Tag Archives: Strategic Vision

Why Staying True To Your Brand Story Is Critical During A Crisis

Branding, Crisis Communications, Uncategorized, , , ,

The other day, I wrote a crisis communications strategy for the Trump White House.  It was the conventional crisis communications strategy that would normally apply for any Administration facing the issues that President Trump confronts.  Yet in another sense, he doesn’t need a conventional crisis communications strategy and if he followed one it would actually do more harm than good.

What you say?  Look at all the negative media coverage the Trump Administration is earning.  It moves from one crisis to another (his press conference attacking the media was just the latest example).  That is true in the conventional sense.  Yet what we are forgetting is that Donald Trump’s presidency, just as his campaign is anything but conventional.

Throughout the 2016 presidential campaign, Donald Trump was discounted.  His attack against John McCain inferring that McCain was not a hero was supposed to doom his campaign yet his poll numbers increased.  Trump’s running feud with Megyn Kelly was going to be the end of the campaign, yet it reverberated in Trump’s favor.  There was no way he could win the Republican nomination with all of his verbal stumbles yet he emerged as the Republican nominee.  Hillary Clinton was a sure winner against Trump, conventional wisdom held.  The debates were viewed as a disaster and of course there was the infamous Access Hollywood tape.  Yet rather than bow to traditional crisis management, Trump doubled down attacking his enemies and never backing down.  On Election Night, he scored the greatest political upset since Harry Truman in 1948.

Trump’s success can be attributed to one thing more than anything else – his brand.  The public has known the Trump brand for decades.  It is flamboyant, never backs down and bucks conventional wisdom.  This is what voters bought into during the 2016 election – the Trump brand.  Voters believed in the brand and that Trump was not a regular politician.

For Trump now to follow a traditional crisis management response would go against that brand story that his voters bought into.  Based upon polls, Trump’s base is staying with him.  In many ways, Trump is like Phil Robertson of Duck Dynasty who apologized if his remarks offended anyone but never backed away from his remarks and the public rallied around him because it was consistent with his brand story.  For Trump to change is strategy and eschew to traditional crisis management steps would be to go against his brand story.

Brands watching Trump should realize that consumers buy into a brand’s identity during both good and bad times.  During a crisis, if a brand approaches a response not consistent with its identity it runs the risk of alienating its consumers and losing its unique identity.  Donald Trump understands that lesson and that is why we cannot expect to see traditional crisis management from him.

#WhiteHouse…In Search of a Strategic Crisis Communications Plan

Crisis Communications, Uncategorized, , , , ,

Every presidential administration just like every business needs crisis communications at some point.  For the Trump Administration, the need is coming earlier than most (not even a month into the Administration).   The Administration has been beset by numerous mistakes (Michael Flynn, alternative facts, the CIA visit, the Australia phone call) that have overshadowed its successes.  So what should the Administration do in terms of crisis communications?

  1. Limit President Trump’s media exposure. One of the great powers of the presidency is the President himself.  But he has been everywhere all at once.  The Administration needs to limit his media exposure to one major event a day that coincides with the message of the day.
  2. Replace Sean Spicer as White House Press Secretary. Spicer is serving as both White House Communications Director and Press Secretary.  He has become a parody in his role as White House Press Secretary through the Saturday Night Live Melissa McCarthy portrayals and has lost some credibility with the media that he works with on a daily basis.  Retain him as White House Communications Director but bring in a respected person as Press Secretary to give the White House a fresh approach in its press dealings.
  3. Now that National Security Adviser Michael Flynn has resigned, the Administration needs to replace him quickly with a well-respected individual that will command respect in the media, with the public, and policy makers.
  4. Stay on message. Too often the Administration has fallen off of its message and got caught in needless distractions.  It needs to avoids this.
  5. Refocus on its campaign pledge of tax reform, infrastructure and creating jobs.
  6. Limit the President’s Twitter use (perhaps impossible). While reaching voters it creates needless news stories for the Administration.
  7. Carefully vet all facts released. Mistaken facts or alleged false facts (Bowling Green Massacre) are doing untold damage to the Administration’s credibility.  The media is giving everything greater scrutiny so this means the Administration cannot make mistakes with facts.
  8. Have Mike Pence, Reince Preibus, and Cabinet members be the main talk show spokespersons.
  9. Avoid lashing out at critics be it judges or Saturday Night Live as that creates an unnecessary news story that the media latches on to with a fervor.
  10. Have the message of the day come through one central source, preferably the chief of staff’s office as was done in previous Administrations.

