Author: Jonathan & Erik Bernstein

Repeating the terms you’re seeking to avoid is a massive crisis management mistake

Merrie Spaeth’s BIMBO Awards exist to remind us of one of the most common, and damaging, crisis management mistakes out there – repeating the very negative terms you’re trying to avoid.

Here are this year’s “Dishonorable Mentions”:

“I called you crazy, not fat,” said disgraced cyclist Lance Armstrong in a long, self-serving interview with Oprah Winfrey. The comment was aimed at Betsy Andreu, wife of former teammate Frankie Andreu.

KDVR (FOX 31) “Betsy Andreu told by Lance Armstrong, ‘I called you crazy, not fat,’” Jan. 18, 2013

“While we typically don’t comment on rumors/speculation, Ron Johnson has no immediate plans to resign his position as J.C. Penney CEO,” said a J.C. Penney spokesperson responding to rumors that Johnson was on his way out after the retailer reported an annual loss of $1 billion and a $4 billion decline in sales. (When news reports append the word “struggling” to you – as in “the struggling retailer tried to end speculation that CEO Ron Johnson is leaving” – you have an uphill climb.)

The Dallas Morning News, “J.C. Penney denies CEO leaving,” March 13, 2013

Those are a couple of pretty big mistakes, but this year’s winner has become a real media darling thanks to an abundance of unabashedly outrageous behavior, and might just go down in history as one of the biggest BIMBOs ever. The award goes to…Toronto Mayor Rob Ford!

BIMBO OF THE YEAR

In May, Mayor Ford vehemently insisted, “I do not use crack cocaine, nor am I an addict of crack cocaine,” after an investigative reporter from the Toronto Star claimed he saw a video of the mayor using illegal drugs. Rumors quickly circulated that two men were trying to sell the video for $200,000. (The mayor wins because the most damaging BIMBO comments do, in fact, turn out to be true. In November, Canadian police confirmed the existence of a video showing the 44-year-old mayor using a crack pipe. On Nov. 7 Mayor Ford admitted he may have smoked crack but only while in a “drunken stupor.” The mayor later added “[he] has nothing left to hide.”)

NBC Nightly News, “Toronto mayor says he smoked crack ‘in one of my drunken stupors,’” Nov. 5, 2013

Let these be a warning to you, when it’s time for crisis management, DO NOT repeat the negative terms being associated with you. Reporters will try to lead you into doing so, and a failure to practice will absolutely result in you unthinkingly doing the same, so if you care about your reputation you absolutely must put in the time to prepare and drill this bad habit out of yourself.

You can find more BIMBO info, past awards, videos and more at the Spaeth Communications website, and we’re honored to have Merrie bringing her experience evaluating bad PR moves to our Weiner Awards as a judge this year as well!

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For more resources, see the Free Management Library topic: Crisis Management
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[Jonathan Bernstein is president of Bernstein Crisis Management, Inc., an international crisis management consultancy, author of Manager’s Guide to Crisis Management and Keeping the Wolves at Bay – Media Training. Erik Bernstein is Social Media Manager for the firm, and also editor of its newsletter, Crisis Manager]

[Editor’s note: Today we introduce The Weiner Awards, our way to have a bit of fun while spreading the word that the way you use social media can, and often does, bring heavy negative consequences! Here’s a teaser from the lead to the release – the full text can be found on The Weiner Awards Facebook Page.]

LOS ANGELES, December 10, 2013 — Have you ever horrendously embarrassed yourself using social media? You send a Tweet, you post on Facebook, you blog something — and then realize, too late, that you made a really bad decision? The worst such offenders seriously damage or destroy their personal and/or professional lives.

“We call that Social Media Darwinism,” said Jonathan Bernstein, president of Bernstein Crisis Management, Inc. and author of Manager’s Guide to Crisis Management [McGraw-Hill]. “The truly sad thing is that the most sensational examples come from public figures who should have known better.”

