#Toyota

Hashtags, using the # sign on Twitter to notate a topic, combined with a major brand name signify one thing: people are talking about this brand – a lot. It could be positive, it could be negative. But, when people are talking about a brand, those brand executives should be paying attention. Today, a search for #toyota on Twitter will show that it’s not excitement over a new model that’s the hot topic, but yet, the Toyota recall.

There’s no doubt social media can play a large role in public relations efforts at companies of all shapes and sizes. In fact, social media marketing has opened up new, if not more personal and immediate, avenues to handle crisis management. When the Toyota recall news broke, thousands turned online to research or share fears, frustrations, and questions. With so much public concern and outcry, there has to be a public response.

From boardroom to town hall

In a day of immediate information and rapid viral infection of news, PR executives at corporations do not always have time to sit in a board room and discuss how to break news to public or devise a plan to spin the story. In days past, consumers may get a letter making them aware of a recall. There may have been a press release sent that makes its way to a small, verbatim blurb in the business section of newspapers. In some cases, the CEO may not be available for comment. Today, news spreads faster and people hear about crisis, even if they aren’t involved or affected. Today, those companies in crisis don’t hide from the public — if they’re smart.

I just received an e-mail from Digg.com that displays a very public, transparent approach by Toyota to address consumer concern over the Toyota recall. Digg is hosting a live video interview with Jim Lentz, CEO of Toyota on a feature called Digg Dialogg. Users can submit questions for Jim Lentz and the most popular, or Dugg, will be used.

I clicked on the e-mail headline to go to the Digg page promotiong the interview with Toyota There is a large picture of Jim Lentz, the CEO of Toyota. The page includes his bio. He’s there, in person, just like you and I.

Toyota CEO is being up front and personal during this PR crisis

While writing this post, I checked the official Toyota Twitter account and saw that the car manufacturer is making great use of Twitter, too. Within minutes after I received the Digg e-mail, they also updated Twitter accordingly. A quick scan here shows they have been actively making updates. From the account itself, you can see that Toyota already had a social media presence and strategy in place (looks like a whole dedicated team, in fact), so when crisis hit, they didn’t have to scramble to create a social media presence to respond. That should be a lesson to any large company – be proactive.

What is important here is that the way we respond to a crisis is changing. No longer is it a prepared press release to one-sided media. No longer do people need to partake in that tainted word of spin. Instead, social media allows companies to have an open forum, ask what the audience wants to know, and respond in person and live . While no one can say that a massive auto recall is not a scary event bound to affect many people negatively – being without transportation, injury (or the worse alternative), or financial hardship – we must give Toyota kudos for the way it is responsibly responding to this PR nightmare.

Size doesn’t matter

This Toyota recall is huge. But, no matter what the size of a company or organization, remember that you can use social media to monitor your brand and respond to known issues.

By reacting fast and being transparent, you can gain more respect, save face, and continue to rally support. Crisis happens – but true reputation management really involves how that crisis is handled. People may not remember exactly what the company did wrong; but, they will always remember if they avoided the issue or, worse, pulled the wool over the eyes of customers.

If in crisis: Don’t ignore it. Don’t hide. Instead, acknowledge, listen.

Social media gives you a prime opportunity to do that. Social media isn’t the only way to do this; traditional methods are still important. There should still be a plan and PR people at any company should have some training on how to handle the pressure of a crisis, including learning about these new methods that have been introduced recently. Responding to crisis can now be, well, a (Toyota) hybrid of methods.

P.S. The history of spin and crisis management is fascinating. I took a course in Spin & PR at Wilkes University during my undergrad days, and it was interesting to see how well or poorly companies handled crisis throughout the years. Before technology, there was more time, more ways to cover up bad news. Here’s a case study on one of the most popular spin case studies in history, the 1982 Tylenol Scare.