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Then there is the matter of Goldman’s CEO Lloyd Blankfein, often portrayed as a cross between the Simpson’s Montgomery Burns and Mitt Romney; a big business advocate, evil in nature, who believes companies are people. Who is Greg Smith, and why do we care? He was an employee who quit Goldman Sachs in a public way and posted it in a New York Times op-ed. The better question is why should we care? After all, Goldman Sachs probably has had staff quit before for a whole host of reasons, from better opportunities to being disillusioned, to just not meeting the expectations or needs. Gee, I have had some really good people quit the firm where I work, and quit on me for that matter. It's not news; it's life. Work is just that, work. Some love it, some hate it, and some find it a calling; others just work because they need to pay the bills. I work because I enjoy what I do, but also because I get bored doing nothing, and I can certainly use the money. So what is Greg Smith's deal that so many are now paying attention?... [Apologist for Golman Sachs crisis - JD]
A few years ago, when a company faced a crisis they were expected to contact television stations, send press releases, hold a press conference and write letters to the editor. While the principles of crisis communication haven’t changed (“no comment” is still a bad response) companies need to begin adding two key components to their crisis communication plans: social media and content marketing. Today when facing a crisis situation, you need to reach out to consumers through your company’s blog, Facebook page, Twitter, Flickr and even YouTube accounts. This is where you can find your message spreading like wildfire. It really does take less than one minute for a consumer to write an unfavorable message, and less than 10 seconds for others to share their same sentiment....
Since defunding—then re-funding—cancer screenings at Planned Parenthood, executives have bailed out and fundraising has dipped at the breast cancer nonprofit. This PR disaster simply won’t go away. A second high-ranking executive at Susan G. Komen for the Cure has resigned, and, perhaps more devastating, the organization’s fundraising is taking a hit. It’s all part of the ongoing fallout from Komen’s announcement to defund, then reinstate funding for, cancer screenings at Planned Parenthood—a PR disaster that’s now more than a month old.... [So many crisis management lessons - JD]
You might not be a fan of Justin Bieber, but you’d be wise to learn a thing or two from the teen sensation before you're caught in a disaster. PR pundits and brand watchers love to create “best and worst” lists around marketing and communications developments. The emphasis usually falls on the “worsts”—like the most poorly handled crisis situations or mangled cover-ups. It’s easy to criticize, but what about giving credit for crises averted or PR battles won? That list is shorter and perhaps a bit less obvious, but here are my nominations....
If you follow the work of crisis communications scholars, have you wondered about assumptions versus proof? How much of what we take for granted about effective crisis response is supported by empirical evidence? ...A very readable literature review establishes that the prevailing body of thought supports the cardinal rules you have always heard. For instance, if you are prepared for crisis, you suffer less damage and recover faster. And it’s best to reveal information that the media can easily obtain elsewhere....
In an increasingly social era, organizations need to be prepared for crises started in or amplified by social media. The Scotts Company, Dominos, and Intel share their social media crisis strategies. "Be prepared" is not just the motto of the Boy Scouts, but a credo that every company should adhere to if it wants to be successful. And that includes having a sound strategy for social media interactions, including handling crises...
I do like a decent issues-n-crisis yarn to boost circulation and sales. Several, in fact.
Especially when they feature hapless organisations who clearly haven't got a suitable response plan in the top drawerready to go...
Just about every company, regardless of industry, will experience an embarrassing PR episode. Here are five signs one’s heading your way....
A study released this week found that only 20 percent of independent K-12 schools require training for those who use social media on behalf of the school. Of the responding schools, only 31 percent have social media policies. Even though 89 percent of schools have a crisis communications plan, only 47 percent of those plans include guidelines on using social media in a crisis....
PR pundits and brand watchers love to create best and worst lists around marketing and communications developments. The emphasis usually falls on the “worsts” – like the most badly handled crisis situations, mangled cover-ups, or PR stunts that backfired.... It’s easy to criticize, but what about giving credit for crises averted or PR battles won? That list is shorter and perhaps a bit less obvious, but here are my nominations....
Rape charges against Fox host Greg Kelly were dropped. How should he go about getting his reputation back? ...Sometimes, the best thing to do is to not protest too much. Mr. Kelly’s approach is right, and is the best path toward eventually getting his good name back....
If you work as a social media manager or online community manager you see these all the time … negative comments. When you see them you try at first to plan how to respond, but sometimes have a strong urge to react. The best tip I can give: don’t take them personally. You’ll run out of energy if you do this. Here are 6 more tips on how to manage negative comments...
