Want to Spread Your Message? An Angry Tweet May Be the Answer Computer scientists have found that angry messages spread faster on social media than messages of sadness, disgust, even joy.

By Laura Entis

Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

crow202.org

Feel like screaming? The social-media world is listening.

Angry messages on social-media networks are far more contagious than messages expressing sadness, disgust, even joy, according to a team of researchers at Beihang University.

The study tracked 70 million posts on Weibo, China's version of Twitter. Angry tweets were more likely to influence others -- through simple retweeting or by inspiring new angry messages – up to three degrees away from the original user.

Related: Easy Tips for Writing Better Tweets (Infographic)

This is hardly surprising. While the study found that online rage in China is primarily directed at international conflicts and domestic social problems, stateside, it seems, Twitter is often by customers as a tool to publicly rant about bad customer service.

Study or no study, most media-savvy businesses already know that angry messages on social media are powerful; unless immediately dealt with and contained, they can easily lead to a wildfire of bad publicity.

One recent example: A British Airways customer, pissed off that the airline had lost his father's luggage, bought a string of promoted tweets to complain about the situation. The tweets went viral before the airline bothered to respond.

On the other side of the spectrum: Back in summer 2012, the mobile company O2 experienced widespread network problems. Thousands of customers took to Twitter to vent. Instead of ignoring the problem, O2 immediately joined the conversation, engaging with customers through apologetic, honest, and often funny tweets.

Related: 10 Questions to Ask When Creating a Social-Media Marketing Plan

Laura Entis is a reporter for Fortune.com's Venture section.

Editor's Pick

Related Topics

Growing a Business

The Importance of Connecting Your Organization to Your Product and Users (and How to Do It)

How to ensure everyone in your organization is aligned with the company vision — and how doing so enhances both your workplace and the product development process.

Science & Technology

5 Mistakes I Learned to Avoid When Working With ChatGPT

What I learned from using ChatGPT for business purposes day-to-day across my content websites.

Business News

'This Is So, So Disrespectful': Balmain Truck 'Hijacked' Days Before Paris Fashion Week, 50 Pieces Stolen

Balmain is set to debut its SS 2024 Collection in Paris on September 27.

Business Plans

How to Think Like an Investor When Preparing Your Pitch Deck

Here are some places to start if you are trying to raise money from a global or local VC firm.

Business News

Uber Eats to Roll Out New Payment Options in 2024, Aiming to Enhance Access to Fresh Groceries for Vulnerable Populations

Starting in 2024, Uber Eats will allow individuals with EBT cards to use their Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits to pay for grocery delivery orders.