PR

This year has seen some really stunning examples of how to completely screw oneself, and one’s career, in public. Here’s a review of some of my favorites:

•  Anthony Weiner’s wiener: Do not take a picture of your package and post it on Twitter. This is a rule for everyone. If you do this, be prepared to watch the job you’ve had for 12 years disappear in a bright, shiny flash. And to become a never-ending joke in the process.
• Aflac duck drowns in tsunami: Gilbert Gottfried managed to tank his career with some very ill-advised tweets in the days immediately after the Fukushima tsunami. Note to self: when hired to provide humor and comedy material for a client, insult comedy is the *wrong* approach.
• GoDaddy CEO shoots elephant, wounds brand: Bob Parsons shot an elephant, and almost brought down the mastodon that is the GoDaddy brand in the process. When your business is high-profile, low-profile hobbies are a good bet. Take up golf. Much less likelihood of killing your brand with a 5-iron.
• Ashton Kutcher is a no-talent jerk. Who knew? Well, actually, I think a lot of us knew. But when he leapt to Joe Paterno’s defense in the hours after the Penn State pederasty parade started up, he showed just how clueless and tone-deaf he is. Along with that total lack of talent. I almost felt sorry for Demi. Almost.

Some rules to live by: don’t do or say anything on social media that you wouldn’t want on the 1^st page, above the fold, of the New York Times. Because that’s exactly what could happen, even if you’re not Anthony Weiner, Gilbert Gottfried, Bob Parsons, Ashton Kutcher, or countless other social media idiots.

That’s my story and I’m stickin’ to it …

I don’t care what being in love means regarding saying you’re sorry. Personally, I think Erich Segal’s book sucks, but I digress.

If you’re in business – running one, managing one, working for one – you’re in the apology business. In fact, being human puts you in the apology business 24/7/365. And business always needs a good dose of human, particularly in the age of the 24-hour news cycle and the Facebook Fan Page wall post.

Not being human, and being willing to admit you made a mistake? #fail.

In a great post on INC.com, Tim Donnelly gives very solid tips on how to approach the brand apology when your business screws the pooch. His #1 tip: just say it. “I’m sorry.” Simple … so why is it so hard for a brand to do that?

I think the root cause of brand cluelessness is that businesses forget that they are, after all, human. They may own skyscrapers in cities around the world, but guess what? Those buildings are full of … people. Doing business with … people.

When your spouse, or your buddy, or your kid do something to hurt you or your feelings, they apologize. You do the same thing when you screw up. (If you don’t, let me know. I know some terrific divorce attorneys.) Same rules apply if you’re J.C. Penney, the example that Donnelly uses in his piece.

Be human, don’t be a brand-droid.

You don’t have to literally fall on your sword, or drape yourself in sackcloth and ashes (I still have random PTSD episodes from 12 years of Catholic education) to apologize. You don’t have to take responsibility for every goof since the beginning of your brand’s recorded history, either. Just say you’re sorry, and then you can move on.

If your factory releases a cloud of toxic gas that kills a few thousand people, you’ll have to do a little more than say “sorry” – just ask Union Carbide. Oh, right, you can’t ask them, because they never actually said they were sorry about poisoning Bhopal. Which explains why they WENT OUT OF BUSINESS.

See how powerful an apology could be? And how not issuing one might literally kill your business?

Use words that convey regret without taking responsibility for every hurt the offended party has ever suffered. Just saying “I’m sorry” can completely defuse a brand revolt. Couple that apology with a clear outline of how you plan to remedy the hurt: priceless. Really. Try it.

We all make mistakes. We’re human, that’s part of the journey. A business that recognizes its own humanity, and that of its customers, by making a sincere apology when they screw up will ultimately drive more loyalty for their brand than a business that’s 24/7 shiny-happy-people. ‘Cause shiny-happy will eventually fog up, or blow up. Trust me on that one.

Be human.

That’s my story, and I’m stickin’ to it …

On August 27, a very angry Hurricane Irene came calling all up and down the east coast, including Virginia – which is where I live. I have plenty of hurricane experience, including a sojourn 500 miles offshore in a schooner during a Category 1 hurricane. I don’t recommend that experience unless you really want to know what your laundry feels like on max-agitate in your washing machine.

Landmasses with human habitation that are visited by hurricanes always have plenty of wind and flooding damage, and our experience with Irene was pretty typical. Lots of trees were knocked down, which took a lot of power lines with ’em, meaning that lots of local utility customers were in the steamy dark once Irene blew town.

#1 cause of a PR crisis: lots of unhappy people.

