Author: Jonathan & Erik Bernstein

Crisis management required after predictably polarizing article published

We never seem to run dry examples of easily preventable crises. Last week, an article on Home and Garden TV’s website discussing Fourth of July table settings suggested that an American flag be used as a “bright and festive table runner.” Whoops…

As you probably guessed, flocks of military vets and their families, along citizens from just about every walk of life, descended on HGTV’s social media sites to rip the network a new one for its misuse of the flag.

To HGTV’s credit, it quickly deleted the article and posted an apology, but to its detriment the apology was a weak one.

What key element of successful crisis communication was missing from this apology? COMPASSION!! Sure the station apologized and told everyone how patriotic they are, but there was no statement of compassion for those who were hurt and offended, and judging from the angry comments posted not only on the apology, but also in just about every other thread on the HGTV Facebook page, there were a lot.

“Why would anyone want to listen to you if he felt you had not first listened to him?” ― Dr. Xavier Amador

Showing compassion demonstrates to your audience that you have heard them, and that you understand exactly why they’re upset. Only by unlocking their eyes and ears with a dose of compassion can you truly be effective in crisis communications.

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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]

National Safety Month means opportunities to talk about crisis management

One of the best ways to strengthen your own reputation is by sharing information your stakeholders can actually use. Events like National Safety Month, every June for those who didn’t know, provide the perfect opportunity, and Staples knows just what to do. Here’s a surprisingly solid list of tips from the office retailer:

National Safety Month is here, and with so many natural disasters and emergencies impacting our lives and businesses this year, Staples wanted to find a way to help keep businesses safe. A recent Staples survey found that the top safety concern among businesses is natural disasters, but nearly two-thirds say that natural disasters, such as Hurricane Sandy in 2012, have not caused a reassessment of safety plans. Also, nearly 1 out of 3 businesses say their company is not prepared for a natural disaster or storm.

In an attempt to help businesses, Staples recommends these 4 Steps to a Safer Work Environment:

1.Stock up on emergency items: In addition to an emergency evacuation plan, business should have enough food, water, flashlights and blankets to help sustain employees for up to three days. Items like masks and crank-powered radios can further help businesses be ready for any emergency.

2. Help prevent accidents: The second foremost safety concern among survey respondents was trips, slips and falls. Prevent accidents by installing floor matting and placing hazard signs where appropriate.

3. Be mindful of ergonomics: One-third of respondents experience pain or discomfort at their workstation and a quarter reported “numbness” or “tingling.” Providing ergonomic equipment helps prevent workplace injuries.

4. Back up data: One quarter of respondents do not have access to a secure server for data back-up. To help protect data and make it accessible, consider using a secure VPN, cloud storage and external hard drives.

For more information and tips for small businesses, visit www.staples.com/safetyinfo. To learn more about how Staples can help medium-sized businesses with safety preparation and products, visit www.staplesadvantage.com/facility-solutions.

Is it promotional material? Sure. Are these actually areas are where we spot many “crises waiting to happen” when conducting vulnerability audits? Absolutely! (OK, ergonomics might be pushing it…) As far as we’re concerned, the more reminders organizations have to protect themselves, the higher the chances they’ll take, or have success to convincing the C-suite to take, crisis prevention measures.

Basic safety measures are a core component of any crisis management plan. Take advantage of the various tips you’re bound to find throughout National Safety Month, and put them to work!

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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]

Like it or not, social media is all but guaranteed to play a role in your next crisis.

Sure, you could bury your head in the sand and pretend it doesn’t exist, but not having a Twitter or Facebook account won’t prevent your stakeholders from venting about, or attempting to reach you via those services. At best you’re missing out on the most popular communications platforms, hosting the largest communities, currently in existence, and at worst you’re creating further ill-will by not having a presence because people can’t get in touch, a troll is hard at work trashing your name, or any number of other potential ugly situations.

To make things easier, here’s a list of social media crisis management “musts” to get you started on the right track:

You must monitor. It’s not enough to put info out there, you need to monitor social media to catch wind of incoming crises, gauge the tone of conversations about your brand, calculate the impact of your own communications, and provide good old fashioned customer service.

You must respond. A huge chunk of low to mid-level crises would never be a problem at all if organizations actually took the time to respond to irked stakeholders. Jay Baer recently reported that 42% of consumers who use social media expect a response within 60 minutes, with 32% expecting that in 30 or less, and a full 57% expecting that same response time in the middle of the night, on a weekend, whenever. Bottom line, you need someone ready to respond to important social media messages as close to 24/7 as possible.

