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Toyota Crisis: Hell Hath No Fury Like a Car Maker Scorned

Scorn makes for good storytelling. It brings out emotion and ultimately unscripted drama. Look no further than the bevy of reality TV shows cranking out the profits to understand the appeal of NOT knowing how the story will turn out. With this in mind, I suspect we’re going to see and read a helluva story …more

Toyota Crisis PR: Customer Letter No. 4 Loses Its Way

When it comes to a crisis, everyone tends to fixate on the “bad press.” I think it’s more revealing to zero in on the communications controlled by the offending company. How are they telling their story within their control? That’s why I find the Toyota open letters to customers so fascinating. Just because you control …more

What Can Tiger Say to Diffuse the Crisis?

Tiger takes center stage tomorrow to publicly share his mea culpa. Every pundit and his brother has weighed in with a view. The local NBC affiliate was in our office today to interview our crisis guru John Radewagen. So I’ll keep my view brief. The statement on Tiger’s Web site doesn’t lead me to believe …more

Crisis PR: Third Toyota Customer Letter Falls Flat

Customer letter No. 3 from Toyota arrived on the scene today. Like the previous two – analyzed in “Open Letter to Toyota Customers Hits Pothole” and “Toyota’s Second Letter to Customers Stays on the Road,” this letter was published in major dailies and on the company’s Web site. Unfortunately, the third time was not a …more

Crisis PR: Toyota’s Second Letter to Customers Stays On The Road

I skewered Toyota earlier in the week in the post “Open Letter to Toyota Customers Hits Pothole.” Instead of addressing the issue head on, Toyota started the letter harking back to its 50-year heritage. The narrative went downhill from there. I don’t think Toyota was particularly proud of the letter either given it’s no longer …more

Open Letter to Toyota Customers Hits Pothole

You know the Toyota debacle has reached a new low when it snares Steve Wozniak. And Woz’s issue isn’t even with the sticking gas pedal (the darn cruise control was malfunctioning). I think it’s fair to say the timing for this celebrity endorsement isn’t ideal. To ensure the “we-care” message reaches the masses, Toyota crafted …more

The Quest to Hide a Train Wreck Story: Crisis Communications

Everybody loves a train wreck and what I affectionately call a “NASCAR story.” Even the promise of a collision tends to attract a crowd. With this as the backdrop, UTStarcom faced a quandary. The Justice Department had nailed the company for violations of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, a fancy phrase for bribery. How does …more

AIG Jumps into Fray with Its Side of the Story

Watching the volcanic outrage over the AIG bonus money playing out in the media I wondered how the company would respond. Many companies make the mistake of ducking for cover thinking they can wait out the storm. While AIG is hardly the poster child for business communications, it made the right move with an op-ed from the CEO Edward Liddy …more

Tying Your Story to a High-profile Topic — Even "Slumdog Millionaire" — Can Go Too Far

Leveraging a high-profile topic can open the door to your own story. We’ve used this technique in our own communications. When Sequoia Capital rolled out its “R.I.P Good Times” pitch that caused considerable hoopla in the world of venture capital, we countered with a guest blog on VentureBeat called “R.I.P. The Controlled Message.” But there are times when this …more