You Need to Know What Others Believe

There has been much information about dealing with a crisis. Making sure it's dealt with in a timely manner, reaching out to certain customers and media and ultimately making sure your side of the story is heard.

However, not much has been covered on how to deal with the after effects of the crisis. Yes, we may be able to see a decrease in negative coverage, or a decrease in coverage at all. But how do we really know if the customers will come back to the company?

Katie Paine discusses how to measure this in Chapter 11 of Measure What Matters. Dealing with a crisis is one thing, but what about the aftermath? She suggests overnight polling in either an omnibus or telephone poll. Telephones polls can be costly, but it is still less expensive than putting a full page ad in a newspaper like The New York Times.

After a crisis, the company's reputation could take a turn for the worst, or the main customer base could be unaffected. Paine gives the example of a sponsor for the Olympics years ago that had a crisis a few weeks before the game. Through these polls, they discovered their main customer base was not only unaffected, but still supportive of the company. If this survey had not been done, the company could have spent millions trying to win customers they already had.

Like Paine has been saying in most of her book, measuring can be extremely time consuming and expensive, but it will save time and money in situations to come. If the company doesn't have customers that believe in their product or organization anymore, obviously work needs to be done to win back these customers back so the organization can continue to grow. If the customers still believe in the company, then what's the point of spending mass amounts of money to win back customers when rewarding loyal customers would be much cheaper and more effective?

50 Years Since JFK's Assassination

Friday marked 50 years since the assassination of President John F. Kennedy. Flags around the country flew at half-staff to remember this past president and honor his memory. Aside from this, a ceremony was conducted not only in Washington, D.C., but also in Boston, Dallas and Runnymede, England.

Pictures are shown in the article of JFK's granddaughter during the memorial in Runnymede. A crowd gathered around the Dealey Plaza in Dallas for the ceremony to honor JFK. Also, Parkland Hospital, the hospital in which he passed away, had a short morning ceremony. In Boston, the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum featured a video commemorating JFK. They also held a moment of silence at 2 p.m., the estimated time of his death.

In Washington, D.C., Jean Kennedy Smith, JFK's sister, laid a wreath at his grave in Arlington National Cemetery. Attorney General Eric Holder also paid his respects Friday, as he had many times before. On Wednesday, Preside Obama, first lady Michelle Obama, former President Clinton and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton paused during the wreath laying ceremony to pay their respects to this president.

From the clips I've seen on television, almost the entire news day on Friday was dedicated to remembering that exact day 50 years ago. Kennedy's secret service man was interviewed, and the pain in his eyes was so heartbreaking. Even 50 years later, he seemed to blame himself for JFK's assassination. Much news was also given to the fact that Jackie Kennedy's pink suit is still locked away from sight 50 years later. Under the wishes of the family, this suit is to be locked away until 2103.

So many news stories were posted on and before the anniversary of JFK's assassination. News sites made sure to post stories from different views and different types of stories. I think it's such a great idea for news sources to make sure such a large event in American history can appeal to many different audiences. For those more worried about clothing than the actual event, they have the story of Jackie Kennedy's suit. For those interesting in reading an eye witness account, they have a story about a boy who witnessed JFK's assassination. Within each story are links to many other stories about the event. You could spend hours on just CNN's website and not even read every story. All of these stories are written so many different audiences can be informed about such an important anniversary in our nation's history.

NCA 99th Convention

Friday was an absolute whirlwind. The day started with presenting in a panel on why Jenny Walton is an awesome professor. We could've been there for days, but there was another professor being recognized, and the session was only 75 minutes.

Then, Molly Eickholz, Northern alumna and panelist at Jenny's recognition, presented her research on how advice can affect someone after their partner has committed an act of infidelity. She talked of positive and negative face and how different advice strategies can affect these faces, in turn having an effect on their mood. The research was very interesting, and she did a wonderful job presenting the information.

After that, it was time for lunch and my presentation. I put the final touches on my PowerPoint and went through our maze of a hotel to find the room in which I was scheduled to present. My session was a poster session. This means it was set up similar to a science fair. About 50 scholars had either posters or a PowerPoint to attract attention from other scholars roaming around the area. Those presenting were assigned a number and given a section of bulletin board. Coincidentally, Jenny Walton and I were right next to each other, which was perfect! The two of us ended up talking for most of the session, as not many people were roaming around. Probably because no one could find the room! (The hotel layout was an absolute mess.)

Sunday, Jeni Kmic presented her research on a Twitter analysis of the 2012 presidential candidates. In my opinion, she did an incredible job. She had great research and was very engaging toward the audience.

Now, we both changed out of our professional clothing and are ready to head to the airport. Washington, D.C. has been nice, but I'm ready to head back to Dayton and start my Thanksgiving break! I'm just a few hours and one plane ride away!

Connecting with the Employee

Most of public relations talks about connecting with the customer. After all, they are the one driving your business either up or into the ground with their purchase choices. However, another group of people can cause business to go haywire: employees.

In Chapter 10 of "Measure What Matters" by Katie Paine, she talks about how to measure effective communication with employees. Her beginning section was especially intriguing to me. She talked about employees being bombarded with messages throughout the day. For a typical employee she describes, this person reads countless blogs, listens to the news,  talks to friends and colleagues and visits with their family. In the process, this employee might also take time to watch a television show and play a game on the Internet. How in the world is an employer supposed to break through to them?

Paine gives a detailed account in her book. However, I've been astounded by how much attention has been given to engaging employees. In every book we've read for Social Media Principles, there's been a chapter on communicating with those who work with you. I had never truly thought about it before, but of course it makes sense. If an employee is unhappy with the way they are treated in a business, they could retaliate and ruin the reputation.