…most of the time. Wait, but you just said “you must respond” crisis guy! What’s gives? Well, a good portion of ‘net users get an awful lot of satisfaction out of trolling, or blatantly insulting, various organizations, often when they’re already taking a beating in the court of public opinion. It can take experience to separate the extremely upset from the trolls, but if you can split the two groups you can avoid giving those looking to get a rise any reason to continue their behavior.

You must behave. We get it, you love your brand and are passionate about defending it. Thing is, crisis management is not an effort of passion, but rather one of calculation and careful planning. You can not afford to let your emotions rule your responses, and you absolutely, at all costs, MUST NOT stoop to name calling or other irrational, immature means. Nothing on the net goes away forever, and you can bet that any slip-ups will be screenshotted and cataloged by a host of people for use across social media, in blogs, or simply as future ammunition against your organization. We know it’s stressful to take the abuse that comes pouring in during a crisis, and there’s no shame in admitting you’re overwhelmed. If you’re getting too worked up, let a colleague step in for a while to share the load.

You must train. Have you ever handled hundreds of tweets at once, or attempted to control a Facebook page that’s so flooded with comments you can hardly figure out where to start? If not, then how do you expect to do it well in the middle of a stressful crisis situation? Whether you’re using in-house people with other responsibilities, or have created a full social media team, put them through their paces with simulations and tabletop exercises before you ever get to the real thing.

As you can see, handling social media crisis management well requires a heavy dose of people skills, a special mindset, and as much experience as possible. Take these musts to heart, and wade on into social media knowing you’re well-prepared for what may come.

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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]

Actions of those who represent your organization can result in a need for crisis management

Celebrities are commonly used as spokespeople for everything from sodas to cars to underwear, but they certainly make for risky investments. As a quick look at the TMZ website (warning, not always SFW) shows, celebrity seems to breed controversy in a large percentage of people who achieve it, as a recent Ameritrade article article by Quentin Fottrell pointed out when it documented six deals gone bad, including this example:

Aflac hired comedian Gilbert Gottfried to provide the voice for the insurance company’s animated duck, but the jokes he tweeted about the Japanese earthquake last year fell flat — and cost him. After a contract that lasted 11 years — likely in the low-six figures per year, Tuchman says –Aflac terminated its contract.

“Gilbert’s recent comments about the crisis in Japan were lacking in humor and certainly do not represent the thoughts and feelings of anyone at Aflac,” the company said. (Aflac declined to comment on the terms of the agreement.) Gottfried apologized “sincerely” for his tweets and regretted any offense caused. But it was too little, too late: Aflac gets most of its revenue from Japan and, as such, had no option but act swiftly, says Jonathan Bernstein, president of Bernstein Crisis Management.

As Jonathan explained, organizations often must act quickly in order to distance themselves from suddenly-controversial celeb spokespeople like Gottfried. Sure, he apologized, but while it’s easy for Aflac to snag another mid-level celeb spokesperson with its six-figure budget, it would probably require a concentrated (and costly) crisis management campaign in order to rehab Gilbert’s image, something for which no employer wants to be responsible.

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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]

If no harm is being done, why create PR risk through legal threats?

Ferrero, the company that makes hazelnut-based sweet spread Nutella, nearly blew a free PR opportunity when its lawyers went after the six-year-old unofficial “World Nutella Day” celebration.

The event’s founder, Sara Rosso, informed World Nutella Day’s 40,000+ Facebook fans that she had received a cease-and-desist letter. Sensing a social media mess in the making, major media outlets spread the news, which eventually made its way to Ferrero higher ups. Luckily, logic prevailed and the company jumped into crisis management mode, informing Rosso that they would have no issue with the celebration continuing, narrowly averting a fan backlash.

In an interview with Ragan’s Matt Wilson, our own Jonathan Bernstein offered his takeaway from Ferrero’s narrow miss:

The big lesson from all this, according to Jonathan Bernstein of Bernstein Crisis Management, is that corporate attorneys just shouldn’t threaten private citizens without considering the PR outcomes.

If your brand is being promoted in a positive way by an individual, why take action at all? Sure, if it was “World Nutella Sucks Day” then we could understand, but this event is, literally, nothing but free PR for the company’s flagship product. In fact, a smart organization would carry this attention over and give it all a monumentally positive spin by coming out to officially sponsor the celebration, cementing a positive reputation among thousands of potential brand advocates.

