Crisis Management Strategy – Concept
By Crystal Hollis | Spring 2012 | MKTG 3660 Advertising Management
I learned how to devise a strategy on how to manage a company’s crisis problem. The concept problem is that an angry parent went on YouTube and blamed a pizza restaurant for causing her children to have allergic reactions.
Powerpoint presentation: Crisis Management Strategy
Crisis Management strategy by Crystal Hollis
Family Pizza Crisis Management recipe
Ingredients:
- 1x crisis management team (i.e. legal consultant, food allergy
- consultant, public relations)
- 1x Internal investigation
- 1x YouTube Account
- Teamwork
- Proactive attitude
1. Diagnosis of crisis
2. Choosing the appropriate strategy
3. Implementation of strategy
4. Evaluation and monitoring
1. Diagnosis of Crisis
An angry mother created a YouTube video “Pizza Effect,” claiming that Family Pizza is responsible for an allergic reaction in her two children. She has trashed the quality of the pizza products, threatened lawsuits, and urged the public to boycott the chain of restaurants. Over 27,000 YouTube viewers has viewed the video.
2. Choosing the appropriate strategy
I) Gather Crisis Management team.
II) Contact the mother.
III) Assure the public using a YouTube video and other social network mediums.
IV) Conduct internal investigation.
V) Make it a policy to put a food allergy disclaimer in every mail ad, newspaper ad, coupon, commercial, social media profile,
V) Make it a policy to put a food allergy disclaimer in every mail ad, newspaper ad, coupon, commercial, social media profile, menu, and large posters by every cash register.
VI) Send press releases to the local paper and television news stations.
VII) Come up with new recipes that accommodates customers with a history of food allergies.
3. Implementation of strategy
• I) Gather Crisis Management team.
–Seek consultation from the restaurant Lawyer, public relations official, and Nutrition Consultants.
–Discuss crisis management plan of action and allocate jobs and method of evaluating the results of the plan of action.
• II) Contact the mother.
–Send an e-mail or phone call apologizing sincerely and offering to pay medical bills. If possible, apologize in person
(the customer most likely in the local area).
• III) Assure the public
–Create a YouTube video personally assuring the public that the food is safe to eat, customer safety is #1, and that the food is fresh and has no MSG or other additives. Also publically apologize to the angry mother.
–Encourage the public to visit the restaurant website and use the “contact us” button to send questions, concerns, and complaints of food quality or customer service.
–Post the video on Facebook and Twitter, answering as many questions and concerns as possible.
Title: Re: Pizza Effect
–YouTube video script:
“Hello. This is ____ ____, owner of Family Pizza. I would like to first and foremost apologize to Ms. _____ and her two children for their allergic reaction. I have recently gotten into contact with Ms. ______ and we will work things out together.
As owner of Family Pizza, I take these matters very seriously. We are a family-friendly environment and your safety and satisfaction is very important to us. We only use fresh ingredients with no MSG or other additives in our products . Please, if you have any complaints or concerns, click on the link on this video or visit our website and contact us. We will listen and work together to serve you well.”
• IV) Conduct an internal investigation
–Find out what triggered the allergic reactions. Find out if the food allergy disclaimer is very clear and obvious to the
customers.
• V) Make it a policy to make the food allergy disclaimer more clear and obvious to the public than it is.
–Put it in every mail ad, newspaper ad, coupon, commercial, social media website, and menu.
–Post large signs by the cash register.
• VI) Send press releases to the local paper and television news stations.
–The video with over 27,000 views would most likely gain media attention with at least the local DFW area. Send press releases notifying the public that solutions are being formed in response to the mother’s video.
• VII) Create new recipes that accommodates customers with a history of food allergies
–i.e. glutten-free pizza
4. Evaluation and Monitoring
• Discuss the results with the Crisis Management team.
• If problems continue to persist (public still angry, mother still going with the lawsuit etc.), refer back to step one. Keep trying
and remain a proactive outlook on this public relations crisis.
Crystal J. Hollis 