How to Handle Crisis Communications

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By Julie Wright, President

If you’re at the center of a crisis when one hits, like it did April 15 when two bombs killed and maimed spectators and participants at the Boston Marathon, make this your mantra:

Communicate early. Communicate often. And communicate accurately.

Communicating early, when facts are still coming in and very little can be confirmed or validated, means at least letting stakeholders know that:

1. You’re on it.
2. You care.

Social media might be among the first places you let people know that your organization is working to fact find and planning to release more information as it becomes available and verified. If you’ve pre-planned your crisis communications, you will have some prepared responses to many potential crisis scenarios so that your posts are a keystroke away and do not need vetting or wordsmithing under high stress. If you have an important message that you need to get out, use social media and ask people to share your message. Many people will be glad to help.

It’s important to show people as early as possible that you are the best and most reliable source of information about your crisis and that you care. Do not assume that they realize you’re as upset, saddened, shocked or dismayed as they are. Tell them so. And if your attorneys tell you not to comment at all, just keep in mind that their primary goal is winning in the courtroom or negotiating table. They might win there, but if you don’t communicate early and empathetically, you lose in the court of public opinion that may cost you more dearly than any court-mandated settlement. (Just sayin’. If the lawyers start driving the communications strategy, it’s game over. Think of BP in the Gulf of Mexico or Toyota with its faulty brakes.)

 

If people were harmed, you care deeply and are empathetic. If people have been inconvenienced, you’re sympathetic and are working furiously to ensure that everything is returned to business as usual.

The lawyers want to be sure that you’re not excessively admitting to responsibility for their inconvenience or injuries. This is valid, but it is a terrible and irreparable mistake to withhold any response and, as a result, project an image of callousness. You cannot be too compassionate. And compassion does not mean taking responsibility.

Think about this: What if the CEO of Carnival Cruises had gotten himself airlifted to the ship adrift and suffered alongside his customers? I would feel entirely differently about the problems Carnival and its passengers have suffered through if I knew its executives shared in the discomfort. And the headline would not be: “Boss of Carnival Adds Insult to Misery By Going to Basketball Game as 4,000 Suffer Aboard ‘Stinking Stricken Ship’…”.

Communicating often is essential because media coverage can be around the clock. If it’s an evolving situation, plan to hold media briefings every few hours. Listen closely on social media so you can correct misinformation that is getting passed around as it happens. Use your social media channels to release details in between media briefings. Establish a hashtag for your crisis communications on Twitter so that people can more closely follow the ‘official’ information source.

The frequency of your communications are a way of showing that you care about your stakeholders and are serving their needs and not just your own. Today, people make judgments based on your organization’s behavior and not just a carefully crafted message labored over by your attorneys, senior executives and others.

Inaccurate information can un-do all of your tremendous communications. To increase the likelihood that accurate information is presented on a timely basis, your crisis plan should have designated spokespeople, chains of command and reporting structures so that people in the field, on the scene or troubleshooting the issue know the protocol for providing updates. They should have the names and contact information of the crisis team, there should be a clear method of capturing and reporting out the information to the crisis team, and everyone in the field should know not to speak to but instead properly redirect the media and to limit internal speculation.

Stress degrades decision making, so successful communications in a crisis are typically based on a pre-existing communication plan that reasonably anticipates various crisis situations and develops responses so that they’re at the ready when a crisis hits.

Whether you have a plan or are planning on the fly, just repeat after me: communicate early, communicate often and communicate accurately.

Hashtags: You’re Doing it Wrong

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By Chancelor Shay, Account Executive

You just wrote a solid 115-character quip on your deeper analysis of a common observation that you’re sure will get at least five retweets and a handful of favorites from your followers. But you have 140 characters worth of space. You can’t just waste 25 characters, but the current draft already reflects perfect wording. What do you do? Of course! Add a hashtag!