Righting course after a few difficult weeks won’t be hard for the Trump Administration.  But to do so means employing a strategic crisis communications plan.

#SonyHack: Damage Control?…Reputation Management?

Crisis Communications, , , , , , ,

Sony has been a company under siege for the past several weeks. The company suffered a severe security breach.   Compromised were employee’s social security numbers, children’s medical records, and confidential emails from Sony executives.

The emails of top Sony executives were leaked to the media. Some emails revealed how Alex Trebek threatened to leave Jeopardy. Others spoke critically of stars such as Angelina Jolie and Denzel Washington. Then there were the racially charged emails between producer, Scott Rudin and Amy Pascal, Sony’s Chairman regarding President Obama.

The breach was committed by the Guardians of Peace, believed to be connected to the North Korean government. The group and the North Korea government were protesting the Sony comedy film “The Interview” starring James Franco and Seth Rogen who are recruited by the CIA to kill North Korean leader, Kim Jong-un while doing an interview. North Korea considers the film that shows the assassination of Kim Jong-un as an act of war.   Both the Guardians of Peace and North Korea were demanding that the film be pulled. Sony insisted the film would not be pulled. Then after terroristic threats were made against movie theaters if they showed the film, the largest theater chains announced they would not be showing the film. On Wednesday, Sony announced that they were pulling “The Interview” and had no plans to the release the film.

The backlash against Sony for pulling “The Interview” has been enormous. Sony has given every sign that it caved in and appeased the repressive Stalinist North Korean regime. The security breach that Sony had suffered had garnered headlines with the leaks about Sony executives trashing major Hollywood stars but that was more an inside Hollywood crisis that required damage control within the industry. Consumer opinion for the most part, was not affected negatively or positively towards Sony because of the hacked emails. Sony even had defenders within the industry such as Brad Pitt and Aaron Sorkin over the hacked emails. With the cancellation of “The Interview” there has not been a voice raised in the company’s defense. Consumer attitudes towards Sony have been affected by the cancellation of the film and what many see as appeasement of North Korea.

So what if anything should Sony do to repair its image?

  1. Amy Pascal or another leading Sony executive needs to speak publicly and explain the company’s decision for pulling the film. When we think of Sony Entertainment we forget it is part of Sony, a Japanese company. In Japan, unlike in the United States, North Korea is seen as a clear and present threat. Missile tests by North Korea often go over Japan and it wasn’t too long ago that North Korea would snatch Japanese citizens off of Japanese beaches to be used as translators. If it was because of pressure from the parent company and fears of North Korean retaliation against Japan that needs to be explained. Whatever led to this decision Sony needs to explain fully and in detail.
  2. Announce a new release sate for “The Interview” in theaters or if the chains will not carry the film, a video release
  3. Support of various human rights campaigns that seek to bring change in North Korea.
  4. Reach out to key Hollywood talent, explain the company’s decision and ask for support.
  5. Replace the current management with a new team who vow to bring a new corporate culture to the company and vow never to allow outside forces threaten the company’s integrity.

The Sony PR crisis will play out over the next several days. For the company it could not have happened at a worst time – the slow holiday season. That is why it essential the company take immediate steps to repair its image not over the security breach (that a majority of Americans could care less about) but by what many see as appeasement of North Korea (something that disturbs a great majority of Americans). If the company doesn’t take steps at once, it will spend the start of 2015 in damage control mode.

