Does Crisis Spell Death for Sea World’s Social Media Efforts?

March 1st, 2010 Sultana Ali
Sultana Ali

As an Orlando, Fla- based agency, we have an inside track to the news that comes out of some of the happiest places in the world, our local theme parks. One of these is none other than the home to the world’s most famous killer whale, Shamu. This is, of course, the moniker used for their whales and especially for their largest whale, a male nicknamed “Tilly.” 

Tilly (or Tilikum) has had a somewhat eventful existence that has spanned several locations in captivity and multiple occasions of frightful outbursts with his trainers, but none like the one which took place this week – spelling fatal tragedy for one of Sea World’s best trainers, Dawn Brancheau. 

As the news of the trainer’s death-by-whale-attack spread across the globe (within minutes reports had reached CNN status), the more than 10,000 followers of Sea World’s Shamu mouthpiece on Twitter, @Shamu, wondered what would happen to the real whale’s virtual mascot. Known for his funny “tweets” and humorous comments, any comment from him would have been inappropriate and Sea World recognized that. After multiple days of silence, he tweeted his last tweet. 

At this difficult time, @Shamu will not be active. For Twitter updates follow @SeaWorld_Parks. http://bit.ly/b0oU3l 

It’s truly sad to see Twitterville a little quieter without this witty voice, but as a PR professional, I completely agree with Sea World’s decision to, at least temporarily, suspend the account that mimics their world famous whale and instead focus on their overall theme parks. As Orlando Sentinel Reporter Beth Kassab smartly commented, “this heart-wrenching crisis will ultimately reveal the strength and resiliency of a brand that establishes a loyal customer base that feels a more personal connection to a business.” 

While I’m not privy to its crisis communications plan for when an event such as this happens, Sea World has done a brilliant job with its social media efforts and is doing its best to respond to tragedy by scaling back appropriately. I suspect their brand will recover as a result. Who knows, someday we may once again hear the voice of @Shamu again… 

If you find yourself in the midst of a crisis situation and would like to speak to the area’s reactive communications experts, please contact Massey Communications at 407-581-4222 or info@masseycommunications.com

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Posted in Crisis Communications, Current Events, Social Media | No Comments »

Tips for Reps & Vendors for Getting Past the Gatekeeper

February 10th, 2010 Alison Presley
Alison Presley

I work at a communications agency. If I had a nickel for every time a media rep or potential vendor called to sell his/her product or service to one of our team members, well, let’s just say I wouldn’t have to work. 

And because part of my everyday routine involves speaking to these reps and vendors, I thought I might spend some time explaining the best way to get past me—the gatekeeper—in order to get to the person with whom you’d like to speak. 

1) If this is your first time calling our agency, PLEASE do your research before calling. The great information super-highway has plenty of information about my company (and many others for that matter), and it also has information about our team members’ responsibilities and areas of expertise. Chances are you can determine who it is you want to speak to before you even dial our number. I’ll make it even easier in this blog post. Click here for a link to our team members’ information. 

2) People are busy. You are probably busy, and as it happens, so are many of the people you are trying to reach. After you are informed that the person you’d like to speak with is unavailable, it is not in your best interest to try to sell me on your product or service for the next 20 minutes. The person who is unavailable to take your call is still the right person with whom to speak. Simply ask to leave a voicemail, or better yet, ask for their e-mail address, and then proceed to directly communicate with the correct person. 

3) Harking back to the point I made in #2, people often become busy. While we understand that the product or service you’re calling to speak with us about is wonderful in its own right, chances are it may not be our most immediate priority. Calling back once an hour (or even once a day) is not appropriate. In fact, it is downright annoying, especially for the person who answers the phone. Please be patient with us and we will get back to you as soon as it is convenient. 

4) If you happened to have missed a call and it was from our phone number, please do not call back and ask me to track down the one person who made that call. If he or she did not leave a message, there is a good chance that he or she dialed the wrong number, realized it, and promptly hung up. 

5) Please do not call just to ask how long one of our team members will be in a meeting. Unfortunately, I often do not know the answer to this question, so one or both of us usually ends up frustrated/annoyed at my response. If you have an urgent matter, please leave a voicemail or send an e-mail to the person who needs to respond quickly. We understand urgency and deadlines, and we are happy to respond to your request as soon as we are available. 