From the agency employee who accidentally tweeted, “I find it ironic that Detroit is known as the #motorcity and yet no one here knows how to f#@&ing drive” using the @ChryslerAutos account, to Dominos cooks posting YouTube videos of themselves doing disgusting things to food “for the lulz,” to a certain congressman for whom these awards might be named, social media Darwinism is evolving – or devolving – new examples.

“We hope that others can learn from their example,” said Bernstein Crisis Management Social Media Manager Erik Bernstein, “That’s why we have created the Weiner Awards – to educate by entertaining.”

….please visit our Facebook page and join in the fun!

Anything that assists in staying on top of this incredibly fast-moving medium is an asset

Think you’re up to date on the social web? This broad term has come to envelop an incredible number of services and platforms, many of which we use every day. A vital part of being a successful businesses these days, whether your goal is marketing, PR, crisis management, sales or just starting some conversation, is to know how to make social media work for you, which is why we love Brian Solis’ Conversation Prism, an always-evolving, comprehensive listing of all social networking sites and the ways they are used.

Check it out:

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For more resources, see the Free Management Library topic: Crisis Management
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[Jonathan Bernstein is president of Bernstein Crisis Management, Inc., an international crisis management consultancy, author of Manager’s Guide to Crisis Management and Keeping the Wolves at Bay – Media Training. Erik Bernstein is Social Media Manager for the firm, and also editor of its newsletter, Crisis Manager]

Retailer needs crisis management after changing classic song lyrics for 2013 Keepsake ornament

With every holiday season comes a new set of crises, and it looks like we’re seeing our first major Christmas-related reputation hit.

Hallmark is taking a ton of heat online due to the ornament shown below, part of its 2013 Keepsake collection:

Pretty much everybody will recognize most of that as a line from “Deck the Halls,” but where did “FUN” come in? Of course the original line is, “Don we now our gay apparel,” but apparently Hallmark found that distasteful.

Here’s Hallmark’s explanation, as reported by the Huffington Post’s Curtis Wong:

When the lyrics to “Deck the Halls” were translated from Gaelic and published in English back in the 1800s, the word “gay” meant festive or merry. Today it has multiple meanings … the trend of wearing festively decorated Christmas sweaters to parties is all about fun, and this ornament is intended to play into that, so the planning team decided to say what we meant: “fun.”

First off, this reeks of spin. Second, we have a news flash for you Hallmark – “gay” still means festive or merry, even if it also means homosexual. And, considering the song has been a part of mainstream Christmas culture for nearly 100 years, we really don’t think there was any sort of confusion about which meaning the lyric entails.

One look at Hallmark’s Facebook page and you can see a steady stream of customers who agree, blasting the brand and declaring their intention to take their holiday shopping dollars elsewhere.

From a crisis management standpoint, the safe move would have been to…ready for it? Pick one of the other million holiday songs that has no lyrics with dual meanings and create an ornament around that!

Not exactly rocket science, right?

Instead, Hallmark has created a real mess for itself. Does it continue to risk alienating customers and potential boycotts, hoping things blow over before it loses out on a noticeable chunk of cash, or does it pull thousands of ornaments from store shelves across the country and hurt the bottom line that way?

Before you make any type of move, ask, “what could go wrong here?” Hallmark obviously didn’t, and now it has to face the consequences.

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For more resources, see the Free Management Library topic: Crisis Management
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[Jonathan Bernstein is president of Bernstein Crisis Management, Inc., an international crisis management consultancy, author of Manager’s Guide to Crisis Management and Keeping the Wolves at Bay – Media Training. Erik Bernstein is Social Media Manager for the firm, and also editor of its newsletter, Crisis Manager]

“Anonymous” accounts not so anonymous anymore

Think using that “anonymous” social media account to trash your job, boss, and coworkers isn’t putting your livelihood at risk? You might want to consider again after hearing this story, from a USA Today article by David Jackson:

President Obama’s staff has unmasked and fired a national security staffer who tweeted critical comments under a pseudonym.

