Where Do You Stand?

Hey, do you think we could help this guy? Maybe barter for chocolates?! I couldn’t keep from laughing.

Laurie Mayers, MS&L - works with General Motors on crisis communications

• GM has several blogs - FastLane is most well known 
• GM Vice Chairman Bob Lutz is most popular blogger
• Have five-person blog team - meet weekly
• Recently started doing video blogging
• GM blogging under GM’s Communications team
• GM Marketing is much bigger with a significantly bigger budget
• GM executive team knows blogging is long-term, brand-building initiative
• Forrester analyzed ROI of FastLane blog in 2006 - calculated 99 percent ROI in first year - methodology was a little interesting, but it’s a great testament to blog power!

–First “crisis” - New York Times opinion piece by Thomas Friedman on GM’s fuel price protection program, calling GM dangerous to America’s future

• Steve Harris, VP of Global Communications for GM, wrote response on FastLane blog
• Before blogs, would have written letter to editor and/or called reporter - and GM did both, but NYT said letter to editor was too long and that they couldn’t use word “rubbish” in letter - GM said forget it and blogged about the exchange with the NYT
• FastLane blog gets pickup on Drudge Report and many other media outlets
• NYT responds with another, longer Thomas Friedman column
• FastLane responds, acknowledging points of agreement with Friedman/NYT
• Very interesting exchange - shows how dialogue with the media has changed and taken the “backroom negotiations” out of working with media

–Second “crisis” - UAW contract negotiations/strike

• Very delicate situation - decided not to comment on blog while negotiations were ongoing other than this “Labor Situation” post that was closed to comments - only time in history of GM’s blog that a post was closed - didn’t want to invite blog debate during sensitive time - wanted to let GM negotiations team do its job and not get in the way

–Blog comment monitoring

• GM monitors all blog comments - comments policy of no profanity, slander, etc. - publish 90 percent of comments - complaints from customers about specific vehicles sent to customer service for follow-up
• Legal team at GM hasn’t gotten involved with blogs at all - courts just beginning to get into subject of blogs and comments
• On a few occasions, if blog posts are about especially sensitive topics, they’ll be reviewed “up the ladder”  - recent environmental position posts were reviewed

At Standing Partnership, we recommend all our clients develop crisis communications plans. It’s not pleasant to think about the “what ifs” that come with the development of crisis scenarios for clients. It’s a tad uncomfortable to share with your client contact that you’ve given careful consideration to what would need to happen if they were to meet an untimely demise. In planning, however, we provide some peace of mind. Clients have certainly gained heightened awareness of the need for crisis roadmaps and recent history, Sept. 11, Hurricane Katrina and the Virginia Tech massacre, have underscored that need.

But what about families? Do the members of your household have a crisis communications plan? We rely so much on cell phones (kids have them, grandmas have them) that we hardly know how to begin to get in touch with one another without them. In two of the devastating events above, cell phones did not work; people were truly out of communication with friends and family members.

The US Department of Homeland Security has a site, Ready.gov that helps families build a disaster preparedness plan. The site offers practical tips and lists for emergency supply kits.

No, it’s not that pleasant to dwell on the possibility of disaster striking your family or your community, but preparedness is the first step to feeling confident in your abilities to survive and stay in touch through the worst of circumstances.

On Thursday it was announced that iPhone users who purchased the most expensive, original models of the iPhone would be issued a $100 credit for use in Apple stores or online. This is in response to Apple’s introduction Wednesday of improved iPhones with lower prices only a short two months after the phone’s initial release.

It was reported that the credit was offered after hundreds of early iPhone adopters wrote letters to Steve Jobs about their dissatisfaction.

Most likely, many of these early adopters are some of Apple’s most loyal customers. Based on Jobs’ email to to iPhone customers, I wouldn’t be surprised if Apple has a crisis plan that indicates possible responses to customer dissatisfaction: “We want to do the right thing for our valued iPhone customers,” Jobs wrote. “We apologize for disappointing some of you, and we are doing our best to live up to your high expectations of Apple.”

Apple public relations guys are doing what should be done to maintain the company’s loyal client base: acknowledging the issue and offering a solution.