No one – at least, no one with a mature level of life experience – could have expected Dominion Virginia Power to restore everyone to lighted bliss immediately. Those of us who were here during Hurricane Isabel (hurricanes with “I” names must hate the Commonwealth of Virginia) knew we were in for a sweaty, dark few days, at least.

Crews from utilities in surrounding states came in to help Dominion crews get us all lit up again. They are still working their butts off, and they are most certainly not the target of this post’s ire.

Because Dominion has truly screwed the PR/crisis-comms pooch on Irene’s aftermath.

All the interactive outage maps in the world – and Dominion has some great ones – mean squat to customers who have to huddle in a local Panera or library to view them. Announcing where crews are working via local media is of some help.

What Dominion failed to do, however, was put a face on the problem. One of their top leadership team needed to become the face and voice of Dominion as they worked to restore their customers to the grid. As I write this – Sunday, Sept. 3 – 20% of Richmond-area customers are still without power.

That means that 1 out of 5 Dominion customers in this region are still in a Bronte novel, at least at night, wandering from room to room clutching candles. The contents of their refrigerators and freezers are long gone, and if they have an all-electric kitchen, they ain’t cooking dinner, either.

No one from Dominion’s senior leadership has been very visible during this event. The company’s Facebook page has been the wall where the unhappy sweaty scrum have been posting their displeasure, which has only compounded the problem, since the person or persons who manage the page seem to be as clueless as the rest of us. One response they posted in reply to a customer’s inquiry about the fact that the middle of a street was still dark, while the houses at each end had been restored:

I am sorry, we aren’t quoting specific restoration times. I don’t have the level of operations information you are looking for.

Why on earth is the person who is representing a utility on a major social network NOT given access to operations information at a meaningful level? This tells me that Dominion views social media as a one-more-thing activity, rather than a key communication tool.

#fail

For next time, here are my recommendations. Dominion may or may not ever see these, but I already feel better for posting them.

1. Make a top leader the face and voice of the company during the crisis.
2. Have that face-and-voice respond to media inquiries at least daily, if not more frequently. What that leader says must be mirrored in/on every online outlet for customer-facing company information … which includes Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, et al.
3. If you don’t know, say “I don’t know.” Shiny-happy-people, pie-in-the-sky, promise-the-world will only lead to the gnashing of teeth and rending of garments. Possibly yours.
4. Tell the truth. This goes hand in hand with #3.

The #1-with-a-bullet rule of social media, no matter what platform, is: be authentic. This does not mean that you should be an authentic idiot, however.

I had a troubling conversation on LinkedIn a few days ago, with someone who sent me a connection request. I’m a pretty open networker – my only rules are

• Have a profile picture of your face, not a logo
• Be a human, with a name, not a brand or a handle
• Be able to answer the “how did I wind up on your LinkedIn radar?” question effectively

All three of those guarantee acceptance. Any one of them missing, “ignore”.

So when a woman in my geographic zone sent me an invitation to connect, and had cleared the first 2 of the above rules, I pinged her with a “how” – and that’s where things got interesting. She told me that she was looking for a job, and a recruiter told her that she wouldn’t even get a look if she didn’t have at least 150 LinkedIn connections.

In other words, the recruiter was basically telling her that she needed to gather up connections quickly. Which is, in my estimation, really rotten advice. I’m not against the idea of a dedicated campaign to make meaningful professional connection on LinkedIn, or any other social media network. I do, however, question a recruiter instructing a potential client to essentially spam her address book. That’s likely to get you the LinkedIn bitch-slap, which can be as painful as being kicked off LinkedIn, and at a minimum highly circumscribed on the invitation-to-connect front.

Authentic connection takes time. I’ve been on LinkedIn since 2004, and my connection count of 1,000+ is a testament to my approach of authenticity. I don’t meet all my connections face-to-face – wish I could, since some of them are in Asia and Africa, meaning that meetings would satisfy my travel jones as well as my deepen-the-connection mantra. But I manage to keep tabs on the people I’m linked to, and have picked up both great business intel and actual booked business using my “authenticity” rules.

If you’re a recruiter, or work in HR in any way, be aware of the rules you require those you work with to live by. Focus less on number of connections, and more on how meaningful a candidate’s connections are.

One of the best arrows in an organization’s business-building quiver is a well-executed event. Doesn’t matter if it’s a seminar featuring your company’s expertise, or a massive trade show effort in Vegas – planning is critical to achieving that “well-executed” tag.

And, other than the actual value-delivered-in-the-room, nothing matters more than your PR strategy and execution in support of that event.

In other words, failure to meaningfully plan your event’s PR will likely mean event #fail.

