Marriott quits social media after China bans its app and website

Last Thursday, Marriott was asked by the Shanghai office of China’s Cyberspace Administration to shut down its Chinese website and apps for one week in penance for a sloppily-worded survey which referred to Tibet, Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Macau as “countries.”

The American hotel chain complied with the regulator’s wishes. However, it also went a step further and stopped posting on all of its social media accounts, including Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

The accounts have now started to post again, coinciding with the end of the one-week Chinese website and app ban, fueling speculation that Marriott was asked by China to shut down its global social media presence as well.

However, the hotel chain has rejected these rumors, instead insisting that its social media silence came as it “reviewed its content strategy” following the incident.

“We proactively suspended some of the activity as we were reviewing our content strategy. It was not mandated by the Chinese government. Social media activity has resumed already in the Americas and Europe and globally by tomorrow,” a Marriott representative told The Verge yesterday.

The survey sent to Marriott Rewards Club members.

The company was caught last Tuesday sending out a survey to its rewards club members which listed Tibet, Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Macau as separate “countries.” To make matters worse, its official rewards Twitter account was also found to have “liked” a tweet congratulating the chain for recognizing Tibetan independence.

Afterward, Marriott was accused of having “seriously violated” Chinese regulations and having “hurt the feelings of the Chinese people.” In the aftermath, the Maryland-headquartered hotel chain attempted to distance itself from separatist elements, stating that it “respects the sovereignty and territorial integrity of China.”

In an interview with China Daily yesterday, Craig S. Smith, president and managing director of Marriott’s Asia-Pacific office, announced that the company was focused on making amends by initiating a “rectification plan,” which includes “expanding employee education globally,” setting up “straightforward complaint channels for Chinese customers,” and “more strictly supervising the work of third-party agents for projects largely targeting the China market.”

“This is a huge mistake, probably one of the biggest in my career,” Smith said. “To regain confidence and trust, the first thing is to admit the mistake, then fix it, and it would come back slowly as we prove we really mean what we say.”

In addition, Marriott has suspended its dealings with the third-party outsourcing company that produced the controversial questionnaire and has fired the US-based employee who “mistakenly liked” the pro-Tibet tweet.

Meanwhile, Marriott has proved to be far from the only company to have committed this cardinal sin of doing business in China. International brands like Zara, Delta, and Qantas have all been similarly shamed and made to publicly apologize for wording on their websites which listed Tibet, Taiwan, or Hong Kong as “countries.”

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