Marketing Matters

You mark my words. Sooner or later, Toyota will admit that the acceleration problem they are having with their cars is much more than a floor mat problem. Then over the following several months, we will hear about evidence that shows the company knew about “these other” problems for years.

And even if I’m wrong, the fact that I (and most American consumers) would probably bet that I’m right, is indicative of a crisis communications strategy that is about as bad as it gets. By breaking some of the most fundamental rules regarding crisis PR, Toyota has destroyed any sense of the trust that they’ve built up over the past couple of decades. And each day it just gets worse.

Here are some of the rules that Toyota apparently continues to ignore:

Rule 1. Be up front and honest.
Rule 2. Be quick to admit mistakes – it’s better that you reveal them yourself then have someone else do it.
Rule 3. Show sincere concern for those harmed and those that may be harmed in the future.
Rule 4. Lay out a viable strategy for setting things right.

The New York Times reported that there is evidence Toyota knew about some of the most recent problems back in 2007 or earlier. And now, instead of admitting their mistakes, it appears that the Japanese company is trying to minimize the extent of the problem – blaming it on floor mats..even when there is strong evidence to the contrary.

To reduce public concern, the company quickly put out ads telling Americans that Toyota made a mistake and is now refocused on quality control. Sorry guys. Too little, too late. You provide no specifics to what the problem was or how you are correcting it. You do not address the inordinant amount of time it took to reveal these problems or how you are addressing internal issues to prevent this from happening again.

And still the reports of runaway cars continue to make headlines.

Of course, the company’s current crisis communications plan is the result of executive decisions to reduce the impact on sales. In the meantime, the law suites and recalls will certainly add up to be one of the biggest and most expensive blunders in automotive history. Yet, the company continues to portray, what seems to be, indifference to its customers and greater concern for its own bottom line. Not good.

As far as the bad and the good…While not as ugly as Toyota, Tiger Woods didn’t do so well with his crisis communications either. He did finally hold a press conference and spoke honestly about what led up to his crisis. Unfortunately, it was another case of too little, too late. He did outline a strategy for fixing the problem (off to the sex clinic) and in time, his fans may actually forgive him and the endorsements may return.

As for the good, I’m reminded of a corporate crisis that came across my desk over a decade ago. Turned out that the largest personal printer manufacturer in the world was selling a printer that could kill you! That’s right. If you put your finger in the right place at the right time, you would receive a shock that was bigger than the one you’d get when you saw how much you’d be spending on printer ink cartridges.

As soon as the problem was discovered, a meeting was held to determine the proper course of action. While the implications for damage to immediate sales were not good, the right decisions were made:

1. An immediate recall of all effected printers
2. A halt in production until the design was corrected
3. A proactive communications strategy.

That’s right. Even though no one had yet died (or was even harmed) from the printer, it was the company’s own PR staff that first alerted the press (and subsequently, the public) to the problem. The potential danger was, if anything, exaggerated rather than minimized. A strong course of action was outlined…and in the end, the company received more press for its quick action than for the original problem.

The ugly, the bad, and the good.

admin Communications Industry, PR Tips & Thoughts, Uncategorized Advertising, communications, corporate communications, crisis communications, crisis PR, portland public relations, PR Tips & Thoughts, Public Relations

 

As promised in my last post, here are some more ads from the past that may raise an eyebrow or two. If you have others you’d like to share, pass them along and I’ll post them.

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Someone sent me an e-mail the other day that reminded me of the fluidity of marketing. They had images of ads from the past that really brought home the point: what might be appropriate today could be disaster tomorrow. This goes well beyond simply being politically correct. In fact, the current backlash of being overly PC today can make being unPC very PC (did you see the GoDaddy Ads on Superbowl)?

Which made me consider the fact that smart marketing often involves breaking the rules. 7Up did it when they became the UnCola. Avis did it when they boasted about being #2. Brenner Associates has been effective at gaining client visibility by breaking some of the most hardened rules regarding press releases (see earlier post). But as my piano teacher told me many years ago, you really need to understand the rules before you can break them. That’s because it involves risk. But then (as the same wise piano teacher told me) you never attain real greatness without engaging in some level of risk taking.

Well, with unnecessary over-analysis aside. I think the following ads from the past speak for themselves. Hope you enjoy…or at least find them thought provoking.  Next week, I’ll post a few more.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

And oh yes, if you have similar print advertisments from the past that belong in this collection, I’d be happy to share them in future posts. Just send them along.

admin Communications Industry, Misc., Uncategorized Advertising, communications, digital marketing, marketing, portland pr, portland public relations, PR, PR Tips & Thoughts, social media

As most everyone knows by now, on January 12, 2010 Haiti was all but leveled by a 7.0 magnitude earthquake. And while TV news played a big role in informing the world about developments related to this disaster, it was non-traditional digital communications that really stole the show.

It was cell phones and websites, Twitter and blogs, personal websites and social networks that called the world to action and resulted in one of the most successful relief support (donations) efforts ever conducted.

 Soon after the word of the earthquake began to spread, agencies such as the Red Cross and AmeriCare jumped into action. The word spread and requests for donations to help relief efforts were at the forefront of the messages being relayed.

 In a matter of days, the Red Cross began receiving millions of dollars from $10 donations sent via text messaging over mobile phones.

In addition, bloggers jumped into action, creating conduits for receiving and delivering additional donations. WhatGives!.com , launched a 24 hour fundraising telethon that raised thousands of dollars in aide. Partnered with a radio fundraising broadcast, they raised thousands more.

