Mistakes. We all make them. It is part of human nature. Sometimes it’s unavoidable and other times we just overlook something. Regardless of the mistake, it is how we respond afterwards that sets us apart from one another.
One of the most recently publicized mistakes comes from a company not known to make many mistakes. Apple Inc. released the highly anticipated iPhone 4 on June 24. As quick as the phones were flying off the shelves, reports started flooding blogs and news outlets about usability issues. The most glaring problem was the antenna being wrapped around the phone’s casing. When held in the left hand, the skin can bridge the gap between the two antennas causing signal loss and dropped calls. It has become a major problem for Apple with everyone buzzing about it including media, bloggers and the Twittersphere. Consumer Reports recently offered a fix for the problem by suggesting consumers cover the gap with a piece of duct tape. However, Apple has yet to acknowledge or address these reports.
The problem itself isn’t the issue I find interesting. It is how Apple has handled the response thus far. The company’s official response details that all phones can have antenna problems and it’s just the nature of cell phones. Apple then goes on to suggest that users either hold the phone differently or buy a case. They have yet to admit the iPhone 4 has an antenna problem. Instead they dance around the issue and offer remedies that force the consumer to spend more money to solve a problem that they didn’t cause. This type of response can often cause consumers to lose confidence and loyalty to a company, damaging the brand.
From a PR perspective, one of the most important things a company can do in the midst of a crisis is strategically evaluate the need to respond. We’ve written several posts about how to respond during a crisis and in the case of Apple, they’ve chosen not to directly address the situation. However, we recently learned that the company finally came forward this week and announced a press conference to be held at 10 a.m. PDT today to reportedly discuss the antenna issue.
We want to share a few tips on how to effectively address a problem or crisis.
- Acknowledgement. An organization first needs to decide how (if at all) they want to acknowledge that there is a problem. This can be determined by the scale of the problem or the amount of backlash from consumers. In your acknowledgement, it can often be helpful to apologize for any negative affects. This will notify the public that you identified there is a problem and are working on a fix.
- Don’t blame others. Take full responsibility for your actions and don’t point fingers. If there are others involved, encourage them to follow your lead. For example, when Google launched Google Buzz, people were upset that it made their e-mail contacts public. Instead of blaming the user, Google took full responsibility to fix their mistake.
- Fix-it. If you choose to publicly acknowledge the mistake, you must work on a way to resolve it and communicate that to your key audiences. You want to explain to the public the steps you are taking to fix the problem and when to expect a solution. This will help in reassuring the public and instilling confidence that a company is proactively working to solve the problem. In the Google Buzz case, Google issued multiple updates to make sure users knew of the privacy settings and how to use them.
- Move on. Don’t dwell on what is in the past. Instead look ahead to the future and learn from the mistake.
It will be interesting to see how Apple approaches the press conference. Either way, hopefully consumers will get some sort of fix for the antenna problem. While it’s unlikely that Apple will suffer any major damage to their brand given their stellar track record and goodwill they have established, it’s a good reminder for any organization to take the necessary steps of acknowledging a problem or mistake. This one act can go a long way to building consumer confidence and loyalty.