Calvin Harris, You Should Think Before You Tweet, Mate

This morning Calvin Harris, a UK musician, very effectively (and probably accidentally) demonstrated the dangers of tweeting without thinking.

Having read a two-star review of his new album by Alexis Petridis in The Guardian, he proceeded to unleash a tirade of profanities via his Twitter account, referring to "******* rich people's kids" and "pathetic London scene-FACE" reviewers.

In 13 tweets (see screenshot in another window - warning, the language is a bit rough) in quick succession, Harris complains that the only people in the music industry who get good reviews are the children of rich people who, ahem, bribe* the journalists (to be polite).

The problem with this is that while it shows Harris is a human being, it also makes him look incredibly juvenile as he should understand that people will review his album and not every reviewer will like his album. It also makes him look extremely angry - which could put fans off.

While he'll probably garner sympathy from some fans who would have bought the album anyway, he's also just condemned himself to mockery not just across Twitter but also by bloggers and a backlash which may bleed across other social media portals as people pass the link to his rant around the internet and, well, make fun of him. It's also likely to offend people who don't care for his language or the vehemence of his tweets.

Harris may have felt frustrated over the review and needed to vent that frustration, and he may have hoped that fans would offer their support, but he's forgotten that Twitter isn't just a line of communication to his fans, it's also a window to the world. Once he's posted an extremely puerile (and obscenity-laden) rant and one person has seen it, he can't take it back - even if once he cools down he decides that it's not exactly the face he wants to display to the entire planet.

This outburst is a prime example of why businesses who are concerned about their brand and their public profile should always think before they react online to any criticism. Reacting angrily to somebody who isn't happy with a product or service will just give them more cause for complaint, while taking the criticism on board and offering a calm explanation or apology and attempting to rectify any problems is always the best approach.

*Not a direct quote