That seems to be the thought process behind many of the tweets I see stream across my somewhat-cluttered Twitter stream. As a professional communicator, it’s bothersome that these tweeters don’t have the courtesy to ask themselves, “How does this add value to my message for my followers?” Meaningless hashtags are so prevalent that I considered whether or not the majority of tweeters understand what a hashtag is and its purpose. It’s not as absurd a question as I thought, made apparent when lifelong broadcaster and Emmy Award recipient Vin Scully asked “What is hashtag?” on live TV.

The simple answer to Scully’s question, of course, is a search indexing tool for Twitter that allows the site to more easily sort messages focused on a specific topic. The hashtag allows for a collective discussion around a single topic, whether it be a conference or trade show, current event of interest to masses of people, or an informational theme such as “dailymotivation” or “fitnesstips.” This helps the Twitter community build their social network with people who provide content they’d enjoy.

But just how the use of texting has evolved from its initial purpose as it’s been adopted, so too has the hashtag.  

We’ve seen the “hashtag as the punch line of a joke” tweets. Ending a message about a trip to Dog Beach might be #Wetdogsmellairfreshener. Capping off a confession of love for Nutella we could expect #NoreallyIcouldeatNutellaateverymeal. Or concluding an observation of road workers sitting down on their lunch break someone might announce #Mytaxdollarsarepayingforyoutoeatasandwich. I’m not convinced others will search any of those hashtags with interest in joining the conversation.

Then there are hashtags that were invented specifically so that anyone interested can join the conversation and offer an opinion. These are hashtags like #WeCan’tDateIfYou and #ThingsshorterthanKimKardasiansmarriage. Rather than being a reactionary product to something else, there is no reasoning for these hashtags to exist beyond the fact that they can exist.

The variations of hashtags are so vast that, in their quest for constant irony as a counter culture, hipsters adopted the hashtag #hashtag. Is it ironic? More like self defeating.

So are hashtags a trend? Will they go the way of Ed Hardy T-shirts and Von Dutch trucker hats?

Essentially, as online conversing continues to become the status quo, the hashtag is showing characteristics of natural language. People are manipulating, misusing and experimenting with it. They’re the opposite of a trend because they’re not one thing and are constantly evolving. In that sense, I guess, explaining the “right” way to use a hashtag is like explaining the right way to deliver a joke or what facial expression is correct for the subject of discussion. You can’t define what’s “right.” In the same way you can’t stop that one co-worker from winking after each sarcastic statement he makes, you can’t stop tweeters from hashtagging every other word in their message. But you can unfollow them. #Winning 

Four PR Trends

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By Grant Wright, CEO

Looking at past trends in an evolving industry can be a poor predictor of future trends—whether you’re talking about the stock market or the PR field.

Witness Facebook (a 9-year-old), Twitter (a 7-year-old), Instagram and Tout (both 2 year olds). These are among only a few of the game changers that disrupted the publishing industry. Each is a relative toddler by traditional business standards, and not that many years before their existence I don’t recall anyone predicting them. But their global impact on the human condition is already established.

The trend impacting the PR industry, therefore, is not which new social tool will take off, but that game changers are now the norm. Expect and anticipate them.

Here are four things (among many) I see near through long term impacting PR.

The Story Stays

We like a good yarn. Stories have been told throughout human history and they’re not going away anytime soon. So while the delivery method may continue to break speed records in the unprecedented data age we’re now in, if there isn’t a compelling story to whatever the communication is, it won’t leave the station.

In creating your communications, think about your story. How compelling is it or could it be, and why should others care? And if you don’t have one, then either create one or rethink your communication strategy for most effective resource use.

Multimedia Explosion

We are a sensorial species, and with the written word there’s a terrible lack of engagement of the senses. True, imagination can help make up for that. However, the way I imagine Utopia and you do can be very different, meaning there’s a significant control loss of the intended message. But what if I could not only tell you a story, but also engage you in it by your five senses? Instant communication around the planet is now possible with video covering sight and sound that will only increase. But I think it’s only a matter of time before technology allows for an online cook ‘book’ to not only convey with what and how something’s made, but also how it should look, feel and even smell and taste.