The Bill Cosby Brand: A Legacy of Shame

Crisis Communications, , ,

As we enter the Thanksgiving week (traditionally a slow news time) the public relations crisis confronting comedian, Bill Cosby continues to escalate and will very likely dominate much of the holiday news cycle. Sixteen women have come forward alleging that Cosby, who has long been an American icon, sexually assaulted or even raped them, often drugging them during the encounters. Cosby has refused to address the issue claiming he doesn’t respond to innuendos. His attorney has claimed that many of the allegations which are decades old are being raised with the intent to get money from Cosby.

Yet Cosby’s refusal to address the allegations is not stopping the damage to his brand among the public and the television networks. NBC which had aired the Cosby Show in the 1990s, (a show that made his character, Dr. Cliff Huxtable, one of the most popular television dads ever) announced it was cancelling plans for a 2015 sitcom with Cosby. TV Land pulled reruns of the Cosby Show from their schedule. Netflix announced that a comedy special that they had taped with Cosby to air on November 28th had been postponed indefinitely. Several venues where Cosby was to perform his comedy routine cancelled his appearances. Among the public is a growing perception that Cosby’s silence is a tacit admission.

Damage has been done to the Cosby brand. At this point in his career, these allegations will remain attached to his brand and his legacy unless totally disproven.

So what if anything can Cosby do?

If these allegations are totally baseless, he must address them head on. A spokesperson issuing a blanket denial or a general denial by Cosby himself will not be sufficient. He or his spokesperson must refute each allegation in detail. Nothing else will satisfy the media, sponsors, networks, and the public. The allegations are so devastating that only a detailed response disproving them will stop the firestorm. This means that if Cosby had sex with the women but it was consensual it must be addressed. Cosby has to recognize that unless he can absolutely disprove the allegations his reputation will be tarnished.

If there is any validity to these allegations, Cosby still has to address them and beg for forgiveness. Then he needs to cancel all appearances and realize his career as he knew it is over.

Or he can continue to remain silent. Under such circumstances he should cancel appearances at colleges where violence against women is a major issue as the image of Cosby speaking there when under this could is totally inappropriate.

Silence though in the long term will not work for Cosby. Brands and celebrities should learn from Cosby on what not to do. Not addressing a crisis either by denying it or accepting responsibility and asking forgiveness is seen as an admission of guilt. Silence also creates a greater media firestorm and crisis as Cosby is finding out. The longer that Cosby stays silent the longer the media will address this story.

Midterm Communications Strategies

Communications, Public Affairs, , ,

The midterm elections are history. Republicans retook the United States Senate for the first time since 2006. In the United States House of Representatives they increased their majority to the largest since the presidency of Herbert Hoover. The Republican campaign theme was one of opposition to President Obama and his policies and voters responded with one of the greatest repudiations of a sitting President’s party since Harry Truman in 1946.

A negative communications strategy of opposition to President Obama gave the Republicans their victory. But now that they have won, how must their communication strategy change if they hope to maintain and even expand their majorities?

  1. Republicans must change their communication strategy from one of simply being opposed to Barack Obama to one that offers positive conservative alternatives. The Republicans need to show voters what they are for and what they believe in. To be successful, Republicans need to communicate their ideas that they believe will solve the nation’s problems in a way different then politics as usual. They need to show a vision. In short, they need to take a leaf out of their icon, Ronald Reagan’s playbook.
  2. The Republicans need to communicate that they are willing to work with President Obama as a partner if he is willing to reach across the aisle to them. Many voters have complained about the lack of willingness of each side to try to come together to offer concrete solutions. By making that statement, Republicans would seize the high ground in terms of a communication strategy.
  3. Use effective spokespersons. Republicans have suffered lately because many of their spokespersons have come across as grumpy old white men. With a large number of female legislators such as Mia Love and Joni Ernst, and an African-American Senator in South Carolina’s Tim Scott, Republican leaders should put these leaders at the forefront in communicating the Republican message and showing minorities that their party is an inclusive party.
  4. Communicate their opposition to President Obama in positive terms. Many voters agree with the Republican message of opposition to President Obama. The voters don’t like it conveyed in harsh and biting rhetoric. Republicans need to frame their opposition in positive ways, keep it from being personal, and let voters know how their opposition to President Obama will benefit voters.
  5. Keep the message on results. One of the great failings Republicans in the House of Representatives have had is in communicating what they have accomplished. This failure has led many to dub the outgoing Congress, a do-nothing Congress and register some of the lowest approval numbers ever. The challenge for Republicans is to communicate to voters what they are achieving.