As I wrap up this blog post, the thought just hit me that these tips probably apply to anyone who sells in their line of work. And that encompasses most people. So please enjoy my tips for effectively getting to the correct contact. If it makes a difference for just one reader, then I’ll feel like I’ve done my job.

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Posted in Strategic Communication | 1 Comment »

The Awesome Power of Words, Revisited

February 5th, 2010 Bud Brewer
Bud Brewer

President Barack Obama, his Chief of Staff, Rahm Emanuel, and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid are all guilty of committing the sin of political incorrectness.  

The President, for a second time since being elected, took what some see as a swipe at the city of Las Vegas, admonishing parents not to spend their children’s college fund on a vacation to Las Vegas. As a President-elect, in the depths of the financial meltdown, Obama suggested that business leaders might want to think twice about expensive conventions and meetings in Las Vegas. 

Rahm Emanuel, a fiery rhetorician (I’m being as politically correct as possible here), speaking in a private, behind-closed-door meeting, referred to something with which he obviously disagreed as “f…… retarded.”  This brought a firestorm of criticism and a call for Emanuel’s firing from no less a voice than former Alaska Governor and Vice Presidential candidate Sarah Palin, the mother of a child with Down Syndrome.  

Sen. Reid, quoted in a book about the 2008 presidential campaign, now famously intoned that then candidate Obama was a viable presidential candidate because he was a “light skinned African American who didn’t speak with a Negro dialect, unless he wanted to.”  People called that remark both insensitive and racist.   

In the 24-hour news cycle that constitutes journalism these days, all of these transgressions are both legitimate stories and causes for immediate and passionate retaliation. What they do is inflame divisiveness which is already at a fever pitch in the lala-land that is American politics in the 21st century. 

Add to these “outbursts” the President’s never-before-seen repudiation of a recent Supreme Court decision on campaign financing during his State of the Union address, as well as South Carolina Rep. Joe Wilson’s public “You lie!” outburst directed at the President during a nationally-televised address to a joint session of Congress, and one can easily come away with the belief that the words people in power speak are easily as important and significant as the deeds they do. 

Words matter. Definitely, words matter. But let’s keep all of these and other verbal lapses of judgment in perspective. While they may sting, they don’t hold a candle to bad actions and deeds (insert Gov. Sanford, Tiger Woods, et. al. here) that cause real and lasting damage.

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Life Lessons I Have Learned from My Parents

January 22nd, 2010 Alison Presley
Alison Presley

In reading some recent blogs I came across one that I found interesting – “8 Lessons I Learned from my Parents,” by Kim Hays with the Orlando Sentinel. Interestingly enough, the idea for her blog was borne from another blog by Allison Gilbert with the Huffington Post – “Top 10 Lessons I Learned From My Parents (Before They Died),” but Kim admitted in her blog that some of the lessons were not very warm and fuzzy.  

My first thought was “What a great idea – honoring your parents by pointing out what they have taught us now that we are older and have kids of our own!” I decided to write my own blog about this topic. 

Here are some things that my parents taught me: 

1 – Never depend on anyone else – you have to make your own decisions and live with the consequences. 

2 – Nothing will get done unless you do it – or try to do it. 

3 – Life is an adventure and you can only live it one day at a time. Trying to worry about the future will not help and worrying about the past will not give you the opportunity to change things. 

4 – You can do anything you put your mind to. 

5 – Always acknowledge your mother’s birthday and Mother’s Day. (This came from Kim’s blog, but I wholeheartedly agree!) 

6 – Always respect the authority of your parents even if you do not agree with them, and make sure you respect other parents’ authority by referring to them as “Mr.” or “Mrs.” (insert last name here). (From Allison’s blog) 

7 – Always stay out of the sun! We all need vitamin-D; however, if you look at my mother’s 68-year-old-face, you would not believe that she is that age! 

8 – Be mindful of the words you use; most are sharper than swords. 

9 – Save your money for a rainy day, but don’t miss opportunities for fun! 

10 – Then there’s my dad’s favorite: “If you lay down with dogs, you wake up with fleas.” (A quote I later learned my father borrowed from Groucho Marx) 

I enjoyed reading Allison’s and Kim’s blogs because it gave me an opportunity to reflect on the lessons I’ve learned and the lessons I can teach my daughter. What are the lessons your parents taught you?

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