Perhaps another lesson here is that automated or mindless brand protection online can easily lead to reputation crises. Sure, someone may be have your logo on their website, a clip from your TV show on YouTube, or any other number of “misuses,” but you really must consider whether it is doing more harm than good. If it’s not, then Crisis Management 101 would dictate that you let it be.

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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]

Know thy audience, young crisis managers

Social media crisis management can be confusing to navigate, especially if you’re not sure which stakeholder groups you’re dealing with. Although each comment obviously comes from an individual, there are discernible groups that you see emerge again and again to join in online debates and dramatics.

In a post discussing online issues management tactics, social media pro Chris Syme defined four of the most common:

1. Self-appointed citizen journalists will jump at the chance to enter the conversation and have their news expertise highlighted and retweeted . They generally have no dog in the fight—they just have a news nose and want to be in the fray. As soon as the initial news cycle is over, they will move on. They are trying to establish a reputation in real-time events and have no interest in sticking around.

2. Watch dogs are watching. It doesn’t matter where the issue takes place, their interest is in the subject, not in the players. They are the self-appointed keepers of the gate, so to speak. Often, they keep tabs on sites like Reddit or Deadspin and follow news related to their area of interest. Generally, this group will keep tabs on the issue, and if there is another news cycle or a red flag, they will show up again.

3. Advocates are ready to jump in. Whether or not your advocates actually enter the conversation will depend on two things: their level of engagement with the brand and their propensity for commenting and sharing online. Their level of engagement will depend on how you have cultivated their online partnership. If your social media strategy is broadcast and reach only, they may hang back. If you have been proactive in building conversations and using other loyalty strategies in social media, they are already used to being an active part of your community. This is why it’s paramount to be using loyalty strategies in your social media (see the how-to here).

4. Social media trolls and haters: Sometimes people confuse haters and trolls with watchdogs. They are not the same. Generally, watchdogs are those people that have legitimate concerns with the issue. They may not always be civil, and their behavior can mirror that of haters, but they are issue-oriented nonetheless. Haters and trolls may have an affinity for controversial issues, and oftentimes they are just plain troublemakers. It is in their nature to spew and go. They are like a swarm of angry hornets. When someone stirs the nest—an inflamed article on Reddit or angry tweet from another hater, they fly into action. Haters and trolls flourish in the first news cycle of the issue but rarely stick around for long.

Knowing your audience is one of the core principles of crisis communications. By determining who it is you’re communicating with, you can determine what tone and level of response is required, or in the case of blatant trolls, who warrants no response at all.

Next time you find yourself in the midst of social media crisis management, review these definitions, and use them to craft the perfect response. Remember not to get too cookie cutter though, every situation requires a fresh evaluation of just which approach is best!

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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]

Negativity is a slippery slope

Just last week, we discussed how pro golfer Sergio Garcia’s complaints about Tiger Woods left him labeled as a whiner by both traditional and social media.

Apparently Garcia didn’t have enough negative attention, or PR training sessions, because this week his behavior took a turn for the straight out ugly. Here’s what happened, from the Guardian UK article by Ewan Murray that helped break the story:

The Spaniard was on stage at the European Tour’s gala players’ awards dinner, where he was questioned by the Golf Channel’s Steve Sands. García, who has been embroiled in verbal battles with Woods since the Players Championship at Sawgrass this month, was asked in jest if he would have the American round for dinner one night during the upcoming US Open. “We will have him round every night,” García said. “We will serve fried chicken.”

After reportedly making an exit from the dinner before he could questioned further, Garcia issued a statement, not personally, but through the European Tour:

“I apologise for any offence that may have been caused by my comment on stage during The European Tour Players’ Awards dinner. I answered a question that was clearly made towards me as a joke with a silly remark, but in no way was the comment meant in a racist manner.”

What Garcia failed to wrap his ego-inflated head around is the fact that not only is what he said clearly racist, but also the damage he did is being amplified by such a weak apology.

The situation has now done another round in the media, and Garcia was forced to reiterate a more sincere apology several times Wednesday during media appearances. Tiger, on the other hand, took to Twitter to discuss:

The comment that was made wasn’t silly. It was wrong, hurtful and clearly inappropriate…

— Tiger Woods (@TigerWoods) May 22, 2013

I’m confident that there is real regret that the remark was made.

