Every PR crisis management expert will tell you the three elements of good crisis response: be quick, be accurate and be consistent. These elements are critical. Twitter and the “real-time web” is one important channel that is immediate. The rest is up to you.

Act now

As soon as your alarm bells ring it is “go time.” Whether your response is denial, apology, excuse, attack or justification, it must be quick and relentless. As long as you’re not a politician, forget about the “no comment”.  When your organization’s reputation is on the line, you have no excuse but to defend it. Sometimes tweeting about a slander can even send your own followers to fight for you (that is, of course, if you have strong rapport with your followers). Publicizing a slander against you (say, in a blog) gives you more credibility and shows you are confident and have nothing to hide.  Read more...

Twitter is about sharing, and sharing means you have to give something valuable to get something valuable. Contribute to conversations, share your thoughts and be part of the community. Be interesting or at least try to be compelling enough for people to care. And of course – don’t use corporate babble. Talk like a human to reach humans. Be real. Be authentic. Give value.

Make them part of it

Tweet about your work process, give some insight to what it is you do and what drives you. Tweet accomplishments sparingly and make your followers be part of the experience and the cause. Speak and respond to those who are interested. Share and you will be shared.  Read more...

Via: OnlineSchools.org

As a professional it is important to prevent crises from occurring. You cannot allow yourself to go unvaccinated.

First and foremost – prepare. If you can predict possible PR crisis situations you can then prepare scenarios and train appropriately. In the moment of truth you’ll know exactly what to do. If you’re running a large organization, consider setting up a team of professional PR experts who will be ready to handle those hot potatoes for you. A team of professional PR experts need to familiarize themselves with your company and every chink in its armor. In the time of dire straits, the team members should automatically know their tasks and responsibilities and act immediately.  Read more...

For the past 12+ years, I have preached and stuck to the laurels that strategic marketing and communications is the foundation of any marketing plan. Over the past five years, the word “strategic” has dropped out of the marketing lingo and many companies have just been ad hoc and makeshift, lacking firm direction. During the past few years, during the new media era, I never believed in the hype that digital media will take over public relations and marketing. Endless debates and arguments that all marketing initiatives are driven by a strategic-integrated marketing plan that maps to a companies or organization business objectives have occurred. Many of the kings in the marketing industry has jumped on the bandwagon, claiming that PR is dead, but today, the same people are saying PR is alive and social media is a part of PR.  Read more...

I know, I know – “enough about Twitter already!”

But like it or not, Twitter has become a major player in the world of PR, and a top notch Early Warning System for communications crises. According to a recent Harvard study, Twitter is more than just another marketing channel. Twitter is the most immediate and one of the most effective means for two-sided communication with your current customers and future customers.. Twitter is interaction, and if you’re not investing in human interaction in 2011 it’s about time to wake up.

In a time when news – especially negative news – spreads like wildfire immediate response is critical.  Read more...

SEO lessons from 2010.

Check out The Cline Group’s top marketing and communication posts from 2010. Which were your favorites?  Read more...

• 7 Social Media Marketing Lessons from Mad Men
• Toyota: Example of a Crisis Communications Fail
• 10 Reasons why your intern shouldn’t be doing your social media marketing
• The REAL Social Media ROI – Quantifiable and Measurable (Sometimes)
• BP’s oil spill non-responseWhen the water company gets it, you know social has gone mainstream…
• Socionomics takes on Social Media ROI
• Tropicana Las Vegas Hotel Uses Social Media to Drive Customers and Increase Customer Satisfaction
• POST It: How to develop a social marketing strategy

Don’t promise things that are too good to be true or look like scams — even when your offer is legit!