Volkswagen “Working to Make Things Right”

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Will the PR effort be enough to push VW out of its rut? Although the facts behind its scandal are still murky at best, Volkswagen is moving ahead with its crisis management plan. The embattled automaker ran a full-page ad in major newspapers this past Sunday which not only boldly …

More Giveaways from Bernstein Crisis Management

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Sharing valuable lessons with the community As announced recently, we decided to start giving away the formerly $10 PDF version of Jonathan Bernstein’s media training manual, Keeping the Wolves at Bay. Now, from Bernstein Crisis Management’s Home Page, you can choose to download the media training manual or any of these …

Volkswagen – Death By 1000 Cuts

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A slow and painful way to destroy a reputation When the Volkswagen scandal first broke we specifically told several publications that the automaker needs to avoid a “death by 1000 cuts” scenario wherein bad news comes out bit by bit, re-igniting the public’s attention each time. Well, if you’ve been following …

When Operational Decisions Seriously Affect Your People

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One of the most difficult situations in crisis management Sometimes, operational concerns mean difficult decisions have to be made. Layoffs may be the case to demonstrate this. No matter how necessary cutting numbers from your workforce may be, the personal impact on the lives of those who have served your company makes …

Is it Time to Invest in Online Reputation Management?

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With reputation translating into serious bucks you can’t afford to let yours slip Online reputation can make or break an organization today. Studies show Yelp rankings alone can raise revenue 5-9% for each one-star increase in rating, meaning helping to nurture and grow your reputation has a direct translation to making …

Rio Olympics – Bold Words, but Where’s the Action?

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Making broad statements with no backup isn’t the way to restore lost reputation Following weeks of international pressure, organizers of the 2016 Rio Olympics are backing away from statements declaring they would not be testing admittedly polluted bodies of water that are to be used in several events. An AP …

Guest Post: Subway’s Gonna Be Fine

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Why Jared won’t dethrone the sandwich king [Editor’s note: Subway found out first-hand the dangers even a seemingly clean spokesperson can suddenly present, and caught a lot of flak as a result. In this guest post, Andrea Obston explains why, despite the serious hurdle, Subway’s gonna be just fine.] Kudos …

Reputation Risk – Creeping Out Your Customers

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Are companies going too far in trying to provide the ultimate customer experience? Would it creep you out if your flight attendant walked up to you and wished you a happy birthday out of the blue? That’s precisely what a Gawker article claims is happening on United Airlines thanks to …

Crisis Management Quotables…on Outdoing Negativity

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Create a cushion of goodwill to protect your reputation Typically we try to avoid using words from unknown sources for our Crisis Management Quotables, but given the ease with which so many reputations are being put into jeopardy either by minor issues or manufactured/baseless outrage these days this gem was …

Allegiant’s Emergency Landing Puts Reputation at Risk

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Poor communications and a questionable explanation leaves the airline’s most valuable asset in danger Allegiant Airlines’ emergency landing at a then-closed Fargo, ND airport raised serious questions about safety. And, when your organization revolves around carrying passengers some 30,000+ in the air, that means immediate damage to your reputation. Given …

Checkers Drops the Bun with Weak Crisis Response

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Poor response to a predictable crisis compounds damage Burger joint Checkers, also known as Rallys in some areas, is the latest fast food chain to find itself in crisis thanks to a stomach-turning video posted to social media. While the identity of the original poster is unclear, several individuals have used …

IAAF Leaps into Crisis Prevention with Fiery Release

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Sporting regulator fights back against allegations of negligence Early this morning we published a post covering shocking allegations from UK paper The Sunday Times and German broadcaster ARD/WDR regarding the prevalence of doping in international sport and the alleged lack of action from the International Association of Athletics Federations. We …

International Athletics Threatened by Doping Scandal

Erik Bernstein crisis communications, crisis management, Crisis Response, international crisis management, public relations, reputation management, sports crisis management 1 Comment

Did the regulating body allow suspicious athletes to compete and win over a 10+ year span? A new report from The Sunday Times sent shocks racing through the sporting world thanks to serious allegations of an absolute epidemic of doping by competitors at the world’s biggest events. What sparked it …

Brinks Safe Cracked – actually Hacked – Wide Open

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A scary series of security flaws raises serious questions Brinks has a reputation as a trusted name in security, but the findings of a pair of security researchers may crack that wide open. Daniel Petro and Oscar Salazar of security company Bishop Fox decided to take a look at Brinks’ …

Crisis Management Quotables…on Confidence and Complacency

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Success brings dangers of its own English playwright, poet, and literary critic Ben Jonson was considered second only to Shakespeare for his contributions to the stage in the late 1500’s and early 1600’s. He was also a cunning humorist, and, as so many others who are talented in the comedy …