LT Public Relations

Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke is doing all the right things…PR wise. 

In the storm of controversy surrounding the government’s handling of the economic crisis, Bernanke is doing what he should do–COMMUNICATE and communicate often.

Now more than ever, the public needs leaders and answers to the most challenging questions.  Unlike his Fed chair predecessors, Bernanke is humanizing the Fed by conducting a series of “town hall meetings” to address questions from local residents and the concerned public about the state of the economy, what went wrong and where we are headed.

From his recent appearance on 60 Minutes (see below) and Jim Lehrer’s “The NewsHour” on PBS, to the New York Times coverage, word is getting out that Bernanke cares…and has some answers.

Today’s blog is not about taking sides on Bernanke’s responses…we’ll let the public decide on that one.  LT Public Relations does, however, applaud the chairman’s tactic to communicate with the public.

LT Public Relations continues to advocate that its clients in the financial services industries use this “town hall” approach to communicate to its target audience. We also believe his flow of communication should be two-sided–meaning the financial institutions should take this opportunity to listen, and not just preach.

Kudos Bernanke.  Keep it up!

 

QUESTION: Should a company directly respond to each online criticism, negative review or egregious comment about its business that is posted on related articles or review sites such as Yelp? 

SHORT ANSWER: Absolutely NOT. 

LT Public Relations has been fielding this question in many forms from its clients and concerned businesses across the nation.  It’s a fair question…especially from businesses who have been getting creamed in the media and public for various reasons.

Responding to online criticism is not a way to build strong relationships with the public–or simply, public relations.  This is a lose-lose situation because a company that directly responds to each critic will likely come across defensive or worse, weak.

So how does a company address harsh criticism or reviews that it desperately wants to rebuke? We first recommend the following steps . .. 

• Stay Calm. Tempting as it may be to address each disparaging comment, the first thing to do is keep a level head.  The public has every right to criticize–even if the accusations are erroneous.
• Appreciate and Embrace. Although the comments might be harsh and/or false, the important thing to remember is that it’s feedback from the company’s most valuable commodity…the public or customer. This feedback is golden and should be appreciated and embraced by the company in order for it to grow.  One business that really embraces criticism is San Francisco’s Pizzeria Delfina, which outfits its servers with t-shirts inscribed with exact quotes from the pizzeria’s toughest online critics (see below).

• Listen, Hear and Learn. Just like when an A student receives all good comments from the teacher, except for one nugget of constructive (yet negative) feedback, a company should willingly listen to the feedback, truly hear the message and learn from it.
• Look for Consistentency in Feedback.  Beyond the few abrupt comments such as, “you suck” or “I hate your company,” look for patterns of comments that get to the heart of the issue.  If, for example, the company’s lack of quality customer service continues to be the topic of conversation, this is clearly an area where the company can improve.

Once again, we advocate not responding directly to the criticism through online postings…but a company must respond–yet, respond in more meaningful ways.

As each situation is unique, LT Public Relations is ready and equipped to help businesses strategically address online torture from the public…but we won’t do it online.  Let’s connect to determine the best way to respond–pr@ltpublicrelations.com or 503-477-9215.

 

 

A tsunami is about to hit the banking industry…and it’s coming from an unlikely source.  Tony Hsieh, CEO of Zappos, appears to be ready to take his impeccable customer service model into the banking industry, according to the recent Inc. Magazine cover story, “The Zappos Way of Managing.”

Zappos has quickly become the gold standard in industries where customer service is critical.  In the Inc. story, Hsieh said Zappos will eventually move beyond retail to businesses such as hotels and banking, saying, “I wouldn’t rule out a Zappos airline that’s just about the best customer service.”

Why should banks, credit unions, financial advisors be concerned? Well, most of these financial institutions hang their hats on the loose fact they have “the best customer service” and it’s what differentiates them from their competitors.

Good customer service, huh?  Ya ain’t seen nothing until you’ve experienced Zappos. Read the Inc. story which is loaded with remarkable examples of great customer service.  Zappos seems to be a customer service company first and a shoe provider second.  Check out this Nightline profile on Zappos, its culture and focus on customer service:

The philosophy is simple: customers first…and the business will naturally be successful.  Can financial institutions that supposedly cater to customers make that claim?  Soon, they’ll have to…or be out of business because customers will demand this Zappo-like attention.

If a financial institution is Zappo-like in its customer service, well, LT Public Relations, would be honored to represent them and assist with its communications efforts.  But truthfully, it will be the customers who will ultimately be the best PR.

If you’re not Zappo-like in your customer service, it’s time to “step-up” your game (pun intended) or Zappos might take your customers.