Additive Manufacturing

 …aka 3-D Printing will change everything, and this means for PR too.  I think 3-D printing is truly Roddenberry’s Star Trek replicator come to life like the cell phone, and why I see it profoundly impacting PR is that currently the world’s societies are built largely around traditionally manufactured goods and related services – shoes manufactured in China are consumed in the USA; medical implants created in New York are used in Canada; an airplane is created and assembled from many different places; etc. Things today are still made for us and we don’t make things for ourselves. PR supports all of this ‘traditional’ world commerce that in the next decade will dramatically change with the advent of 3-D printing for the masses. Like intangibles such as information value decreasing with increased accessibility, so will the value of physical goods change. As it does, PR will change as well, becoming less about conveying a compelling call to action to buy consumer products, say, and more about strategically helping communicate things like B2B opportunities, services expertise, key events, experience opportunities, and political and societal agendas.

Local & Smaller

It’s well established doctrine for good communication to know thy audience, and reach them where they are. With billions of us now having our heads buried in our smartphones more than we’d like to admit, guess where audiences are? Sure, we’re still driving down the freeway ready to notice a billboard, pouring over that quaint thing called a newspaper at Starbucks occasionally, and watching commercials whip by as we watch our favorite DVR’d show.  But increasingly we’re more interested in our immediate environs – our local neighborhood - than otherwise. So as opposed to a broad shotgun approach, PR will increasingly need a precise rifle approach tailored to local geography and interests. And in doing so rely less on large real estate like a full magazine, in-depth television reporting or a regional newspaper spread, but instead plan for consumption to be increasingly on a screen just four or five inches wide—that if it’s showing a picture of a rose, soon enough will probably smell just as sweet.

Twitter: Grant_Wright

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LinkedIn: /grantwrightwoc

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The Myth of the Marketing ‘No-Brainer’

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By Julie Wright, President

Over the past 20 years, I’ve often heard people ask for the ‘no-brainer’ marketing idea. Two weeks ago, it was an entrepreneur with a national retail product looking for a PR ‘slam dunk.’ And two days ago it was the nonprofit executive overseeing a multi-million dollar fundraising campaign who scoffed at the notion that marketing dollars should be budgeted for her organization’s social media program.

This thinking is a dangerous delusion: There are no marketing no-brainers, slam dunks or results without a commitment of time, resources and, yes, budget.

How can I be so sure? It’s pretty obvious to me: If it were that easy, we’d all be millionaires and every nonprofit would be well-funded.

It takes a lot of hard work and money to understand your target market’s needs, reach them with your messages and keep those messages top of mind so that they think of you when they are ready to buy or donate.

Social media may have low barriers to entry but that doesn’t mean that making it work is free. Far from it. Like press coverage, engaging your target audience via social media means you need to earn their attention—earn, as in “to receive as return for effort and especially work done or services rendered.”

Entrepreneurs underestimate the investment required in time, attention and dollars to earn both their market’s attention and its business. This myth may be a big reason that roughly half of all businesses fail within five years.

Nonprofits need to keep their cause “top of heart” with donors all year round through storytelling and sharing. Imagine how donors will feel when reading a yearend appeal letter when they know how hard an organization has been working all year round. Their heart is already open to the appeal.

Return on investment from marketing activities requires strategies, systems and the people in place to see them through. The first step to marketing success is letting go of the idea that there’s a slam dunk, no-brainer or result to be earned without any investment.

How to Get the Most Out of Your Internship

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By Leah Reyes, SDSU Public Relations Senior

I wasn’t sure what to expect when I began my internship at (W)right On Communications. This is my first time taking what I've learned in the classroom and applying it to a real public relations setting. I've been here for about one month and I've already learned so much. Here is what I’ve learned so far:

Don't be afraid to ask questions.

Internship supervisors understand that you don't know everything, especially if it's your first internship. In the beginning, I was nervous to ask questions because I didn't want anyone to regret choosing me as an intern. I learned fast that if I didn't ask questions, however, I would end up sitting there staring at my desktop. Therefore, I ask questions whenever I have the chance, whether it's to clarify a task I was given, or to learn something new.

Every opportunity is a learning opportunity.