The rules:

• Give yourself enough lead time: an effective event PR strategy requires enough time to make the connections that will ensure success. Media, industry influencers, key company executives – you have to have time to build awareness and buzz.
• Build an engaging and informative media kit: this is particularly important for big events like major trade shows. Why is your organization creating or participating in this event? Tell that story from the ground up: the keynote speaker(s), the industry folks you’re targeting, the team putting together the event, the city where the event is happening. Make it accessible, with downloadable PDFs. Add video if at all possible.
• Reach out early and often (within reason!): develop a robust list of contacts who can make a difference to the event – press, top industry bloggers, communications directors at top companies in the industries you want to have attend the event. Share your information in engaging ways – see Bullet #2 for tips.
• Craft a comprehensive message calendar: media outlets use editorial calendars – PR pros do, too. For every event, build an editorial calendar for your messaging outreach. Assign tasks, track progress: lather, rinse, repeat.

You can spend a lot of worthwhile time on LinkedIn – it’s a great place to study industry trends, listen to meaningful conversations, and keep an eye on your competitors.

What does your LinkedIn profile say about YOU?

Sure, it’s got a chronological list of all the great companies you’ve worked for, and the degree(s) you’ve earned. It’s got some information on your interests, and a listing of the groups you’re part of.

But what does it say about you…really?

Does your Summary list a blizzard of buzz-words, or an assortment of acronyms? What does it say, in real words, about the value you deliver to your customers? Is your Experience list just a straight list of companies, job titles, and years there?

Even if you’re on a corporate payroll, you’ve got customers. Customer #1 is your boss, and Customer #2 thru infinity are your boss’s and your company’s customers. Every single one of them.

When a potential customer Googles your company, LinkedIn results appear. Which means your profile could be on view. What does it say about you, your company, and your value?

If your LinkedIn profile reads like an old-school job application – and that’s so 20th century – here’s how to turn it into a 21st century value statement:

1. Clearly state who you are – what you bring to the table, what your talents are, and what kind of terrific value you’ve delivered over your career.
2. Clearly state why you matter – why do you do what you do? What fires your enthusiasm? How do you inspire others?
3. Make it clear who should care – obviously, your boss is someone who should care that you show up. Who else might be on that list? What do THEY do – what job titles make that list? How would you make a difference to those folks?

Interview colleagues, co-workers, former bosses, your professors. Find out what kind of impact you’ve had on them. Work on putting that into a compelling narrative statement about who you are, why you matter, and how you make a difference. Tell that story in your Summary, and in every section of your Experience.

Everybody’s got a list of jobs on their resumes, and their LinkedIn profiles. What they really need is a great story.

If you need help putting together that great s

That’s my story, and I’m stickin’  to it.

Well, of course they were at the airport. They’re an airline.

My point is that by not responding quickly to the Steven Slater Beer-Slide incident, they’ve really missed the boat on kicking off a great conversation about and among an entire industry and its customers. The conversation is kicked off, and JetBlue is a major part of the story, but they screwed up a huge opportunity to manage a crisis well.

It took them TWO DAYS to formulate a response on their blog. In hiding behind the “we don’t comment on individuals” curtain, they missed a chance to become the Great & Powerful Oz of the air travel industry, at least in the customer-cabin-crew-connection-and-convo category.

What would I recommend to a company who finds themselves in the position that Jet Blue was in on Monday?

• Offer a comment along the lines of “today’s events are offering us an opportunity to start a conversation across our industry about customer service and workplace conditions. If you’d like to share your views with us, [blog/email/Facebook/Twitter] – we welcome the chance to explore how we can improve our relationships with our customers AND our employees.” That doesn’t assess or assume blame, but it says you’re paying attention.
• Monitor traffic, engage in conversations with heart but not an excess of passion (IOW, don’t pull a Slater).
• Monitor commentary about your brand, and the individual who set off the situation. Respond only to direct queries by pointing them at your crisis-comms traffic cops mentioned in Bullet 1.

Jet Blue wasn’t completely silent. Unfortunately, the cries and whispers of the guy who manages their corporate comms Twitter feed got into a Twit-fight with Andy Borowitz (@BorowitzReport). In a battle of wits with a comedian, Jet Blue’s guy is an unarmed combatant. And he forgot the 1st rule of crisis communications: don’t say anything that will make the crisis worse.

You could wind up Dipstick Du Jour on Gawker.

I hope both Jet Blue and Steven Slater find their way through, and past, this slide down the barbed-wire fence of corporate celebrity. I also hope that other individuals, and the companies who employ them, find better ways to manage workplace stress.

That’s my story, and I’m stickin’ to it…