Using social media to address a PR crisis was the focus of the September Luncheon of the Georgia Chapter of the PRSA - which I attended last Thursday, courtesy of Steve Robinson of Business Wire.

Lynnette McIntire, manager, UPS Public Relations and Debbie Curtis-Magley, manager, UPS Public Relations discussed their response to a multimillion-dollar “Brown Bailout” campaign waged in traditional and new media.  It was launched by rival Fedex who claimed  UPS was taking a “government bailout.”  It’s all part of a dispute over the FAA Reauthorization Act of 2009, which contains a provision that would change the labor law covering FedEx workers. The bill was passed in the House of Representatives but the Senate has not yet voted.

Starting in June when the Brown Bailout campaign began, UPS had a crisis on it hands.

Needless to say, since that time, UPS has been busy countering charges and communicating their position.  The work has all been done in house with a very small team.  Not surprisingly, social media has been at the heart of their strategy to protect their brand and reputation – using Twitter and blogs to address questions and accusations made on blogs, Twitter and of course YouTube.

So what lessons has the UPS PR team learned so far:

- When the issue is emotionally charged, don’t get emotional – stick to facts and correct misleading ones.

- Pick your battles.

- Be nimble.

- It is helpful to have a monitoring program in place before a crisis hits when you have the luxury of time.

- Start Twitter accounts now to build a credible voice and presence  in the channel before a crisis hits.

- Know when to intervene with an “official” vs a conversational response.

- Educate internally.

- Monitoring key words can be tough – UPS the company and ups the verb yield very different results.

- Words without credibility fade.  The truth does prevail.  Errors, misleading materials, misguided conversations eventually get sorted out.

- Being young doesn’t mean you are comfortable with social media and commenting or engaging with the public.  Training is critical for everyone in an organization.

Bottom line, it’s clear crisis communications begins before a crisis.  Tools will change, but given the speed of social media, preparation is critical in containing a crisis caused by  a customer, competitor or an employee.

Let me get back to you.

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PETA went undercover to shoot what it charges is the mistreatment of circus elephants.  In the four-minute video, circus trainers are seen using bullhooks to strike elephants across the head, legs and body.  
 

It’s a very different image from those that appear on the Ringling Bros website.  

An AP story quotes circus spokeswoman Amy McWethy denying PETA’s abuse claims. “Ringling Bros. & Barnum and Bailey loves its elephants,” she said.

In a statement, Feld Entertainment Inc., which owns Ringling, said:

“Ringling Bros. is proud of its efforts to care for and increase the population of the endangered Asian elephant and we encourage people to come see for themselves that the animals are thriving in our care,” the company said.

On its website, Ringling Bros. has a section devoted to animal care where it states:

“The physical and behavioral needs of our animals are a top priority at Ringling Bros.® and we are dedicated to helping to preserve the endangered Asian Elephant through the work at our Ringling Bros. Center for Elephant Conservation®.”  – Bruce Read, Vice President of Animal Stewardship. 

Based on the 14,000 views to date, the video has yet to go viral by YouTube standards, but it nevertheless poses an obvious challenge for Ringling Brothers.  And as my posting about United Airlines revealed, companies are failing to keep up with the latest communications tools.  As far as I can tell, Ringling Brothers does not have a YouTube channel, and its Twitter page is more or less inactive.

Needless to say, the video has generated a stream of negative tweets.

Now if I were advising Ringling Bros., I would tell them:

- to announce their intention to investigate the allegations

- to distance themselves from potential bad actors (including if necessary firing them and seeking all legal action against them)

- to highlight what they are doing to protect animals rights

- to enlist third parties to validate their commitment to animal safety

- to embrace 21st century communications to engage concerned customers and critics

I would also have them make videos that show how they treat and care for animals, their commitment to the prevention of animal abuse and their support of programs dedicated to animal stewardship.  

In the age of YouTube, saying you love animals can’t compete with the power of the Internet image and the social networks that distribute and comment on them.

Let me get back to you.

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