No matter what you're doing, there is always something to learn. Observe how your supervisors talk on the phone, how they discuss client work with each other, or even how they conduct their individual work. Learn from them and apply it to your own work. If you are working on a task and you’re curious about something, ask. For example, I was browsing pictures for a brochure, and I realized that I had always wondered how organizations selected pictures for brochures and other marketing collateral. I asked Account Executive Rebecca Chappell, and she explained how images are selected. There have been several times when someone has given me advice or extra information just to expand my knowledge about the profession.

Don't be easily discouraged.

Supervisors are here to teach and correct if needed. I've made a few mistakes and I've been told what I can do better next time. I was scared that I would be scolded for mistakes, but the (W)right On team really makes sure that this is a learning experience for me. They don't make me feel bad for mistakes, but guide me instead.

Ask for feedback.

I am enrolled in an internship course, which requires me to have a "midterm meeting" with my internship supervisor. The purpose of the meeting is to evaluate my internship and discuss what I can improve. If this isn’t required for your internship course, I encourage you to seek feedback from your internship supervisor.

Show that you care.

When I don't have a task, which is rare, I always ask if anyone needs help. It's courteous to offer assistance, and it shows that you care to be part of the organization. Also always use your manners. I say "thank you" every time I am given a task. I also apologize if I make a mistake. We should be polite by default, but sometimes we forget how important it is. You want to establish a close rapport with your team, so don't forget your manners.

Social media is powerful.

Prior to joining the (W)right On team, I was aware of the power of social media, but I didn't understand how much power it has. As media technology develops, old media traditions begin to slow down. Almost every piece of client work I have had includes social media. There is something new to learn about social media every day. Visit mashable.com and you'll see what I mean. It's not enough to know what Facebook, Twitter, etc. is and how to post. The mechanics behind what to post are very detailed. I've learned that it's really important to have one "voice" when posting, especially for an organization. I've also learned that although it's free of cost, it's not free of your time. A lot of thought goes into the posts we draft and I've learned how to make personal, but professional posts. I've also learned how to use the different tools of social media, like Hootsuite. As long as media technology is changing, which is every day, you should be willing to learn it if you're going to be in the journalism/communications business.

An internship is an opportunity to learn about the profession you are pursuing. It’s important to get the most out of your internship so you can learn and grow. In order to get the best experience from it, you need to put yourself out there. I still need to work on not being so shy, but I am definitely taking everything in as I go, which will help me build my future career. 

Five Free PR Resources to Make You More Productive

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By Julie Wright, President

Some of the worst things in life are free: free advice (no thanks), free love (ugh) and free sofas on the side of the road (also known as trash). It’s important to choose free tools that really make a positive difference in your day.

Also keep in mind that with any ‘free’ resource, the time you spend figuring it out is a cost. When a client recently asked me for recommendations on free website hosting and design templates, that thought sprang to mind. What is the true cost of messing around with a rigid template or cryptic user instructions?

So, what free resources would I recommend to help your PR program?


1. Interns

OK, that’s a joke. Interns are not free. They are a big investment. We have been fortunate to work with many diligent, creative and detail-oriented individuals—primarily from San Diego State University’s PR, media and journalism programs—over the years. And we sincerely hope that during their experience with (W)right On Communications, they grow in ways they never imagined and bond with a set of professional colleagues that they can call on for the rest of their lives for guidance and support. (And, in that spirit, please join me in welcoming Leah Reyes to our team this summer!)


2. Google

Best practices, case studies, how to articles, media contacts, editorial calendars—search the Internet for inspiration as you develop your plans or to help you kick start your brainstorming. If you’re at a loss for ideas or need to be re-inspired, Google can get you there in 30 minutes or less. If you are not actively and continuously seeking out current best practices in PR, you may have an initiative deficiency and should get that seen by a professional.


3. Social media

Nothing may be more time-consuming than establishing a productive Twitter, Pinterest or Facebook community for yourself or a brand. But once you’ve built a critical mass of relationships with your stakeholders via social networks, you can call on them for ideas, amplifying your messages or coming to your defense if your brand is under attack. (And I’m not referring to Twitter DM’s that say “Hey, this dude is saying some really bad stuff about you.” That’s a hack and never click on those links.)


