Cancel Culture Has Faded, But Brand Reputation Still Matters

Social media has changed the way brands navigate risk. While “cancel culture” may not dominate headlines the way it once did, public perception still has a direct impact on trust, reputation, and long-term customer loyalty.

For executives overseeing brand reputation, the challenge isn’t just responding when things go wrong—it’s having the infrastructure in place to detect issues before they spiral. Brands that get blindsided by controversy often fail because they aren’t paying attention.

A solid social intelligence and monitoring strategy is the difference between controlling the narrative and scrambling to recover. Here’s how brands can stay ahead.

1. Crisis Prevention Starts With Continuous Monitoring

Most brand crises don’t come out of nowhere. There are early warning signs—shifts in sentiment, changes in engagement patterns, and recurring themes in customer conversations. Brands that get caught off guard aren’t necessarily unlucky—they simply aren’t looking in the right places.

How Brands Should Monitor for Potential Risks

• Track sentiment over time, not just when things go wrong. If you only measure sentiment during a crisis, you’re already behind. A consistent baseline allows you to detect subtle negative shifts before they escalate.

• Identify high-risk themes and topics. Every brand has areas of sensitivity—whether it’s past controversies, ongoing product concerns, or cultural issues tied to the industry. These topics should be monitored continuously, not just when they resurface.

• Learn from past crises. A post-mortem process should be standard practice. If your brand has weathered controversy before, what patterns led to it? What narratives gained traction? What worked in your response, and what didn’t? That data should inform how you handle future risks.

• Establish a learning agenda. Social teams should regularly analyze emerging risks, competitive crises, and industry-wide trends to ensure they’re not operating in a vacuum.

A company that actively listens and knows its historical vulnerabilities is far less likely to be caught off guard when tensions rise.

2. If a Brand Gets Canceled, Discipline is Key

If backlash escalates, the worst thing a brand can do is panic and engage in reactionary responses. Most online outrage is a wave that peaks and eventually dies down—but how a company handles that peak determines the long-term impact.

What To Do

• Monitor conversations in real-time. Track where sentiment is shifting, who is driving the narrative, and whether the backlash is contained to social circles or spreading to mainstream media.

• Engage selectively. Responding to every negative comment only amplifies the situation. Not all backlash is equal.Qualify each response carefully—what’s worth addressing, and what will fuel further outrage?

• Consider going dark on social. In high-stakes crises, continuing to post scheduled content can come across as tone-deaf and escalate public frustration. A temporary pause may be necessary.

• Use private responses where possible. Addressing concerns directly with affected individuals—rather than issuing broad public statements—can be more effective in controlling the conversation.

• Work closely with PR teams. Social and PR should not be operating in silos. Crisis communication workflows should be established long before they’re needed, ensuring clear approval processes for messaging.

What Not To Do

• Avoid defensive or dismissive statements. Even if the backlash feels unfair, public perception matters more than intent. Tone matters.

• Don’t feed the trolls. A mistake many brands make is elevating bad-faith arguments by engaging. Not every conversation is worth having.

• Don’t scramble to find the right people internally. If leadership, PR, and legal teams aren’t aligned ahead of time, a crisis is the worst moment to figure out those workflows.

Crisis management isn’t just about what a brand says—it’s about the discipline to know when to say nothing.

3. Strong Internal Workflows Prevent Public Missteps

Most crisis moments aren’t lost in the first hour—they’re lost in the internal disorganization that follows. Companies that handle backlash well have pre-established internal workflows that prevent delays and ensure alignment.

What a Solid Crisis Response Infrastructure Looks Like

• Clear communication channels between social, PR, legal, and leadership. Decision-makers should already have a process in place for rapid response approval.

• A documented crisis protocol. Every brand should have a tiered crisis response playbook outlining different levels of risk and the appropriate actions for each.

• Real-time reporting dashboards. If executives are asking for updates via Slack and email, you’re already behind. A centralized dashboard for tracking sentiment, volume, and escalation trends should be standard.

The companies that navigate crises best are the ones that prepared before they needed to.

The Reality: Cancel Culture May Have Faded, But Reputation Still Drives Business

Going into 2025, cancel culture isn’t as dominant as it once was—but brand perception still shapes consumer trust and long-term loyalty. The brands that succeed in the next decade won’t be the ones that simply react well to crises.

They’ll be the ones that see the risks coming, have the right workflows in place, and control the narrative before it controls them.

Does your company have a continuous monitoring strategy in place? If not, the best time to build one is before you need it.