloof and uncaring?

The answer to those questions may lie in the fact that BP didn’t begin actively addressing the spill in social media channels until about a month after it initially occurred. Much like their response to the spill itself, BP is flying blind and stumbling from one misstep to another. While they are trying to be “part of the conversation” online, they haven’t opened up and been transparent. And – unlike Toyota and the now well-known Umpire Jim Joyce who recently blew what would have been the 21^st perfect game in Major League Baseball with a bad call on the final out – they have not just simply stated: “We’re sorry.”

But now it’s too late and BP’s involvement in social media is just one more crisis they must deal with, as parody social media feeds (like this one and this one) have become more popular. In fact, some of the most popular parody Twitter feeds have even had to update their bio in order to make it clear that they are not the real BP. Now think how closely you pay attention to the bio section of Twitter? Yep – it’s not a good situation online for BP right now.

What went wrong off the Gulf Coast back in April is still being discussed and debated – however one thing is clear – and that is the emphasis that needs to be placed on “What-If” – both in the real-world and online. As social media continues to become the outlet where most get their news and information, companies need to be active learners – even if not active users. You need to employ the “listen first, speak later” approach that many companies, that are considered to be successful in social media, employ.

Without question the world is becoming more interconnected and transparent. Rules for marketing, PR and crisis management are rapidly changing and it’s important to keep up and become active early. Just ask, BP CEO Tony Hayward.

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This post was featured as a social media nightmare segment of the June 10th edition of This Week In Social Media.

Kevin Smith is an Account Supervisor at PJA Advertising & Marketing. Follow him on Twitter: @Mr_KevinSmith

We also took a look at how social media helped turn the low budget horror film “Paranormal Activity” into a box office success, as well as take on the discussion of Pepsi’s new iPhone App for Amp Energy drink, “before you score,” that aims to help guys land women. Is it in bad taste or just good targeted marketing?

Check out these articles that we’ll be referencing during the show:

Paranormal Activity Rides the Social Web to Millions at the Box Office

Pepsi and AMP: We Apologize If Our App Was in Bad Taste

An Open Letter to Elisa Steele EVP & Chief Marketing Officer, Yahoo Inc. on the New “The Internet Is You” Yahoo Marketing Campaign

Moderator:
Doug Zanger

Speakers:
Mike O’Toole, President, PJA @motoole1
Robert Davis, VP, Digital Marketing, PJA @heyrobertdavis
Phil Johnson, CEO, PJA @philjohnson