Jofi Joseph, who was the White House’s director of nonproliferation, prolifically tweeted under the handle @natsecwonk. He once wrote: “I’m a fan of Obama, but his continuing reliance and dependence upon a vacuous cipher like Valerie Jarrett concerns me.”

Foreign Policy reports that Joseph “is under investigation by the Justice Department for his alleged social media activities — both as @NatSecWonk and also possibly as @DCHobbyist, a Twitter account devoted largely to the exploits of North American escorts.”

Other Obama staff members and officials — including Secretary of State John Kerry and former National Security adviser Tom Donilon — have also been targeted by @natsecwonk, which was shut down last week.

The secret Twitter feed also raised questions about the administration’s handling of the 2012 attack on a U.S. facility in Benghazi, Libya.

Obviously the White House has significant resources at its disposal for tracking down rogue employees, but there are plenty of ‘net experts for hire out there who could do the same for an organization that felt sufficiently threatened or damaged by a social media account which appears to be operated by an insider.

If you’re the organization being targeted, what crisis management steps should you take? First and foremost you need a strong social media policy in place which details precisely what the consequences will be for any employee caught trashing you on the ‘net. Not only this, but employees must be made aware of the policy through explanation and training. After that, a simple Google search, or a recommendation from a trusted computer tech, should be able to lead you to an online forensics expert who can ferret out the thorn in your side.

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For more resources, see the Free Management Library topic: Crisis Management
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[Jonathan Bernstein is president of Bernstein Crisis Management, Inc., an international crisis management consultancy, author of Manager’s Guide to Crisis Management and Keeping the Wolves at Bay – Media Training. Erik Bernstein is Social Media Manager for the firm, and also editor of its newsletter, Crisis Manager]

Protecting your reputation should be a prime crisis management concern

We’ve been discussing the impact online reputation has on your organization, and why protecting it is a key component of modern crisis management, a lot recently. That’s why this infographic covering the do’s and don’ts of online reputation management, from MDG Advertising, caught our eye.

Check it out:

Infographic by MDG Advertising

As you can tell from the graphic, the time to get started with an online presence is not in the midst of crisis, but before trouble ever strikes. Get out there and start building the assets you need to protect your reputation today!

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For more resources, see the Free Management Library topic: Crisis Management
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[Jonathan Bernstein is president of Bernstein Crisis Management, Inc., an international crisis management consultancy, author of Manager’s Guide to Crisis Management and Keeping the Wolves at Bay – Media Training. Erik Bernstein is Social Media Manager for the firm, and also editor of its newsletter, Crisis Manager]

Did Allstate really try to crash its own Twitter account?

Typically, having one of your web pages crash in the middle of a promo is a bad thing, but Allstate actually wanted its @Mayhem Twitter feed to crash as part of a recent social media promotion. If you’ve seen an Allstate commercial recently then you’ve seen their character, “Mayhem,” a personification of the dangers stakeholders may encounter, doing everything from trashing cars to putting holes in roofs.

Allstate brought Mayhem to Twitter, and immediately attempted to induce Twitter’s “fail whale” crash screen with a continuous flow of nearly 450 tweets about whales as part of its #TwitterMayhem campaign. Although they didn’t succeed in creating a crash, the @Mayhem account does have over 22,000 followers after less than a month of existence, certainly no small feat.

Wow. Apparently #FailWhale too scared to show face. Shut down after 447 whale tweets #ChalkItUpAsAWin #TwitterMayhem pic.twitter.com/fcGSQSZRqQ

— Mayhem (@Mayhem) September 25, 2013

 

In the course of having all this fun and driving sales Allstate is also creating a great big cushion of goodwill with stakeholders, something that comes in handy when it’s time for the serious business of crisis management and reputation repair. Having some fun AND reaping benefits? Sounds like a win-win to us.

