CRISIS MANAGER
The Internet Newsletter about Crisis Management

"For Those Who Are Crisis Managers,
Whether They Want to be or Not"

ISSN:1528-3836
� 2017 Jonathan Bernstein

Uber vs. Lyft and the Impact of Politics on Business

Volume XVIII, Number 1

January 31, 2017

Just a Thought

"Reputations will continue to be made by many acts and be lost by one."

- Unknown

From the Editor

Whatever side you may be on, it's been impossible to ignore the impact politics have had on business over the past several months. There is no better example than the backlash Uber has faced repeatedly as a result of its direct connection to President Trump via its CEO's position on Trump's Strategic and Policy Forum.

The latest, and most volatile, reaction came swiftly after the ride-sharing app announced it would be turning off surge pricing during a one-hour taxi work protest against Trump's policy banning certain immigrants at JFK airport last Saturday. People immediately started tweeting using the hashtag #DeleteUber, with many encouraging ride seekers to use Lyft instead.

In response, Lyft sent a statement standing against the ban Sunday which also shared the company's plans to donate $1m to the American Civil Liberties Union. Then, in response to that, Uber announced the creation of a $3m defense fund to help drivers who may be impacted by the travel ban!

What's really interesting from a "breaking down the crisis" point of view is that a good number of other large companies have connected themselves to the Trump administration via their CEO, just as Uber has. Just a few examples - Tesla CEO Elon Musk holds an advisory position, as do PepsiCo CEO Indra Nooyi and Oracle CEO Safra Catz. Why Uber's been impacted to a greater degree than the others is a question they should all be asking.

If there's one thing this presidential race should have made abundantly clear it's that - whether you support or oppose what's happening - politics can and will create crises for organizations both publicly and privately held. Are you prepared for the possibility that your org is next?

- EB

Interested in reprinting BCM articles or blog posts?

We're happy to give permission for material to be reprinted in hard copy or online!

If you find something you would like to reprint, simply submit a request to jonathan@bernsteincrisismanagement.com.

Blogs

The Bernstein Crisis Management blog, along with our blog at the Free Management Library, are frequently updated and filled with case studies, advice, and the latest news on techniques, threats, and more.

Here, we share a look at some of the most popular posts from recent weeks:

Ducking responsibility is not an option. Crisis Management Quotables...on Accountability explains why, like it or not, you need to take responsibility.

With ratings on sites like Yelp, Facebook, and Google creating issues every day, we thought we'd kick off the year with 3 Online Review Tips for 2017.

A tasteless tweet from a tasty treat. We shared some Learning from Cinnabon's Carrie Fisher Tweet in this post about the pitfalls of social media.

Practice makes perfect folks! Not convinced? Try 3 Reasons You Need to Practice for Crisis Management in 2017.

We support busting businesses who truly do something awful, but when we heard about this case we said, Chipotle slapped with a $2.2b lawsuit...for what?!

It pays to test every aspect of a product before selling it to the public. If you're not sure why, we have a great example for you - The Case of the Swastika'd Soles.

Do you have a topic you'd like to see featured in our blogs? Send an email to erik@bernsteincrisismanagement.com and there's a good chance you'll be seeing it right here in the next issue!

Business Announcements

(aka blatant self-promotion)

What if you could quickly find out how your stakeholders perceive you during a breaking crisis?

Bernstein Crisis Management now uses online surveys and other tools to get immediate stakeholder perception feedback, during a breaking crisis, with the option of continuing to monitor perception post-crisis.

More info from jonathan@bernsteincrisismanagement.com.

Are There Any Holes in Your Crisis Planning?

Your organization may well have crisis prevention and response-related plans in place - but are you sure they're going to cover all the bases? Bernstein Crisis Management's Crisis Document Audit is a low-cost, flat-rate service which will quickly provide you with a comprehensive analysis of your existing plans and recommendations for improvement.

Contact jonathan@bernsteincrisismanagement.com for more information.

We're Giving Away Keeping the Wolves at Bay and other crisis publications!

Several new items have been added to our FREE crisis management library, including Keeping the Wolves at Bay, the widely used media-training manual published by Jonathan Bernstein.

To visit the download page, click here.

Social Media Crisis Training

A solid social media manager has quickly become a must-have for organizations of any size, and can make an immense difference by driving in customers and building your positive reputation online.

The problem is, the vast majority are simply not equipped to even identify building crises, much less take the steps necessary to cope with and mitigate the damage that can result.

That's where we come in.

Bernstein Crisis Management is now offering crisis management training for social media managers, both independent and in-house, as well as social media firms.

For an overview of our services, estimates, or more information, contact erik@bernsteincrisismanagement.com

About Us

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:

jonathan@bernsteincrisismanagement.com.

Erik Bernstein is vice president of Bernstein Crisis Management, and editor of this newsletter. Working in crisis management since 2009, Erik has watched the internet and social media change the field. Today, he brings that experience to bear assisting clients to protect and grow their reputations using tactics based on real-world knowledge and experience.

Write to Erik at:

erik@bernsteincrisismanagement.com.

Bernstein Crisis Management, Inc. is located at 700 S. Myrtle Ave., #404, Monrovia, CA 91016. Telephone: (626) 825-3838.

Legal Disclaimer (aka the small print)

All 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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