Republicans won a historic landslide with a communication strategy of negative attacks. As they now seek to maintain and increase their majority, they must change communication strategies or their majority will be short lived.

What Makes A Good News Story

Media Relations, , , , ,

Media relations are a key component of public relations. Companies want positive media coverage to assist them in reaching their target audience. Every CEO believes that they have a story that is newsworthy that will bring them coverage and assist in marketing. Regardless of whether it is business to consumer or business to business, companies want media coverage.

In public relations we hear all the time from clients and potential clients, can you get us in the news? The answer usually is yes we can, if you have a compelling story that will stand out. Today, news coverage is more competitive than ever before despite the opportunities the 24/7 news cycle provides.

What does it take to get news coverage?

Here are the elements for great media pitches and press releases:

  • New – Your company should have something current and fresh to share with your target audiences. Do you have a new product launch, a new spin on an old way of doing something, or a late-breaking development?
  • Timely – Make sure your news is presented to the media in a timely manner. For example, if your company reduced its carbon footprint this year, holding that information until closer to Earth Day (April 21) will give the story relevancy and timeliness; or closer to the season if you work in eCommerce doing stories on holiday sales online is timely starting in November.
  • Local – The rise of hyperlocal news has made this element more important than ever. Your story should be relevant to your locale; and remember, even national media outlets like to see how a piece of news impacts a particular community.
  • Human Interest – You might have a great piece of news, but you’ll increase your chances of coverage if you can put a human face to the story. For example, we represented an author once who after a near fatal accident gave up her high profile Wall Street career to pursue her dream of writing believing that the accident was a sign.
  • Conflict/Controversy – This component often needs some finessing, but if done right, you can position your piece of news as a long-fought victory or a beat-the-odds scenario.
  • Odd – That’s right, an unusual piece of news often makes headlines. Does your organization do something out-of-the-ordinary or quirky?

In today’s increasingly social world, I would add the following component:

  • Shareable – Your news must be worthy enough to be shared on social media platforms. At least six in 10 Americans consume news via the internet; moreover. Indeed more people claim today they get their news via the internet or Facebook than traditional media source. Indeed, Pew reported that 44% of consumers like to read news that is “shareable.” Indeed many companies that become overnight successes credit their success to the fact that their news story was shared on the internet.

News coverage can be obtained if we keep these basic elements in mind. These elements not only help our clients get the coverage they seek but also makes the reporter’s job easier meaning your relationship with them is strengthened and media relations, good relationships with reporters makes or breaks the coverage your client gets.

Book Promotion In The New Economy

Book Publicity, , , ,

The economy as we know it has changed entirely. Purchasing patterns and consumer behavior will be radically different from what it was two years ago. Excess and glitz are out. People are staying at home and enjoying the simple things in life – particularly a well-written book. That is the good news for authors. The bad – this means that that the challenge and competition any author faces is more daunting then ever to standout from the rest. The way to do this is through a comprehensive publicity and marketing campaign.

First determine your target market. Too often when asking an author who their target market is, they will answer everyone. Just like a business you need to segment who you think your primary and secondary audiences. Just because you wrote the greatest self-help book on relationships means that everyone in a relationship or looking to be in a relationship will purchase the book. Fact is that most of the buyers of any self-help book will be predominately female, even if they are buying the book for the man in their life.

Determining your target audience is essential for the next part of any media campaign – targeting the media. Once you know the primary audience, you want to begin targeting the media that audience reads, watches, or listens too. For example if your book is on business, you want to target business media, but even more specifically you want to only target the media that covers what is in your book. A book on finance wants coverage by the reports that cover finance not retail. Just like your target audience, segment your media. Don’t overlook online media. In this day and age, more people rely on the online media then traditional media.

