Want to Spread Your Message? An Angry Tweet May Be the Answer

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.

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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.

For Subscribers

FOR SUBSCRIBERSAbdul El-Sayed tries to woo MAHA voters as Democrats seek inroads with RFK’s supporters

FOR SUBSCRIBERSKratom-like substances are popping up in a typically benign supplement

FOR SUBSCRIBERSGOP super PAC increases its spending for Sen. Jon Husted in tough Ohio race

FOR SUBSCRIBERSRecords reveal tumultuous marriage between slain New York Times executive and wife

FOR SUBSCRIBERSFrom clean energy warrior to ‘wall of shame,’ James Talarico reverses on a fossil fuel money pledge

FOR SUBSCRIBERSCongressional staff planned official trip with luxury stops in Italy and France weeks before election

FOR SUBSCRIBERSA harrowing ordeal aboard an Israel-bound plane

FOR SUBSCRIBERSOpenAI CEO Sam Altman to skip congressional hearing on rogue AI agents

FOR SUBSCRIBERSKey DOJ lawyers departed Trump ‘grand conspiracy’ probe amid pressure to produce, source says

FOR SUBSCRIBERSTrump’s new AI chatbot often links to a site launched under Clinton 26 years ago

FOR SUBSCRIBERSAt MAHA summit, industry CEOs the movement once vilified take the stage

FOR SUBSCRIBERSThis Paralympian has two goals: Win medals and give away $500,000 to her teammates

FOR SUBSCRIBERSCornell rape allegation spotlights stringent New York state laws that have long drawn criticism

FOR SUBSCRIBERSThe debate over AI’s future rages on both coasts

FOR SUBSCRIBERSDecades-old march dispute reignites in Northern Ireland, threatening political crisis

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