4. HARO

I admit that I find it difficult to comb through the more than 200 Help A Reporter Out (HARO) queries every day. (To address this issue, please refer back to the first item on this list.) But someone in your office should be reviewing these thrice-daily emails that list queries from more than 29,000 journalists and bloggers to look for opportunities for your organization or clients. There are paid subscription levels that will filter results for you as well. Also check out pitchrate.com, which is similar in concept to HARO, or watch @ProfNet’s Twitter feeds for urgent media queries.


5. PitchEngine

This is a platform for press releases that are optimized for social media sharing. However, social media releases expire. To permanently post your material, you will need to pay monthly or annual subscription. Given that you can link YouTube videos, post images, craft Tweetable links and track views and clicks, PitchEngine is a valuable free resource when you’re trying to spread your news cost-effectively. I also think it’s worth the investment of actual dollars to memorialize your content in a permanent newsroom.

What free tools can you not work without?

(W)right On’s Julie Wright to Discuss Social Media at Local Business Summit

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Julie Wright, president and founder of (W)right On Communications, will speak about social media at the Economic Development Corporation of Southwest California’s 4th Annual Business Summit on May 9 in Temecula.

Wright, who is one of three scheduled speakers, will discuss how entrepreneurs can best use social media platforms to promote their businesses.

“So many businesses are already using social media, so I will share tips that will help them take their program to the next level to truly engage their customers and stakeholders while seeing a return on the investment,” Wright said.

In addition to social media, business professionals will learn about trends in cloud computing and employee recruitment. The event will also give attendees an opportunity to talk to vendors and network with other professionals.

The 4th Annual Business Summit will be held from 7:30 a.m. to noon on Wednesday, May 9 at Temecula Civic Center, located at 41000 Main St. Join us to hear Wright’s presentation, and be sure to stop by (W)right On’s table!

Registration is $20 and ends on May 8. To register, visit edcsummit4.eventbrite.com.

A Guide to Facebook Business Pages

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By Kristina Houck, Research and Online Content Specialist

With 901 million monthly active users, Facebook is a perfect place for businesses to connect with customers. So if you have a business and don’t yet have a Facebook business page, what are you waiting for?

During last week’s So Cal Business Networking and Internet Marketing Expo in Del Mar, speakers encouraged business owners to utilize Facebook and other social media platforms to grow their businesses. It was a great reminder to me that, despite Facebook’s immense popularity, many businesses have not embraced this platform for connecting with customers.

I’ll recap some of the basic essentials presented for establishing your business presence on Facebook, as well as some tips from our team. (If you already have a business page on Facebook, skip ahead for the tips from (W)right On!)

1. Create a business page

It’s important to not use your personal page to promote your business. After all, it’s against Facebook’s terms and conditions. Create a page just for your business and utilize Facebook, as well as third-party applications, to brand it as your own.

2. Brand your page

Create a custom URL to easily promote your business on Facebook. Use a cover image and profile image that best represents your company. If you don’t have a good photo, take one! The (W)right On team recently took new group pictures that will be unveiled on our page soon. You can further customize your page by selecting custom images for the tabs you created (not for default tabs such as Likes and Photos).

3. Provide useful content

Useful and entertaining content will increase interaction on your page, and interaction is essential on Facebook. Facebook’s default settings sort newsfeeds by top stories. Therefore, your page will be more visible if other users like and share your content. Post a variety of status updates, including photos, videos, links and questions to increase participation. You can also host giveaways and contests, but be sure to adhere to Facebook’s promotion guidelines. It’s also important to show your company’s personality. (W)right On, for example, often posts pictures of frog figurines as our President Julie Wright loves frogs! Our client Tri-City Hospital Foundation shares photos of volunteers giving back to the community.

4. Get “likes”

Drive people to your page. Do this by inviting your personal Facebook friends to ‘like’ your page and informing others about your page by using icons and social plugins on your blog and website. Also include a link to your page in your email signature. If you have a Twitter account, share the link to your page with your followers.