Don’t send books outs randomly. The largest cost that authors often incur is by sending books out to every book reviewer or producer tin which they can find a mailing address. Be economical about sending out books. Most unsolicited books sent to reporters go unread and are either returned back to the author, sent to a charity, or tossed in the garbage. With postage on the rise, as well as books, that is too much money to waste unless there is a commitment to review the book or do a story on the book.

Utilize all online tools at your disposal. An author website is critical. It should include a compelling call to action description about the book, an author biography, a contact page, and media page. Utilize social networking websites. Twitter and Facebook are essential. On Facebook make sure that you have a fan page for your book as well as an author page. Use Twitter to get out small messages from your book to a following. The key is creating followers through retweets. A smart way to do this is by creating an online contest. Conduct a blog tour to get your message out. A blog tour is a simple cost efficient way to reach thousands of readers in a cost-efficient manner. It’s quickly becoming the new form of a media tour.

Do as many interviews as is possible. Interviews are what people respond too in purchasing a book. Book reviews are still important but more people view, listen, or read an interview then ever read a book review. Make your interview compelling. The media and public react to authors who speak in black and white terms with a strong inspiring story. Again utilize the social media in repackaging your interviews to reach an even greater audience. Remember no media is too small. Every interview allows you to reach a portion of your target audience. Plus you never know who is listening. For example we had an author on a local station whose interview was heard by key executive at Federal Express who ordered his book as a training manual.

Finally, leave the readers with a reason to purchase your book. Remember in this economy, people want a reason to purchase the book. Demonstrate in your interviews and your blog tours how their lives will be better because they purchased your book. And never give up in getting your message out.

Key Elements In Getting Started With Book Publicity

Book Publicity, , , , , , ,

The book world is seeing an explosion in books coming out each year as self-publishing has changed the book world forever. No longer do a few publishing houses control who gets published and who doesn’t. More and more people are achieving their dream of being an author and yet the challenge for authors whether self-published or published with a traditional publisher to stand out is even greater than ever. There is a greater need for book publicity than ever before but promoting the book can be even a harder and longer job than writing the book itself.

A publicity campaign takes time. Authors spend months and even years in writing their book and pour their heart and soul into it. A successful book publicity campaign doesn’t happen overnight, it takes time and dedication. A book PR campaign is a way to penetrate the public’s consciousness with your book. A comprehensive campaign allows an author to reach a target audience and stand out from other authors in your genre, it brands the author and the book. A typical book publicity campaign takes between 6 months to 18 months to be successful. Yet despite all of this hard work and time, a public relations campaign cannot guarantee that readers will purchase the book.

Before beginning on the book publicity campaign, authors should have certain items ready as they begin their promotions. The key items authors should have in place as they begin their PR campaigns are:

  1. An author website. The website should include an author bio, information about the book, a sampling of media coverage, a list of events, contact information, and a way to purchase the book.
  2. A professional headshot. Authors should have professional headshots made some with a business look and some in a more casual setting.
  3. Business cards. Just as a person business needs a business card to give in networking meetings, so does the author as they are in the business of building a brand and selling their book.

NFL Sponsors: What Role In Crisis Management

Crisis Communications, , , , , , ,

Another day has passed and another NFL player has been arrested with domestic violence charges – Arizona Cardinals running back Jonathan Dwyer. This comes as the NFL is still reeling from the public relations damage of Ray Rice, Adrian Peterson, Greg Hardy, and the admission in court documents that nearly a third of its players could end up with brain damage. The NFL is suffering in the court of public opinion among policymakers and fans. Yet it still does not seem to have a cohesive public relations strategy to deal with these PR nightmares

Many are drawing a stark contrast with how the NFL is dealing with the multitude of public relations crises and the NBA dealt with LA Clippers owner, Donald Sterling after his racist comments went public. Within a period of days, the NBA conducted and completed an investigation and took action – banning Sterling from the NBA for life and forcing the sale the Clippers. NBA Commissioner Adam Silver was front and center as the face of the NBA with the media. The NFL on the other hand has been largely invisible.

