A Holiday List You Want to Avoid

Imagine your big, embarrassing secret is being broadcast on YouTube for the world to see. Or maybe you’re facing a messy company fiasco or simply a classic foot-in-mouth move. Any one of them can damage a company’s or person's reputation, sometimes beyond recovery. On that note, here is Shelton & Caudle's annual Top Ten Public Relations Nightmares List for 2007:

#10 The Toy Recall: What took so long for the toy industry to make an official statement-- and start testing toys?

#9 JetBlue: From PR 101: Never say never. After leaving passengers stranded in a plane for hours and saying it would ”never” happen again, it happened two weeks later.

#8 Duane "Dog" Chapman: He forgot the age-old adage: The microphone is always on. And so, apparently, is your son’s recorder.

#7 San Francisco Oil Spill: “It’s only 140 gallons,” said the shipping company. It was actually 58,000 gallons.

#6 Senator Larry Craig: I did it, but it wasn’t that. I’m not gay. I didn’t do it. I’m not gay. Well, I didn’t mean to do it. I’m still not gay.

#5 Britney Spears: Pick a week and your own favorite embarrassment.

#4 Michael Vick: $20 million or a black and white suit. Which would you prefer?

#3 Hillary Clinton/John McCain: A planted question and overlooking a little name calling. Neither of these cases involved an “excellent question.”

#2 Los Angeles County Jail System/Paris Hilton: “I don’t feel so good.” “Well, okay, then, you’d better go home.” Huh?

#1 FEMA Fakes a Press Conference: Was it good for you?

Even after 20+ years in crisis communication training and crisis counsel, it still stuns me that we can easily come up with a list of 10 lulus at the end of each year. In fact, there are many more that didn’t make the list. It’s like shooting fish in a barrel. Each one makes you shake your head and say, “What were they thinking?”

So, as we close out 2007 and wait to see what can possibly happen in 2008, ask yourself these questions:

• Could these nightmares have been contained or fixed?


• If it is an individual who commits the blunder, should he/she or a representative make a statement?


• Should I or my company have a crisis-communication plan?

All it takes is a little planning ahead and some "what-if" training. Otherwise, we might find YOU on next year’s list!

All I Want for Christmas is a Crisis Communication Plan

Looking for that perfect holiday gift for a key executive or top-level manager? Look no further. Why not give that special person a well-thought-out crisis communication plan?

While a company always anticipates and hopes for smooth operations, there is always a need to plan for the possibility of an unanticipated incident that would require some level of emergency response. A comprehensive crisis communication program that meshes with an operational crisis response serves as a general company-wide plan in the event of a crisis with any project.

The purpose of the plan is to protect the reputation of your company and to demonstrate the company’s commitment to providing information, as well as quick, definitive operational response in a crisis. The plan also sets forth guidelines for how to communicate quickly, accurately and consistently with audiences of interest to the company, including the news media.

Any effective plan should include:

• General Guidelines for Dealing with the Media
• Specific Guidelines for Dealing with the Media in a Crisis
• List of Key Audiences/Individuals
• Communication Tree
• Assignment of Members of the Crisis Communication Team and Duties for Each
• Crisis Worksheet for Gathering Information in an Organized Fashion
• Fill-in-the-blank Form for Drafting Response Statements
• Crisis Communication Checklist
• Media Call Tracking Form
• Command Center Checklist
• Background Information on the Facility and Company
• Contact Information for Key Media

Crisis communication training should acquaint key members of your company’s crisis team with the basics of effective interaction with the media, as well as how to respond to a company-specific crisis scenario. On-camera practice and message development should be essential parts of a crisis communication training session.

All organizations should require such training for top level executive and managers. It’s the sort of thing you hope you never need, probably won’t -- but are glad you did if you do.

A thorough crisis communication plan is an extremely thoughtful executive holiday gift!