Extra crispy crisis management brings success
Another food fiasco occurred last month, with YouTube at the center once again. A worker at a KFC Malaysia location was filmed tampering with food and fired, but weeks later KFC officials were shocked to see the video pop up on YouTube and quickly begin to go viral. Learning from the very similar situation Dominos endured last year, KFC’s response was both faster and more effective.
This quote, from an MRM-London blog post by Michael Taggart, describes KFC’s crisis management:
The first thing KFC did was set up an area within their Facebook page entitled “KFC responds”, ensuring they could take control of the crisis by preventing it from stifling other important communications activities.
The page contains an FAQ anticipating all the questions that were likely to come up and, in a real sign KFC had learnt from the mistakes of Domino’s (or watched our film!), they uploaded two videos featuring the chain’s Director of Restaurant Operations, Mohammed Alwi, and made them available on YouTube. We said one of the biggest mistakes Domino’s made was to respond to a viral YouTube video with a press release. If YouTube is where the action is, we said, then it makes sense to respond using film.
The film contains an apology and goes on to describe the steps that have already been taken in order to help reassure customers that this sort of issue won’t reoccur. They explain how (a) cameras have been installed in kitchens of all KFC outlets in Malaysia, (b) all kitchen preparation staff are now going to be directly supervised and (c) the firm is providing hygiene training for staff.
So, let’s break it down. KFC took its response right back to the arena where the crisis was created, in this case social media, specifically Facebook and YouTube. Check. In that, a head honcho put a human face on the organization, catching more attention while softening up anonymous critics. Check. Finally, the video explained, in detail, exactly how the problem will be prevented in the future. Check.
Three for three KFC. Excellent crisis management, kudos to you!
The BCM Blogging Team
https://www.bernsteincrisismanagement.com/