Tag: crisis management

Crisis Management – 3 Rules to Save your Business Reputation

Posted on by Mark Macias

By Mark Macias

In today’s world, it doesn’t take much for a disgruntled customer to spark a crisis, ruining a business reputation. Just ask the CEO of United Airlines, Oscar Munoz. He is under fire this week for the way he responded to a video that showed a passenger getting dragged off a United flight.

PR Week might have named Munoz the “Communicator of the Year” last month, but none of that matters today. It only took one viral video for everyone to forget the good he did in the past.

I wrote an editorial today for CNBC, explaining three lessons every executive can learn from Munoz.  (You can read that editorial here). If you’re short on time, here are the takeaways from that editorial.

Continue reading “Crisis Management – 3 Rules to Save your Business Reputation” →

Crisis Advice – Media Scandal

Posted on by Mark Macias

By Mark Macias

No one wants to prepare for a crisis but it’s something every business owner should have in the back of his mind. What happens when your company has a cyber security breach or a media scandal is surfacing? If you’re in asset management, what should a fund manager do when he gets an SEC inquiry letter?

All of those questions were addressed in a recent hedge fund and private equity panel, sponsored by Macias PR. Here’s a snippet from the crisis section of the panel.

You can hear more from this panel at the Macias PR Youtube Page. 

UnGoogle Yourself – Push Negative News off the Web

Posted on by Mark Macias

By Mark Macias

It’s easy to Google yourself, but it’s much harder to UnGoogle yourself.

What can you do when the search engines start information that is unflattering – or worse – not true? Is it possible to get it removed?

A few years ago, I was approached by an established financial consultant who discovered Google was leading people to a false article that falsely accused him of ethical violations. These types of allegations can destroy any person’s business but in the financial industry, it can close your practice overnight.

For months, the financial consultant hired an attorney who tried unsuccessfully to get the article pulled down.

Then, he reached out to MaciasPR.

UnGoogle Yourself

This form of crisis communications will only grow in the future as more bloggers and news organizations post articles on the Internet. It will also become more rampant as younger and more inexperienced journalists are hired by the larger news organizations.

If you find a negative news story appearing on the web, there are several steps you can take to get the material removed from the Internet.

Contrary to the popular saying, “the Internet is written in ink,” it is possible to change the story if you apply some proven crisis communications strategies. Here are some of the strategies I learned during my career as an Investigative Producer with NBC, CBS and American Journal that will help you in these situations.

Understand the Difference between Libelous, Slander and Opinion

If a blogger writes that you smell, you can’t take legal action to bring down a story, but if he writes a factually inaccurate article that accuses you of wrongdoing and harms your business, you do have a legal right to bring down story. And you don’t always need an attorney for this. Sometimes a strongly worded letter that outlines the bullet points from above is enough to get the publisher’s attention.

You need to complain to the people who control the money. Your letter to these power brokers needs to state why this article is inaccurate and most important, how the article has financially harmed your business. If you can’t show any financial duress from the article, you won’t succeed in the court of law or with the publisher.

Go after the Power Brokers

When a negative story is published, most people, like the financial consultant, contact the writer to complain, but that’s like complaining to the sales clerk when the cashier gives you the wrong change.

We were able to get that negative story pulled down on the financial consultant because we went after the power brokers – the parent company of the company and explained how their story was inaccurate. No publisher will pull down a negative story that is accurate, but if you can prove that the story in inaccurate or libelous, you will succeed in getting it corrected.

Push the Article off the first Google Page with New Content.

Another strategy you can take to bury a negative article is through new content. That means write more content on that same topic that will ultimately lower the ranking of the negative news story. If the article is false and inaccurate, don’t be afraid to fight back. Just make sure you’re not picking a fight over someone’s opinion because luckily the First Amendment still protects us from that. Want to learn more? Click here to watch a TV news story where Mark Macias gives CBS in Phoenix advice on how to UnGoogle yourself.

Mark Macias is a former Executive Producer with WNBC, Senior Producer with WCBS and Special Projects Producer with NBC. He’s also the author of the communications book, Beat the Press: Your Guide to Managing the Media. Macias now consults small and large businesses on how to get publicity. You can read more on his firm at MaciasPR.

 

Crisis PR – Lost My Temper

Posted on by Mark Macias

By Mark Macias

A US Congressman made national news headlines after he was caught on camera threatening to throw a reporter over a balcony inside the US Capitol. He thought the camera and microphone were off, but to his later surprise, he learned all of America would soon see that exchange.

There’s a great lesson on crisis communications that you can take from this experience. The politician made a classic mistake that many others have made, including Presidents George Bush and Barack Obama.

If you want to be interviewed on TV – or if you think you might get in trouble later with your temper, there are two big lesson you can take away from these situations.

The Camera is Always Hot

I can’t tell you how many times as a TV producer where a person continued to talk when the camera lights were turned off. The interview is never over when a camera is turned down, the lights are turned off or a microphone is nearby. Most people don’t realize how powerful boom microphones can be even from a distance. They can pick up sound even when the camera is not within sight. If you didn’t say it when the lights were on, you might want to refrain from adding more conjecture to the story when the interview is over.

Be Respectful of Reporters

I’ve worked with many politicians on their media campaigns, including US Senate and Congressional candidates. Many politicians seem to have the same DNA make-up. They are used to being in charge, which doesn’t work well with journalists who take pride in their independence.

When these two sides collide – especially with investigative journalism-  it can lead to major confrontations where the person with the most powerful pen usually wins.

Journalists are human, so kindness matters. You may not like the reporter or his questions, but that doesn’t mean you should be disrespectful to him – regardless of whether you think the camera is running or not. Kindness will take you far with nearly any reporter.

I’ve worked with many CEOs and founders who were interviewed by reporters and showed a lack of respect for the journalist throughout the interview. After the interviews, they told me why they didn’t like the journalist.

I get it. I was one of them.

But what everyone needs to realize is that journalists are trained to question and look for motive. If you give them a reason to not like you, you will succeed. Be kind, be courteous and practice what your kindergarten teacher taught you about others anytime you deal with a reporter.

Mark Macias is a former Executive Producer with WNBC and Senior Producer with WCBS. He’s also the author of the communications book, Beat the Press: Your Guide to Managing the Media. Macias now consults small and large businesses on how to get publicity. You can read more on his firm at MaciasPR or MarketYourFund.com