— Tiger Woods (@TigerWoods) May 22, 2013

Topping off the (deserved) public bashing that Garcia’s received was a firm statement from his biggest sponsor, TaylorMade-adidas:

“Sergio Garcia’s recent comment was offensive and in no way aligns with TaylorMade-Adidas Golf’s values and corporate culture. We have spoken with Sergio directly and he clearly has regret for his statement and we believe he is sincere. We discussed with Sergio that his comments are clearly out of bounds and we are continuing to review the matter.”

Of course, those of us in crisis management are familiar with that this means. Let’s just say that, “we’re waiting a couple of days to see if we should can you,” isn’t far off.

Garcia is traveling down a slippery slope here. If he (or his sponsors) don’t get his mouth in check soon, his income potential could come crashing down.

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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]

What would your advice be in this ugly situation?

Toronto Mayor Rob Ford is in serious trouble after two separate media outlets were shown video of him (allegedly) smoking crack cocaine with a pair of drug dealers.

The Toronto Star published an account of the video, written by the reporters who viewed it, Robyn Doolittle and Kevin Donovan, that’s sure to induce cringing in any crisis management pro. Here’s a small sample:

It appears to show Ford in a room, sitting in a chair, wearing a white shirt, top buttons open, inhaling from what appears to be a glass crack pipe. Ford is incoherent, trading jibes with an off-camera speaker who goads the clearly impaired mayor by raising topics including Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau and the Don Bosco high school football team Ford coaches.

“I’m f—ing right-wing,” Ford appears to mutter at one point. “Everyone expects me to be right-wing. I’m just supposed to be this great.…” and his voice trails off. At another point he is heard calling Trudeau a “fag.” Later in the 90-second video he is asked about the football team and he appears to say (though he is mumbling), “they are just f—ing minorities.”

Since the accusations emerged, Ford has refused to answer the question of whether he uses cocaine or not, instead laying extremely low and avoiding most public appearances.

So far, the video has not been published because the owners want a massive pile of money to hand it over, but it’s looking to be only a matter of time. Already Gawker, the other media outlet shown the video, has kicked off what it’s called a “Crackstarter” fund, and donors have pitched in a whopping $80,000 towards acquiring the footage.

Honestly, at this point there may not be a crisis management tactic strong enough to restore Ford’s reputation. Unless three veteran reporters were terribly mistaken, the video does show Ford using some type of drug, and making unsavory comments about his constituents, plenty to guarantee that he won’t be winning any more elections. His choice now may lie between incriminating himself and a disgraceful, close-lipped exit from office.

Much like the situation Lance Armstrong found himself in after being busted for using performance enhancing drugs, the choice to stay silent may actually have less negative impact than fessing up, leaving Toronto’s mayor with a crisis management nightmare on his hands.

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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]

Revelation of decades-long data access for reporters creates reputation crisis

While Bloomberg‘s data terminals, which serve up volumes of intricately detailed financial information to Wall Street pros on a daily basis, have enjoyed a reputation as must-have tools, a privacy breach scandal has landed the company in a threatening crisis.

Last week, it was revealed that Bloomberg reporters have had special access to data on how customers used their terminals for DECADES, and actively sought to use it in order to break stories first. Customers ranging from JPMorgan and Goldman Sachs to the U.S. Federal Reserve have all expressed extreme dismay, and the legal letters demanding further information are already starting to pour in.

CNBC’s Jeff Cox discussed the situation with Bernstein Crisis Management president Jonathan Bernstein, who offered up these insights:

“There are very few things a company can do wrong that are worse than a breach of customer confidentiality,” he said. “Trust in the organization that underlines its reputation is their most important asset.”

“You have to do more than just apologize. You’re going to have to engage in a campaign of transparency and consistency before people are going to trust you again,” he said. “There are other ways to get that data (on the terminals), and I would guess now that some companies are going to find other ways to do it.”

To its credit, Bloomberg is headed in the right direction with its crisis management thus far. The organization has not only appointed an inside executive to the newly-minted position of “Internal Client Data Compliance Officer,” but it has also brought independent advisors into the fold, upping the level, or at least appearance of, transparency. Reports also state that Bloomberg reached out to hundreds of clients directly to both apologize and reinforce the message that the problem will be rectified, a wise move given the power players that are listed among the firm’s clients.

Stakeholder’s anger won’t vanish overnight, but if Bloomberg genuinely makes every effort to secure its terminals, whether from its own reporters or, as Jonathan mentioned, the other prying eyes that will inevitably be attracted, it can make a recovery. Of course, the whole process will have to be shared with stakeholders, and packaged to that it makes an easily-digestible story, but considering Bloomberg’s significant media chops we’re thinking the organization should be able to handle that.

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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]