Page 109 - Crisis Communication Practical PR Strategies

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9 90 Crisis Communication

were not able to keep up with the applications, leaving many
frustrated homeowners angry at a missed opportunity to lower
their monthly payments.
The fact that other companies experienced the same problem,
however, did not remove the stigma of being singled out by the
financial columnist, and she continued to mention complaints
about the company from disgruntled applicants at every oppor-
tunity. Finally, the company decided to hire a PR firm that spe-
cialized in crisis management. As part of its press package, the
team assembled a document that used government figures
about home loan mortgage delays to illustrate how the problem
of delayed mortgage applications was industry-wide. The
company also hired more qualified staff to process loans, and
promised shorter turn around time for loan applications. Most
important, the company issued a Customer Bill of Rights which,
among other things, guaranteed transparency and useful reme-
dies for any problems in the application process.
The press package was distributed to financial media, both
locally and nationally, which resulted in a number of print arti-
cles. At the same time, the financial columnist, who had received
the press package with the Customer Bill of Rights, contacted the
company and invited it to send a spokesperson to be interviewed
on her television segment about how problems had been
created by an overload of mortgage refinancing. In a relatively
short period of time, the company went from being singled out
as a laggard in performance to being viewed as an innovative
problem-solver for an industry-wide problem.

Legal issues must be sorted out

Fraud can have legal implications when it is verified or admitted by the
organization. Lawsuits, fines or prosecution can follow. For this
reason, public relations crisis management may need to be coordi-
nated with attorneys representing the organization. As much as pos-
sible, the PR crisis management team will need to work within
guidelines established by the legal representatives of the organization
accused of fraud. At the same time, there may be circumstances when
legal advisers and PR management will clash over competing princi-
ples. Attorneys understandably push to limit legal exposure – that is
their job. For that reason, they may advise against accepting blame or