Consider the Domino's scandal a few years ago. The employees posted videos of themselves putting ingredients in pizza no one would ever want in there. They then posted these videos online. When Domino's heard, they fired the employees and sent an apology video out to the public. Great job to Domino's for effectively handling the crisis. But what caused the crisis in the first place? Well, the kids themselves could have been searching for a way to make trouble. But they must have thought they would get away with it. Maybe they wanted to get caught and be fired, but my guess is they just did it thinking the higher chain in Domino's would never find out. That's because the higher chain in Domino's never communicated with the part-time employees making the pizzas.

It's always important to make sure everyone in the business knows they are valued. From part-time employees to the CEO, everyone needs to feel they are part of the fabric that makes the business happen. Otherwise, some people feel they aren't important and don't care about the business. And isn't it better to have someone selling your products that truly believe in it? As opposed to someone just talking to the customer with no real concern of the business as long as they get paid for their hours.

Taking Charge of Your Life

As some of you may remember, I previously posted about my cousins both having cancer due to a cell mutation called Lynch Syndrome. My cousin Christina had surgery to remove her tumor and is now in the process of recovering. Her older sister, Stephanie, started chemotherapy.

This Saturday, Stephanie held a party at her house to shave off her hair. In this coming week, her fourteenth day of chemo. After the fourteenth day, hair starts to fall out in clumps. As opposed to letting this happen, Stephanie got proactive. She lost her hair on her own terms. With her mom, husband, baby boy and close friends, she shaved her head. Stephanie already purchased a wig that looks so close to her natural hair, others would never be able to tell the difference. Below are the before and after pictures of the hair shaving party!

I continue to be inspired by my family, especially Stephanie. Instead of letting cancer get the upper hand, she took charge and lost her hair on her own terms. When I asked her if I could use these photos for my blog, she told me, "My bravery is sustained by the strength and love of my family and friends." Honestly, any bravery I have stems from knowing I have amazing family like Stephanie in my life. She's stayed so positive through this whole experience, and I've never had a doubt in my mind she's going to beat this. I know whenever I feel as if something's impossible, I'll remember her approach to a scary situation. You can't always control what happens in life, but you can control your response.

How to Save a Life

On October 1, "Good Morning America" had an idea to kick off "GMA"Goes Pink day. As many of us know, Robin Roberts of "GMA" just recently survived her battle with breast cancer. The show planned to give the public more information about breast cancer, such as any confusion about the disease and information about survivors. Their kick-off idea was to have Amy Robach, ABC News correspondent, to have a mammogram live on screen.

According to Robach, she was first very hesitant about the mammogram. After much insisting from Roberts and producers, Robach decided to have the mammogram. She's 40 and had never been screened before the show, making her the perfect candidate to inspire others to be checked themselves. Little did Robach know, she was saving her own life.

A few weeks later, Robach was called with her results and was diagnosed with breast cancer. Her initial surgery was scheduled for November 14. The doctors performed a bilateral mastectomy and reconstruction before deciding the next step to take after her recovery. I have not found any other articles detailing plans for her recovery or how her surgery went.

When I first heard the story, I thought how lucky Robach was to have so many caring people around her to encourage this screening. Then, I thought how brave it was for "GMA" and Robach alike to film a mammogram live on air. What a brave way to encourage others to take a proactive step toward protecting themselves against cancer. Because of that episode, and especially because of Robach's diagnosis, I'm sure multiple women have rushed to local clinics to be screened.

"Big Fish" Fails to Make a Big Splash

To the dismay of many musical lovers, the new Broadway musical "Big Fish" is set to close in late December. The musical was about a sick man sharing his larger-than-life stories. Based on the 2003 movie, "Big Fish" created a large amount of buzz in the Broadway community. Tony Award winner

Norbert Leo Butz is the starring role, another huge noteworthy aspect. Because of Butz's high acclaim and the intriguing storyline, the musical had very high expectations. Unfortunately, these expectations were not met in the minds of the critics.

Personally, I was very intrigued by the musical. I had seen the movie and hoped to one day see the show. As an aspiring public relations specialist for a Broadway show, I have to wonder if the problem was in the marketing for the show. I mentioned before the buzz the show created among the community. They had a larger-than-life story and a Tony Award winner to play the role. For some reason, the show was a complete miss. Perhaps, the timing wasn't right. Maybe the target audience wasn't at an age to have the ability to see the show.

To me, the show sounds like a family show. A show parents and their children would see together to indulge in the beauty of storytelling. The critics might not have felt the musical hit this mark. Also, reaching families with an entity as expensive as a Broadway musical is difficult. Tickets are very expensive, and unless it's "The Little Mermaid," younger children would rather be somewhere else than in a theatre for a couple hours.

Working with a Broadway show is difficult. Sometimes runs are cut short on a show most think is incredible. If the show is unable to make money, a higher power in the Broadway community decides they're done. Although upsetting, sometimes musicals are revived and thrive more than the original. I suppose all we can hope for is that someone in the future decides to do exactly that. I was really touched by a statement from Dan Jinks, one of the "Big Fish" producers, quoted in the above article. He is quoted saying, "‘Big Fish’ is about the passing on of stories, and from the tremendous audience reaction we have received, we know our tale will live on." As actors and actresses, as well as in public relations, the most important part in touching those who are exposed to your message. Striking a fire within them to change the world. Maybe it won't happen right away, but we can only hope the messages we send out will inspire others to share it.