Everyday PR

Nothing like the Vice President of the country causing more panic about a yet-to-occur pandemic.  A Pandemic Alert Level 5 yes; a need to close schools and major modes of transportation, no.  Contradicting the more restrained statements made by President Obama last night, Biden may need to restrict his comments to subjects he’s more familiar with before administering medical advice.

http://swampland.blogs.time.com/2009/04/30/way-to-go-joe/

POSTED APRIL 29, 2009:

Since the current pandemic fears relate to a never-before-seen combination of human, swine and bird viruses, a Facebook friend wonders just how long it will be before pigs actually fly. 

This little piggy is affecting the market.

Flying pigs or not, the 24/7 media coverage on the swine flu is enough to make anybody sick.  To add to the mix, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services today issued a checklist for large businesses to follow in the event of a pandemic.  Wait just a minute.  Not to underestimate the potential dangers of a virus, but let’s keep things in perspective here.  According to the World Health Organization, the flu kills 250,000 to 500,000 people every year, with or without a pandemic.  NOTE TO PRODUCERS: Do the math, and plan your news coverage accordingly.

The mere mention of the swine flu also affected the stock market for certain industries. Cruise operator Carnival and Delta Air Lines both fell 14 percent on Monday. Shares of Tyson Foods-the country’s biggest meat producer-dropped 12 percent.  NOTE TO INVESTORS: Are you seriously not aware of repeated episodes of missing passengers, food poisoning and plane crashes?

Some school systems have issued swine flu advisories to parents. Better to be safe than sorry, I suppose, but where was the advisory to parents about the dangers of high fat and processed foods? NOTE TO EDUCATORS: The less panicked a child is, the happier the parent.

As public relations professionals, we’re skilled in acknowledgement, not obsession.   We also recognize that the Nielson ratings sweeps began April 23.  Expect a swine flu reality show by May 20, last day of sweeps.

From our desks high atop a parking lot, we found the following types of Facebook users to be the most popular in these parts. 

10) The Martyrs – They wonder why their friends ignore them. We’ll get back to you after you’ve upped your meds.

9)     The Braggers – Obsessed with the need to share, these users reveal details of their trips to Gstaad, Daytona Raceway or the new SuperTarget. Everybody knows bragging when they see it. Don’t make me hide you.

8)        The Picture People – Bless their hearts, these people actually think their friends are going to view all 427 pictures in one of their 238 different photo albums, from their 2002 Family-Only Christmas to the birth of a new farm animal.  Learn to be selective.  Besides, your visuals are taking up way too much space.

7)   The Gifters – I think so much of you that I sent you a virtual gift. It proves my virtual love for you, my virtual friend. All 786 of you.

6)   The TMIers – Thanks to these “Too Much Informationers”, we all know what they eat (sometimes we even get photos!!), when they have a zit, what their child just upchucked and what color it was.  Trust me, no one – including your real-life human friends – wants to know that much about your life.  

5)   The Philosophers – I post Status Updates, therefore I am. No, really, I am. 

4)   The Best Friends Forevers – How many confirmed users are really your friends?  If you didn’t talk to them in high school, why are you talking to them now? 

3)   The Pick Me Firsters – These are the folks who want to be the first to post breaking news.  If it weren’t for these posters, I know I would be dumber.

2)         The Quizinators – “What shade of taupe are you?”, “What type of 3/16″ metal screw are you?”, or “If you were an Excel chart, how many columns would you have?”.  How about the “If you had a life without FB quizzes, would you want to live?” quiz?  NOTE: See The Picture People regarding courteous use of space.

And the Top Face of Facebook…..

1)      The Shameless Self Promoters – I do it. You do it.  All God’s children do it. We promote our latest products, services, fundraisers, special events, etc.  If you can’t shake down your friends, who can you shake down?  Besides, we just know everyone wants to read our stuff.

While Domino’s Pizza continues to recover from a tasteless YouTube video, companies should take a clue and think about how to preserve their brand in today’s cyberspace world.  Domino’s learned the hard way – its failure to anticipate the negative ramifications of social media caused much reactive, costly and time-consuming activities.

Fortunately, there are ways to avoid or at least minimize cyber victimization before it turns into a verb as in “Hey, man, don’t Dominos my food.”   While large, longtime companies are likely to survive brand damage, small and mid-size organizations are much more vulnerable to the power of social media. Marketing experts believe some businesses are only a click away from a crisis premiering in the public domain.  Even bleaker is this reality: the absolute worst time to try to build relationships or to start establishing effective communications tools is during the crisis.