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For more resources, see the Free Management Library topic: Crisis Management
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[Jonathan Bernstein is president of Bernstein Crisis Management, Inc., an international crisis management consultancy, author of Manager’s Guide to Crisis Management and Keeping the Wolves at Bay – Media Training. Erik Bernstein is Social Media Manager for the firm, and also editor of its newsletter, Crisis Manager]

University shows how fast you can find a solution if the need is dire

A meningitis outbreak is stirring up concern among Princeton students, faculty, and their families. This isn’t your typical meningitis C, but the far more dangerous bacterial meningitis, which actually kills at least 1 in 10 once contracted.

Simple solution, right? Vaccinate the faculty and student body, spend whatever’s needed to give those who did come down sick the care they need and you should be okay. Well, except for one thing…there is no bacterial meningitis vaccine approved for use in the U.S.

What’s the plan, then? NBC News reports:

Princeton University students could get an imported vaccine as early as December to stop the spread of a potentially deadly meningitis outbreak that has sickened seven since March, school officials said Monday.

Under the plan, all undergraduate students, graduate students living in dormitories, and members of the university community with certain vulnerable conditions would be advised to receive vaccinations to protect against serogroup B meningitis, which is missing from the shots already recommended for U.S. college students.

The move follows a request by the Centers for Disease Control in October to import emergency doses of the vaccine Bexsero, made by Novartis, and approved in Europe and Australia, but not in the U.S.

“Pending final CDC approval, the University is prepared to accept these recommendations and make arrangements to provide access to this vaccine as soon as possible,” Princeton officials said in a statement.

Other universities, schools and really anywhere that houses or provides services to large numbers of people should take note of this case for use in their own future crisis management. You may not face an outbreak of bacterial meningitis, but you very well could encounter a health risk for which there is no available, or no known, prevention tool. In such a case, your prior preparation could literally mean the difference between life and death.

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For more resources, see the Free Management Library topic: Crisis Management
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[Jonathan Bernstein is president of Bernstein Crisis Management, Inc., an international crisis management consultancy, author of Manager’s Guide to Crisis Management and Keeping the Wolves at Bay – Media Training. Erik Bernstein is Social Media Manager for the firm, and also editor of its newsletter, Crisis Manager]

Once in a great while, someone is beyond help when it comes to reputation

You may recall the story we covered early this past summer where we discussed claims from two media outlets that they had seen video of Toronto Mayor Rob Ford smoking crack cocaine with a pair of drug dealers.

Ford and his camp went into conniptions, and alternately blasted out oddball communications or sat silent, avoiding the public eye. Well, Ford may have thought he dodged a bullet, but now Toronto police say they have the video, and its content is damning.

The Toronto Star reports:

Toronto Police have recovered the video that appears to show Mayor Rob For smoking crack cocaine, Toronto police Chief Bill Blair said Thursday.

“The video files depict images that are consistent with what has previously been reported” in the media, Blair said at a news conference on the heels of a release of documents used by police to obtain search warrants during their summer investigation.

“I have no reason to resign,” Ford said at a raucous 2:30 p.m. press conference despite calls from several councillors for him to step down.

If you had any doubts about Ford being high as a kite, that last statement should cement things for you.

Toronto Police don’t just have the video, either. News is coming out about a massive police investigation which has turned up evidence of Ford and the few remaining staff members he has associating with all kinds of shady characters from the area, from drug dealers to ex-cons.

There is, literally, no crisis management tactic that could turn this situation around. In terms of the court of public opinion, the best thing Ford could do is virtually disappear, but the fact that he’s likely to be pulled into a court of law to face charges makes that all but impossible.

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For more resources, see the Free Management Library topic: Crisis Management
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[Erik Bernstein is Social Media Manager for Bernstein Crisis Management, Inc., an international crisis management consultancy, and also editor of its newsletter, Crisis Manager]

This is how you do crisis management right

Buffer, the popular social media sharing service beloved by power users and community managers, put on a clinic in crisis management after its service was hacked October 26th. Shortly after some Buffer users began to see spam posts go out from Twitter and Facebook profiles connected to the service, the techs at Buffer decided to pull the plug on posting, hiding Facebook posts made by the app and disconnecting Twitter accounts altogether.