5. Set aside time for Facebook

If you’re worried about the amount of time managing a business page takes, don’t be. Set aside 20-30 minutes a day to post on your page and engage with your fans. As you gain more fans, you might want to increase the amount of time you devote to your page so you can properly monitor comments. You can save time by importing your blog posts on Facebook using a third-party app. You can also schedule some status updates by using social media management systems like HootSuite. But I recommend you also post manually as some sources say manual posts increase engagement. Basically you want to let your fans know you’re actively on your page and reading what they say by interacting with them!

If you’ve already established a business page, you’re well aware of its recent makeover when Facebook upgraded all business pages to the new timeline design on March 30. While some were wary of the changes, (W)right On has found the new design provides businesses with several benefits. Here are a few of our tips for making the most of your business page and Facebook’s new layout:

1. Use the admin panel and insights

The new admin panel is very user-friendly. You can now open your admin panel directly on your page instead of navigating to another page. Click on “Insights” to analyze your page’s user growth and engagement. Use this information to better understand what content your fans respond to.  

2. Highlight and pin posts

While your page has a two-column layout, you can highlight a post and expand it to widescreen. To do so, hover over the content and click on the star. You can also pin a post to the top of the page for as long as a week. To do so, hover over the content, click on the pencil and choose “pin to top.”

3. Learn what people are saying

Fan comments used to get lost on the old layout. Now, fan posts to your page or mentions of your page appear at the top of the right-hand column. This is a great way to easily read what others are saying about your business. With that said, you can also choose to hide this box in your admin settings.

4. Check private messages

Users can now send private messages. Fans could only comment on business pages before the switch to timeline. Be sure to regularly check your messages and respond to your fans.

5. Have fun

While you may create a business page to gain more customers, don’t think of Facebook as work. Have fun engaging with fans and potential customers!

Have more questions about Facebook business pages? Contact the (W)right On team for all your social media needs!

10 Dos and Don’ts for #PR Tweeters

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By Kristina Houck, Research and Online Content Specialist

Twitter is a must-use tool for people in the public relations industry. In 140 characters or less, you can share the inner workings of your agency, promote your clients’ messages, connect with reporters, network with others in the field and more. But make sure to think before you tweet. Here are 10 Twitter dos and don’ts so you can make the most of your tweets.

DO:

1. Tweet interesting information

The best way to gain followers and engage your audience on Twitter is to post interesting and useful content. Before you hit “tweet,” ask yourself if you would care about your message if you were a follower.

2. Engage fellow Twitter users

Social media gives you an opportunity to engage others, so engage! Ask open-ended questions, answer questions and give shoutouts to users who interact with you.

3. Respond timely

Respond to others in a timely manner when you are answering questions or engaged in a conversation on Twitter. Other users won’t interact with you if you don’t use proper Twitter etiquette.

4. Monitor keywords

Monitor keywords to find others to follow and interact with on Twitter. Monitoring keywords is also a great way to be aware of what others are saying about your agency and clients.

5. Have fun

Although Twitter is a great tool for work purposes, don’t think of tweeting as a chore. Have fun!

DON'T:

1. Tweet too much

You can lose followers by tweeting too much, so don’t spam them with constant tweets. Remember to only tweet interesting and relevant information.

2. Overuse hashtags

Hashtags are a great way to help others find information and encourage engagement, but don’t overuse them. #Using #too #many #hashtags #will #annoy #your #followers.

3. Use all 140 characters

A retweet is the highest form of compliment on Twitter. However, if you use all 140 characters, other users won’t be able to easily retweet your content. Make sure to leave space for “RT @yourname.”

4. Share too much

Although your tweets should show your personality, don’t be too personal on Twitter. Consider what is and isn’t appropriate to share with others.

5. Use poor grammar or spelling

Having a 140 character limit is no excuse for using multiple abbreviations. Don’t text your followers. Instead, represent your agency and your clients by maintaining a professional image and showing you can write well even when writing concisely.