Most companies wait for a crisis before deciding how they want to respond to a crisis. Too late! Does your organization have a crisis communications plan that you could actually put into action at this very moment? All of the hubub surrounding the Susan G. Komen decision to stop funding Planned Parenthood and then their reversal of that decision following a 72+ hour firestorm of public outrage should have scared the bejesus out of you....
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The child sex abuse scandal has cost Penn State $5.7 million as of the end of January. According to the latest information from the university, the $5.7 million includes almost $4 million for the internal investigation the university is having an outside attorney manage, along with related crisis communications. The total bill is up from $3.2 million as of the end of 2011. The university released those numbers in February....
Of all the many dimensions to a company’s response to a crisis, none is more important than adhering to the company’s published values. You know what I’m talking about, right? They get posted in frames on corridor walls. They emblazon the backs of employee security badges. They are enshrined on dedicated intranet and website pages. They are trumpeted at new-hire orientations. They are reiterated at town hall meetings.... Using my definition of a crisis as an unanticipated event that threatens the organization’s reputation (if you can prepare for it, after all, it’s not a crisis, right?), you can expect that many unprepared leaders coping with the situation will feel like they have descended into a world of utter chaos. There are no manuals to pull of the shelf that will tell you what to do, no prescribed steps to follow, no formulas to apply....
The U.S.Marine Corps demonstrate that they, too have grasped the importance of communication in crisis management... Early last month, the United States Marine Corps issued one of the most concise and effective apologies we’ve ever seen. No, you didn’t read wrong, I said the USMC! Standing the years-long tradition of stodgy communication full of niche terminology on its head, the Marines, much like fellow government agency FEMA, have embraced communication for crisis and reputation management....
In less than a week, political radio host Rush Limbaugh has seen upwards of 30 sponsors flee his radio program. Their migration began in response to an public boycott campaign which has relied heavily on social media. The actions and inactions of Limbaugh and the companies involved provide lessons for marketers in how to respond to crises, buy media and even outflank competitors....
Social media can hold the key to transforming enterprise business continuity management (BCM), especially crisis/incident management and communications practices, according to Gartner, Inc. Analysts predict that, by 2015, 75 per cent of organizations with BCM programs will have public social media services in their crisis communications strategies, and they advised BCM professionals to immediately begin assessing social media's opportunities and risks....
Political, economic and business intelligence company Stratfor today tried to regain some type of PR momentum following blockbuster news that WikiLeaks plans to publish a trove of its emails concerning work for top government contractors like Lockheed Martin and multinationals such as Dow Chemical. Stratfor, which as a private company is not subject to Freedom of Information Act requests, also has worked closely with U.S. defense, homeland security and intelligence services. It got a lot of PR work to do....
Foxconn Technology Group has denied claims from a Chinese worker's rights group that it uses child labour in any form.TechEye has been reporting how Hong Kong-based nonprofit Students & Scholars Against Corporate Misbehaviour (SACOM) complained that Appletipped off Foxconn that the inspectors were coming and executives assigned child workers elsewhere.... There is no doubt that Foxconn is indeed taking things seriously. The Foxconn spokesperson comes from none other than spin masters Burson-Marsteller, which is a global public relations company which specialises in dealing with enormous PR disasters....
Social media is a tell-like-it-is medium, not a create-a-glossy-ad-and-place-it marketing. Therefore, social media requires active, on-going engagement with the potential to elicit negative responses that can cause a PR crisis. Here are seven ways to respond effectively...
Shale gas and fracking are considered dirty words in much of Europe – and yet the number of shale gas wells drilled and fracked in Europe remains small. Opposition has surfaced here much more quickly than the infant industry is developing.... The public needs to believe that technological advances and changing standards will ultimately help them keep warm and keep energy bills down....
Whenever clients tell me they just don't see the need to invest in a crisis management strategy ahead of potential scandals or even as the scandal is unfolding- I will remind them of this story from Reuters about the expense of digging oneself up and out of a hole inaction and poor decision making created....
...The bottom line is: In this set us free world of social media and virtual protests, nonprofits need to have a crisis management strategy ready to go and be nimble with responses.... [Beth Kanter's advice and case studies are worth reading - JD]
In PR one of our guiding principles ought to be: You can please some of the people all of the time, you can please all of the people some of the time, but you can’t please all of the people all... In fact we increasingly live in a world – fuelled by the ease of expression offered by social media – in which publics can be outraged about everything and anything at the click of a Tweet. Not only are PR practitioners faced with an increasing number of digital grumpies, but they demand instant gratification. If it has taken them just a few minutes to set up a Facebook group, organise an online poll or start a Twitterstorm, then the clicktivists expect a positive PR reaction in nanoseconds....
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