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JUST A THOUGHT
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Yes, it CAN happen "here," no matter where "here" is.
-- Jonathan Bernstein
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FROM THE EDITOR
The Boston Marathon bombing is another painful reminder that, as the quote above points out, yes, it CAN happen here. Whether motivated by political turmoil or the whims of a madman, attempts at violent attacks are inevitable, and the sooner we realize this, and the more we plan accordingly, the better able we will be to prevent, or at least mitigate the impact of, such attacks.
On a more positive note, as I sat watching the situation unfold Monday I couldn't help but marvel as, with smoke still rolling into the air, civilians ran alongside firefighters and police officers to assist the confused and injured in the crowd. When the scene was at its worst and fear was at its peak, regular people threw personal safety aside in the interest of helping their fellow man.
Businesses across Boston reached out to help in any way they could as well, from offering their lobbies as meeting spots and wi-fi zones, to giving stranded runners refreshments and a place to rest.
On the web as well, thousands of social media power users scrapped their daily schedules in favor of sharing messages from emergency responders, helping families reconnect, and redistributing tweets with relevant news, particularly helpful considering Twitter was the main source of updates for many on the ground.
In the midst of tragedy, people pulled together as human beings, and the technology we use every day for work became an enormous support web that stretched across the county and even beyond our borders as supporters from around the world joined in, bringing a level of communication and participation that would have been completely impossible just a few short years ago.
I'm proud of our country's response, and would like to thank every person who did what they could to help. Well done.
If you like what you see in this ezine, please pass it on to others by using the "Forward Email" link at the bottom of the ezine and tell them to subscribe!
(Note: If you just "Forward" using your own email program's "Forward" function and your recipient thinks they're being spammed, they can click on the Opt Out link and opt YOU off the list. So use the "Forward Email" link, please.)
Thank you, and read on. |
BLOGS!
By Erik Bernstein
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Want to talk about something you read on our blogs? We welcome comments, or even better, hit that little Twitter button on the page and tag your tweet with @bernsteincrisis or @nomorecrisis. We're listening! The way you treat your customers reflects on your business as a whole. Read this story of a couple's ordeal with Whirlpool's agitating return policy, and learn why Customer Service IS Crisis Management. When you're Chasing the Truth, sometimes you come across inaccurate information. It's up to you to avoid embarrassment, and reputation damage, by carefully fact checking before making controversial statements. Whoever's managing Delta's Knoxville, Tennessee branch served up A Hot Slice of Crisis Management when they saved the day by having a police-escorted pizza delivery brought to supply travelers stuck on a plane that had been sitting on the tarmac for nearly three hours. The earlier you spot a building crisis, the better you are able to mitigate the damage. That's why it pays Keep Your Ear to the Ground for Crisis Management. Coping with Negative Social Media Comments is a key component of modern crisis management. Do you know when to respond, when to stay quiet, and when it's OK to delete? Volkswagon was all but forced into A Not-So-Voluntary Recall when China's state-run TV broadcaster, China Central Television, released a report on its investigation into quality control issues in the company's Asian divisions. New tools are making it easier than ever for even the average layperson to create convincing fake emails, texts, and tweets. Always double check before acting on second-hand information, no matter how convincing, or risk being Faked Out. Rutgers Player Abuse Creates Crisis Management Mess discusses one of the biggest stories of the past weeks. In it, we gave suggestions that both eventually became realities for Rutgers, but will it be enough to put the University back on track? Following an announcement that nearly 11 million pounds of its frozen food products were to be recalled, we were interested to see how Rich Products Does Recall Crisis Management. A bit of Empathy in Crisis Management can be all you need to put your audience in a mood to receive your messaging. Neglect it, though, and you risk anything you say falling on deaf ears.
Erik Bernstein is a freelance writer, editor of Crisis Manager, and Social Media Manager for Bernstein Crisis Management |
| APROPOS OF NOTHING |
ShoutOMatic - Review by Jonathan Bernstein
This week I learned about, and tried out, a new service called ShoutOMatic
, started by a gung-ho social media whiz named Norm Levy. For details on the service, I strongly recommend you visit the site and, in particular, its About page.
Simply put, ShoutOMatic - a FREE service - lets you record the message of your choice and then link it...or embed it...or create a QR code for it....and integrate that with any online point of presence you can control. The uses for promotion are described in some detail at the service's website, but what I saw immediately -- and discussed with Norm -- was ShoutOMatic's potential for crisis response.
No matter how well you can write, having a message delivered with good spoken affect is far more impactful than the written word alone. Video is even better - but that takes another level of production quality and time that you may or may not have or feel comfortable with. I can definitely envision some of my existing clients using ShoutOMatic as part of their crisis communications mix.
I tested ShoutOMatic in the past couple of days by recording and widely distributing messages about Justin Bieber's Anne Frank House visit, and then about a REAL crisis - the Boston Marathon bombing. If you'd like to hear what either of these "Shouts" sound like, the links follow:
Norm Levy is very open to creative suggestions for improvement or expanded use of his service, so I encourage everyone to give it a try and also connect with Norm on social media.
Social Media Training
Want to get your feet wet with social media but don't know where to start? Maybe you have accounts, but aren't sure what to post, or how to reply?
Being active on social media is a must these days, but you have to do it right. Erik Bernstein, Bernstein Crisis Management's Social Media Manager, now offers social media training sessions via Skype for groups or individuals.
