“No legacy is so rich as honesty”
Mr. Shakespeare was never as accurate when it came to Public Relations. In a world that throws up an increasing number of anomalies, a world where the Internet has created a new democracy, where information (both true and false) flows faster and easier, with less control, than ever before, never has Public Relations had a more important role.
I’m not talking about spinning, lying or any of the other dark arts of our profession. Rather I am talking about the sensible, adult management of communications, good counsel to those who face difficulty from actual or percieved missteps.
O’Dwyer PR has an excellent piece by Fraser Seitel (you have to love his understated e-mail address: fraser@publicrelationsguru.com 🙂 on the benefits of being up front and honest about an issue. It’s a good read.
What worries me is that people still believe keeping their head down – or worse lying – will solve their problems.
When you dust off your old copy of PR 101, you’ll find it has always told us that you have to get the bad news out. (Unless there is some very good reason why you shouldn’t). As Phil Gomes points out, PR isn’t rocket science. Be honest, be accessible and show you regret the mistake(s) and that you are striving to fix the problem.
Keeping your mouth shut normally encourages a trivial problem to escalate out of control. Seitel’s piece does a good job of illustrating best and worst practice.
Jack Welch’s legacy is shrinking with every column inch – a good benchmark for silence – and an illustration that money isn’t the only measure of wealth.
Some more reading…
Yesterday, I received Ketchum’s Technology Practice’s newsletter, TechEdgenews into my inbox. It’s well put together and there’s some interesting stuff in there.
Murphy's Law 