For many modern brands, maintaining a lively and humorous social media presence has become the norm – a way to connect with customers and stand out in saturated online spaces. However, this approach doesn’t always land well, as tech accessory company dbrand recently experienced. Their attempts at edgy humor severely misfired after they made an offensive comment about an Indian customer’s name on April 9th, sparking backlash from the online community.

The controversy began when Bhuwan Chitransh, a man from Pune working in the Netherlands, took to X (formerly Twitter) to share his disappointment with a dbrand MacBook skin that changed color within just two months of purchase. Tagging the company, he asked, “@dbrand bought this skin a couple months back. Couldn’t even remain the same color after just 2 months. What should I do?“

Rather than providing a professional customer service response, dbrand opted to poke fun at Chitransh’s last name with a crass retort: “Your last name is basically shit rash, be serious.”

The internet was quick to condemn dbrand’s insensitive comment. Accusations of racism and cyberbullying flooded in from outraged users across social media platforms.

“It is shameful to see a skins and phone accessories company like dbrand openly making discriminatory and offensive remarks toward a customer who expressed dissatisfaction with their product on Twitter,” one user commented, capturing the overall sentiment.

Another urged others to report the tweet, stating, “Gosh, dbrand is literally a cyberbully. Horrible racist comments under the original tweet all thanks to a piss poor attempt at humor. Please go to their profile and report the tweet for bullying and hate speech.”

As the backlash intensified, dbrand attempted to address the situation through a series of responses. Initially, they claimed to have commented on Chitransh’s name after already responding to his complaint about the MacBook sleeve, though evidence of this initial response was lacking.

From a separate customer support account, dbrand had advised Chitransh, “Like most surfaces, dirt and grime can accumulate on the surface of a skin over time. You can clean it using a microfiber cloth lightly dampened with isopropyl alcohol.”

However, it was only when the company used its main account to acknowledge the post that it fully confronted the criticism head-on. Admitting it was a “huge fumble,” dbrand privately apologized to Chitransh and offered him $10,000 as a gesture of goodwill.

True to their brand’s irreverent tone, the company maintained a humorous stance, stating, “We’ve been poking fun at customers on social media for over a decade now. We’re not going to stop, but maybe next time you’ll be the one who gets $10,000.”

The dbrand incident serves as a cautionary tale for brands attempting to cultivate an edgy, humorous persona online. While injecting personality into social media interactions can be an effective marketing strategy, it must be executed with care and cultural sensitivity. Crossing the line into offensive territory, as dbrand did, can quickly undermine a brand’s reputation and alienate its customer base.