For questions or pricing info, please email [email protected]
We Are Giving Away Business!!
Did that get your attention?
Bernstein Crisis Management has been blessed for some time with more work than I can handle on my own, so the expert contractors in my Crisis Management Database have been getting more and more referrals lately and/or brought in as my subcontractors.
That's the virtual business model I've had since 1994, and today that model is widely accepted and appreciated by our clients.
So, if you have a crisis management-related business and would like to be considered for my Database, please write to me! - Jonathan
Bernsteins Available to Deliver Free Guest Lectures, Q&A Sessions
Jonathan alone, or the team of Jonathan and Erik Bernstein, are available at no charge to deliver guest lectures and host Q&A sessions with college classes via Skype or Google Hangout.
Most recently we Toronto's Humber College, where we had some excellent conversation on a wide range of crisis-related subjects.
The lectures are fun for both us and students, and we're more than happy to allow recording for your future use. All you need at your end is a single computer with webcam and a strong broadband connection and we can appear in your classroom in real-time.
Contact us for more info!
Attention Corporate Boards of Directors (and those who serve them).
If you're connected with a corporate board of directors in some way and think that board would benefit from having a veteran crisis management pro amongst its membership, please contact me. -- Jonathan
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BUSINESS ANNOUNCEMENTS
(aka blatant self-promotion) Expanded Crisis Manager Bookstore We've recently expanded the Crisis Manager Bookstore to include offerings from esteemed colleagues like Melissa Agnes, Gerald Baron, Chris Syme and Jim Lukaszewski that cover topics from crisis communication and traditional PR to social media and cutting-edge crisis management. We'll be adding other authors we admire in the weeks ahead.
Visit the new Crisis Manager Bookstore to see all of the material available now!
Keeping the Wolves at Bay: Media Training  Learn how to deal with traditional or social media during a crisis in this educational and entertaining guide from Crisis Manager publisher Jonathan Bernstein. $25 for the hard copy and $10 for the PDF. Head to the Crisis Manager Bookstore for more information and/or to purchase.
Manager's Guide to Crisis Management
Whether you're a seasoned manager, aspiring up-and-comer, or student of crisis management, Jonathan Bernstein's textbook, Manager's Guide to Crisis Management (McGraw-Hill, 2011) will put you in control of any situation.
Want Someone to Set Up and Turn-Key Your Social Media Activity for You? Missing out on all the promotional, SEO and reputation management advantages of being active on social media platforms? Hire someone to be your voice...like Erik Bernstein, editor of Crisis Manager. He's the one largely responsible for keeping the Bernstein Crisis Management website and social media accounts highly ranked and popular. More info:[email protected]. |
GUEST AUTHORSGuest authors are very welcome to submit material for "Crisis Manager." There is no fee paid, but most guest authors have reported receiving business inquiries as a result of appearing in this publication. Case histories, experience-based lessons, commentary on current news events and editorial opinion are all eligible for consideration. Submission is not a guarantee of acceptance. |
ABOUT THE PUBLISHER AND EDITOR   Jonathan Bernstein is both publisher of Crisis Manager and president of Bernstein Crisis Management, Inc., a national crisis management public relations agency providing 24/7 access to crisis response professionals. The agency engages in the full spectrum of crisis management services: crisis prevention, response, planning & training. He has been in the public relations field since 1982, following five-year stints in both military intelligence and investigative reporting. Write to Jonathan at: [email protected]. Erik Bernstein is editor of Crisis Manager and is also Social Media Manager for Bernstein Crisis Management, Inc. Write to Erik at: [email protected]. |
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LEGAL DISCLAIMERAll information contained herein is obtained by Jonathan Bernstein from sources believed by Jonathan Bernstein to be accurate and reliable. Because of the possibility of human and mechanical error as well as other factors, neither Jonathan Bernstein nor Bernstein Crisis Management is responsible for any errors or omissions. All information is provided "as is" without warranty of any kind. Bernstein Crisis Management and Jonathan Bernstein make no representations and disclaim all express, implied, and statutory warranties of any kind to the user and/or any third party including, without limitation, warranties as to accuracy, timeliness, completeness, merchantability, or fitness for any particular purpose.
Unless due to willful tortuous misconduct or gross negligence, Jonathan Bernstein and Bernstein Crisis Management shall have no liability in tort, contract, or otherwise (and as permitted by law, product liability), to the user and/or any third party.
Under no circumstance shall Bernstein Crisis Management or Jonathan Bernstein be liable to the user and/or any third party for any lost profits or lost opportunity, indirect, special, consequential, incidental, or punitive damages whatsoever, even if Bernstein Crisis Management or Jonathan Bernstein has been advised of the possibility of such damages.
A service of this newsletter is to provide news summaries and/or snippets to readers. In such instances articles and/or snippets will be reprinted as they are received from the originating party or as they are displayed on the originating website or in the original article. As we do not write the news, we merely point readers to it, under no circumstance shall Bernstein Crisis Management or Jonathan Bernstein be liable to the user and/or any third party for any lost profits or lost opportunity, indirect, special, consequential, incidental, or punitive damages whatsoever due to the distribution of said news articles or snippets that lead readers to a full article on a news service's website, even if Bernstein Crisis Management or Jonathan Bernstein has been advised of the possibility of such damages. Authors of the original news story and their publications shall be exclusively held liable. Any corrections to news stories are not mandatory and shall be printed at the discretion of the list moderator after evaluation on a case-by-case basis.
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