At the same time, those that gave and those that were concerned got onto their Twitter and Facebook pages to tell the world of their actions and ask that  readers do the same.

The result was the quick accumulation of much needed relief donations. The Red Cross alone raised more than $21 million – that compares to $400,00 raised for Hurricane Katrina and more than 5 times the amount raised in mobile donations in 2009 by ALL CHARITIES PUT TOGETHER.

The use of digital media has once again proven to be a highly effective means of spreading the word and calling people to action. 

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IN MY last post, I wrote about the premature sounding of the death knell for public relations. I’ll go a step further and say that, the need for adept public relations skills is actually growing and is more critical today than ever before. In fact, the use of strategic PR has begun to dominate areas that were once the sole responsibility of completely separate corporate functions. A clear case in point is employee recruiting.

Once the exclusive domain of the Human Resources department, recruiting has quickly evolved into a PR/marketing function. Recruitment expert, Jim Durbin recently wrote that successful recruiting today “includes a wide range of disciplines including creative, copy writing, social media, SEO and blogging.” These are precisely the skills one seeks a public relations professional to perform.

Case in point: the medical industry.  

While a large percentage of companies today are cutting back their workforce, segments of the medical industry are desperate to find qualified staff – particularly nurses, doctors, counselors and support staff. According to Career Trends, healthcare and medical jobs continue to account for 1 out of every 4 openings represented by search firms and postings.

So you can imagine that, given the enormous demand for qualified candidates, competition for the few professionals out in the job market is fierce.

I was talking to the head of a healthcare facility about the problems he was facing regarding recruitment and he told me that he was doing everything he and his HR department could think of to find new recruits: posting jobs on all the Internet job boards, going to career fairs, interviewing at local colleges and universities.

I explained that unfortunately, these traditional strategies are simply not enough – particularly when the demand is a lot higher than the supply (of good candidates).  As Code Works CEO, Sara Moss pointed out in a recent article, recruiting techniques have change dramatically over the past few years. Job seekers that once looked for opportunities through job postings now expect the opportunities to find them – wherever they may be on the web or elsewhere. 

BrenMed Communications, a division of Brenner Associates devoted to the medical industry, developed a plan for this medical facility that was strikingly similar to the type of PR plan an agency would use for a consumer product push or even some B2B campaigns. It consists of three components: (1) Making sure they find you, (2) Making sure they like what they find, and (3) Go where they go.

Making sure candidates find you – SEO and beyond.  Public relations has come to own the variety of tactics designed to ensure those who are looking for a company and/or its products, find them. Basic coding strategies (meta tags etc.) is a given, but this is just a start. Website copywriting has reached an entirely new level of sophistication. The words must now be carefully constructed to attract both search engine spiders (a.k.a. web crawlers) and target readers. SEO may also include an ongoing program of creating and disseminating press releases and articles, linking to blogs and commenting on the blogs and forums already being written about your topics.

It’s these type of activities that not only help ensure you show up prominently during a Google search, but that the pages that do appear attract customers with credible information that spurs them to action. Having a link appear that goes to your website is nice. Having a link appear that goes to an article about your product or service is much better. Just as with traditional marketing, PR provides the credibility that advertising (i.e. your own website) simply can’t. 

Making sure they like what they find. Here is where positioning and messaging comes in. This is solid PR, pure and simple.

When it comes to recruiting – particularly in a competitive environment – the employer must differentiate itself from the competition. Why should I (a potential candidate) work for you rather than someone else?

The particular medical company I was talking to was a non-profit organization and therefore wasn’t able to pay nearly as well as competitive employers. They were also small and unknown. They couldn’t offer the best benefit package or career path within the organization. What could they possibly say about themselves that would attract high-caliber candidates?

Using some of the same messaging workshop techniques it uses for all of its clients, BrenMed was able to identify some messages that would attract prime candidates. For one, the organization provided an incredible amount of opportunities to gain important skills. The existing staff included some highly regarded industry pundits with connections throughout the industry. In other words, this facility offered enormous opportunities as a stepping-stone to a highly successful career.

Once positioning and key messages are identified, they should be used at every opportunity throughout all recruitment activities. A jobs-related website could be developed that relies heavily on the messaging. It can also provide information about individual staff members – both their professional and personal lives – and it allows potential candidates to engage in a conversation with these employees. The idea is to create professional relationships early on. Something a simple job posting could never do.

Go where they go.

As Kip Havel, Spherion Recruitment Consulting wrote, recruiters must now go where the candidates are – when they Google, when they socialize online and when they visit their niche destination sites. The plan also called for the creation and maintenance of a Facebook page that engaged candidates with staff members. BrenMed also suggested that similar presence be created on a few industry-related social network sites identified as important to the company’s target group. These sites are designed to allow parties to become familiar with each other – to engage in dialogues and create professional relationships. The value they provide to a recruiter is immeasurable. Would you prefer to take a job from someone you’ve only seen during interviews, or from someone that you feel you already know? Social network sites provide a platform that, if used strategically, can allow candidates to become familiar with the staff, the facilities, the neighborhood, the customers and all other aspects of the job before even having that first face-to-face interview.

The bottom line – recruitment is now a marketing function. It requires the full myriad of skills associated with public relations -from adept writing to message development and relationship building. With the increased acceptance of social networks and other Web 2.0 tools in the professional environment, we will see public relations grow as an integral part of a company’s business strategy.

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