Knowing stakeholders would be concerned and clamoring for information, the Buffer team started blasting out updates via its blog, email, Twitter account and Facebook page.

Here’s the mail we received within minutes of hearing about the problem:

Hi there,

I wanted to get in touch to apologize for the awful experience we’ve caused many of you on your weekend. Buffer was hacked around 1 hour ago, and many of you may have experienced spam posts sent from you via Buffer. I can only understand how angry and disappointed you must be right now.

Not everyone who has signed up for Buffer has been affected, but you may want to check on your accounts. We’re working hard to fix this problem right now and we’re expecting to have everything back to normal shortly.

We’re posting continual updates on the Buffer Facebook page and the Buffer Twitter page to keep you in the loop on everything.

The best steps for you to take right now and important information for you:

• Remove any postings from your Facebook page or Twitter page that look like spam
• Keep an eye on Buffer’s Twitter page and Facebook page
• Your Buffer passwords are not affected
• No billing or payment information was affected or exposed
• All Facebook posts sent via Buffer have been temporarily hidden and will reappear once we’ve resolved this situation

I am incredibly sorry this has happened and affected you and your company. We’re working around the clock right now to get this resolved and we’ll continue to post updates on Facebook and Twitter.

If you have any questions at all, please respond to this email. Understandably, a lot of people have emailed us, so we might take a short while to get back to everyone, but we will respond to every single email.

– Joel and the Buffer team

Sincere apology that kept tone in line with Buffer’s typical casual attitude, check. Quick, simple presentation of the most important information, including what we needed to do ASAP, check. Showing of compassion? Check. Option to interact? Check again.

As you can see from Buffer’s Facebook page, the company was even more active in communication there, releasing a constant stream of info for stakeholders, media, and whoever else wanted to know.

We’ll leave the technical explanation for others, but in short Buffer patched up the security problem and was up and fully functional by mid-day Sunday. The Buffer team wasn’t content to simply start back up again though, they made certain users were aware of what happened, and that they wouldn’t encounter frustration getting their accounts back in order. Here’s their followup email:

Hi there,

I wanted to follow up with you after yesterday’s hacking incident. For many of you this has seriously disrupted your weekend – I’m sorry we caused that awful experience. The Buffer team has been working around the clock and I’m glad to say we’re back up and running. We have also spent all of today adding several security measures.

There’s one key step to using Buffer again: You will have to reconnect all your Twitter accounts, even if you’ve already done so. Go to the Buffer web dashboard to reconnect.

• Other important things for you to know:
• Reconnecting won’t work in mobile apps, all Twitter accounts will have to be reconnected on the web dashboard.
• Your Facebook posting will have resumed normally, there is nothing you need to do.
• Signing in with or connecting a new Twitter account in the iPhone app won’t work until our new update is approved by Apple.

I want to apologize again and say that I’m incredibly sorry this has affected you and in many cases also your company. We’ve written a blog post with ongoing updates as we uncover the full details.

What is left for us right now is to complete our technical analysis and take further security measures. We will follow up with another update on this soon.

I want to invite you again to hit reply to this email or post a comment on our blog post. We will be sure to respond to you as fast as we can.

– Joel and the Buffer team

Nailed once again, and, as with other communications, this information was echoed across Buffer’s social media channels.

With high-profile hackings becoming a regular occurrence, other organizations could do much worse than to directly copy Buffer’s approach. Keep the information flowing, fix the hole quickly, and let your stakeholders know you’re aware of their frustration. That’s how you do crisis management when you’ve been hacked.

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For more resources, see the Free Management Library topic: Crisis Management
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[Jonathan Bernstein is president of Bernstein Crisis Management, Inc., an international crisis management consultancy, author of Manager’s Guide to Crisis Management and Keeping the Wolves at Bay – Media Training. Erik Bernstein is Social Media Manager for the firm, and also editor of its newsletter, Crisis Manager]