Wayne Hill, president of Ohio-based Edward Howard, says the most important first step is a change of mindset.  “Many companies suffer from ‘magical thinking’.  They simply believe they are immune to a crisis,” said Hill.  “If businesspeople took the time to really think about everything that could possibly go wrong – not so much operationally, but more technologically – then their mindset couldn’t help but change.” 

Once that shift in thinking occurs, other steps that a company can do to protect its reputation include:

• Know what’s being said – good and bad – about your organization. Surround yourself with people (in-house or outsourced) who have a working knowledge and application of all forms of social media to monitor your organization and to immediately activate communications, including live, as needed.
• Take small steps, such as Internet news alerts, establishing social media accounts or developing a dark web page.
• Ensure that your organization has most, if not all, of the basics of a crisis communications plan, no matter how remedial.
• Develop a crisis communications plan that includes social media elements, media training and messaging. If in-house resources aren’t available, look for a reputable service provider with both crisis management and social media experience.

“People may think they can’t afford to do something about their branding in today’s warp speed travel of cyber news and viral media,” said Hill.  “The reality is that people can’t afford not to be prepared, and the basic steps are more affordable than they realize.  With today’s 24/7 news coverage, combined with online avenues, information is continuously recycled.  Technology lasts forever (see www.digg.com), but every day, companies may see their reputations damaged in minutes.”

In the 1983 movie “Mr. Mom”, an ad exec suggests the agency’s biggest client, Schooner Tuna, drop its prices by 50 cents a can during the current economic recession.  The idea was surprisingly embraced by the client, who developed an image of “like all Americans, we’re affected by these trying times, and we’re doing our part to help you get through it.”  The campaign worked.  Sales volume increased, inventory moved, and most importantly, Schooner’s branding was positively reinforced as was customer loyalty.

In 2009, Americans are experiencing a very real economic downturn.  What can companies, especially small businesses, do to reinforce their brand during bad times so customers will positively reward them during the recovery? Ideas include 2-for-1 dinner entrees, temporary commission reductions, waivers of first-time consulting fees, upfront product cost with minimal cost for re-purchases, baker’s dozen products for a dozen orders, rebates, and one of the most enticing:  Hyundai’s one-year return policy on all new car purchases.

Debbie Fox of Fox Fine Jewelry recently gave free sterling necklaces (up to a $99 value) for Valentine’s Day to gift givers as long as they had proof of job termination or home foreclosure.  She partnered with other jewelers, and the end result was nearly 5,000 donated necklaces.  “This was all about touching people in a way that inspired them to consider how they might give in their own way,” says Fox.  “The result was very rewarding with heartfelt thanks, great press and fierce customer loyalty.”  I bet that every day the gift givers see that necklace, they think of Fox Fine Jewelry.  Now that’s branding done well.

The economy’s sick, businesses are in pain, and revenues are hurting.  An ad exec prescribes public relations as a potential remedy. Read more.

Workplace Internet Leisure Browsing (WILB) increases employee productivity by 9%, per a recent study (www.unimelb.edu.au/)in Australia.  So using Facebook, Twitter, et al, on company time is a good thing.   Who knew?

Browsing online at work may be good - or not.

According to the study of 300 workers, 70% engaged in WILB.  Popular activities included online shopping, news, games and YouTube.  Acceptable browse time was deemed to be less than 20% of the work day.     

“Short unobtrusive breaks rest the mind which leads to a higher total net concentration for the day, thus, increasing productivity,” says study author Brent Coker. “People need to zone out for a bit to get back their concentration. It’s like listening to a lecture – after 20 minutes your concentration goes down, yet after a break, it’s restored.”  Poor academicians – they probably thought their lectures were interesting.

So what does all this mean?  Should institutions of higher education adjust their class schedules?  Should employees spend more time online during the work day to improve productivity even more?  What about high stress jobs like law enforcement or neurosurgery – should they be allowed to “zone out for a bit” to refocus? 

And how should employers respond to such statistics – should they cancel their order for Internet blocking tools? Should they implement social media guidelines for their staff?  Or should they do the same they did when personal cell phones, pagers and blackberries entered the workplace (which was pretty much nothing)? Oh, Dr. Coker also says Internet addiction can be counterproductive.  Ya think?