Q: What do Lockheed Martin, the CIA and Waffle House have in common? A: Their leaders have all made headlines thanks to personal scandals. For most people, mistakes in one’s personal life don’t have long-term business repercussions. For a high-profile executive on the other hand, every move may be monitored by employees, clients and the media. One mistake can significantly impact his (or her) reputation as well as the stability of the company. What would you do if your CEO had a public Read more [...]
Given the extensive global coverage of Prince Harry’s recent shenanigans, I don’t feel the need to detail out the complete scenario that unfolded last week at the Encore Wynn resort. However, examining the meticulous yet rapid PR production brought forth by the Las Vegas Convention and Visitor’s Authority is worth reviewing in great detail. Below is an overview of how the scandal has impacted these brands: Celebrity Guest Stays for Free: Encore Wynn Comps Harry’s Room Owners of Encore Read more [...]
As a PR pro, imagine waking up to this headline about your client: “My Sister Paid Progressive Insurance to Defend Her Killer in Court.” To me, that sounds like a nightmare. Yesterday afternoon, Progressive Insurance experienced that headline, and subsequent uproar within the Twittersphere surrounding its recent crisis. If companies are going to engage with their customers on social media, a crisis communications strategy needs to be in place, and understood, should something go awry. Consistent Read more [...]
Recently, we worked on a submission for a Social Media Crisis Guidebook that will be published in a few weeks. One of the issues we discussed in our chapter deals with the timeline of a social media crisis and how quickly companies need to respond. Before the advent of social media, a crisis situation typically had some early warning signals but now when something breaks in the twitterverse, you have little more than a few moments before it’s all over the ‘net. Advance preparation is key to ensuring Read more [...]
Over the last 10 years, the line between journalists and readers has grown significantly shorter. From blogging to commenting to online sharing, the swift rise of the Internet and social media has allowed the consumer to be the producer in a way that was never before possible. The line between editorial and advertising has also always been a sticky area, and as a PR professional I’m trained to view pay-for-play media opportunities with a bit of a wary eye. Social media enables the proliferation Read more [...]
It’s one of the Ten Commandments of PR: transparency. Apparently the Coghlan Consulting Group didn’t get the memo. Back in September the PR firm came under fire after the LA Times uncovered that Coghlan was affiliated with fake news site, News Hawks Review, and had been shamelessly promoting their client Central Basin Municipal Water District of California on the site. Coghlan has an agreement between Central Basin’s public affairs office which promises promotional stories “written in the Read more [...]
This past week, I attended a PRSA-NY event where the communications strategy of BP during the oil spill was put on trial. Paul Holmes presided over the case, while each side presented their thoughts on BP’s strategy. By the end of the tribunal I still hadn’t made up my mind about a verdict, but I did come away with some advice on handling crisis communications. Instead of keeping these four lessons to myself, I figured I would share them with you. Lesson 1: Look at the crisis as a battle Read more [...]
It’s pretty much a known fact here at Affect that if it was on TV, I probably watched it. And, seeing that “The Good Wife” is easily one of the best dramas on TV right now, I certainly caught this past weekend’s episode, where in-house crisis communications director Eli Gold (played by Alan Cumming), hits the ground running on a scandal involving contaminated cheese (cue b-roll of kids sick after eating cheese at school.) In the past year, the technology industry has been no stranger to Read more [...]
For anyone traveling over the past week – or hoping to travel – chances are the snow storm interrupted your travel plans even if you were no where near the snow. Our team at Affect had one person stuck in California, one in Florida, one in New Orleans and myself in Canada. (Oh, and one in Brooklyn.) I had the good fortune of going to Mont Tremblant in Canada over the holiday - and the misfortune of traveling with Continental Airlines. Although I arrived on the 23rd without incidence, my Read more [...]
As a pop culture junkie, I get excited when the entertainment industry creeps its way into my PR world (remember, I’m in tech…it doesn’t happen that often). So when Variety reported this week that Grey’s Anatomy and Private Practice hit-maker Shonda Rhimes was given the thumbs up by ABC to pilot a new crisis PR drama, I was all ears. The show (still unnamed) will be based on the life of real-world crisis PR expert, Judy Smith. If her name doesn’t ring a bell, her involvement and counsel Read more [...]
