PR: A Critical Success Factor for Business Leaders
Are you surprised to learn that, only 16 percent of MBA programs “offer a single course in crisis and conflict management, strategic communications, public relations” or reputation management? This week an op-ed in Bloomberg BusinessWeek made the case for change. If you haven’t read the article, “Master’s of Spin: PR Belongs in B-School Studies,” I […]
The Importance of Body Language
Effective communicators know the importance of utilizing non-verbal communication when delivering a message. It is a critical vehicle for capturing attention and communicating. Non-verbal communication includes eye contact, posture, gestures, voice and tone quality and helps ensure that your audience receives your message effectively. Mastering non-verbal communication is essential not only in media interviews, crisis […]
To Comment or Not to Comment?
Oftentimes after reading an article or blog post I will read through reader comments with fascination. I find the comments interesting because these may surface a different perspective or counter claims made in the original post. Sometimes the comments can be positive and add to the conversation, and sometimes the comments can turn negative. As […]
The Face of Your Social Media Account
On Sunday night, we were reminded once again how prevalent social media is in today’s communications landscape and how quickly information is disseminated through platforms such as Facebook and Twitter. Prompted by President Obama’s announcement that Osama bin Laden had been killed, Twitter recorded the “highest sustained rate of Tweets ever,” an average of 3,440 […]
Be Prepared for Human Error in Social Media
A few weeks ago, the American Red Cross – and its Twitter account, @RedCross – became the target of a number media blog posts and articles. The reason wasn’t another natural disaster response or a direct push for donations (although it did turn into a push for donations later). The attention was due to this […]
Crisis Communication Lessons From Floyd Landis
Earlier this year I read Paul Kimmage’s interview of Floyd Landis, a retired cyclist. I had watched Landis win the Tour de France in 2006 and followed the subsequent doping controversy, which included him being stripped of his Tour de France win. So I was interested to learn about the chronology of events and actions […]
So You Made a Mistake? Now What?
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. […]
Crisis Communication Planning and the Impact of Social Media
Last week, Jennifer and I had an opportunity to conduct a workshop on crisis communication at the Washington State Community Action Partnership Statewide Development and Marketing Conference. The goal of the training was to provide attendees with an understanding of the various types of crises and how to best prepare. We also spent time discussing […]
Thoughts From Enterprise Social 2.0
I recently returned from Amsterdam where I attended and presented at Enterprise Social 2.0. What a fabulous experience. The speakers and presentations were first rate. Here are some of the highlights from the gathering. Ramon DeLeon, Domino’s Pizza (@Ramon_DeLeon). This guy is an amazing presenter with outstanding energy; but beyond his exceptional presentation skills, he […]
Social Media & Damage Control
Many of us have heard about the mistakes companies, such as Dominos and United Airlines, have made around crisis control. However, there seems to be a dearth of information about how companies can use social media in the right way for damage control during a crisis. In late January, I am moderating a panel on […]