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
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
It’s standard practice for journalists to put a “face” on a crisis. It’s called humanizing the story. Which brings me back to the Toyota debacle which I addressed yesterday in the post “Open Letter to Toyota Customers Hits Pothole.” As you would expect, the reporters crafting follow-on stories to the Toyota crisis are indeed striving …more