Why the difference? The actions of the sponsors. In the case of Sterling, sponsors began pulling sponsorships with the Clippers within 24 hours. So far, only one NFL sponsor has pulled a sponsorship. Radisson Hotels has suspended a sponsorship with the Vikings over the Adrian Peterson case. Otherwise the sponsors have been largely quiet issuing statements acknowledging the seriousness of the issues but expressing confidence with the NFL.

Follow the money is a cardinal rule often on the response to a crisis. With the NBA, the lost of sponsors saw quick and decisive action. In the Paula Deen story last year when sponsors began bailing on her over racial comments, the Food Network cancelled her show. In the case of Duck Dynasty and Phil Robertson, with sponsors standing by Robertson (and fans blew up social media supporting him) after remarks he made in GQ Magazine about race and homosexuals, A&E opted to keep him on the reality television show.

As I mentioned the sponsors with the NFL have not pulled sponsorships. Yet at some point traditional media and social media scrutiny will begin to focus on the sponsors, particularly General Motors, Campbell Soups, and PepsiCo – all three headed by females. Additionally, the fans most outraged at the NFL are females, one of the most coveted demographics of sponsors and the NFL.

Sponsors weighing in will ultimately help lead the NFL out of this public relations disaster. The sponsors should demand nothing less than a change in the corporate culture of the NFL for nothing else will convince fans and policymakers that the NFL’s actions are fundamental and not a mere public relations ploy (although fundamental change will garner positive publicity for the league).

 

What’s Your Soundbite Strategy?

Public Relations, ,

“We don’t have a strategy yet.”  Those six words may define the Obama presidency more than the Affordable Health Care Act, more than the economy or anything else the President has said or may do and say while in office.  That soundbite reinforced and may have cemented the public perception that has formed that his Administration is rudderless and lacks any strategy on a host of problems.  This was also a case study on how a soundbite or in this social media age, a tweet can define a brand, celebrity, CEO, or politician.

Soundbites and phrases defining a public persona or a brand is nothing new.  Often, a catchy phrase or soundbite cements the exalted image the public already has of the person or brand.  Abraham Lincoln is recalled for his “with malice towards none” phrase that reinforces the perception of strength with gentleness.  Franklin Delano Roosevelt is remembered for his “the only thing we have to fear is fear itself” that led generations to consider him a fearless peacetime and wartime leader.  John F. Kennedy is fondly memorialized for his “Ich bin ein Berliner” that was a testament of his eloquence and fearlessness during the height of the Cold War.  And Ronald Reagan is immortalized with his “Mr. Gorbachev tear down this wall” that reinforced the image of his strength and the West’s triumph in the Cold War.  Even Donald Trump is forever fondly immortalized for his trademark “You’re fired” from the Apprentice.

Just as phrases can celebrate a person for good, they can cement a negative perception that never goes away.  Richard Nixon during the height of Watergate uttered the infamous “I am not a crook” that put in concrete the image of crookedness and sleaze that many had come to feel about Nixon.  Bill Clinton will always be remembered for his “I did not have sex with that woman, Miss Lewinsky.”  Or on the corporate side, there is Bank of America’s CEO Brian Moynihan defending a $5 fee on debit cards by saying, “we have a right to make a profit” that too many defined all that have come to dislike about the banking industry.

In this age of Twitter, a soundbite takes on an even greater meaning.  Not only can an ill-conceived remark reach the public via the media, it is carried to a larger audience through Twitter and other social media platforms.

Often as in the case of President Obama, comments are made without thinking of the long term consequences that the remark may have.  For brands, celebrities, and CEOs, just as with politicians this is important to remember.  Long after a crisis or event has passed the remark made will still be recalled by the public.  Regardless of years of good service, a poorly chosen remark will be remembered more than anything else.  That is why I always tell clients that words matter and think before saying anything because one remark may define you forever.