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Top 10 #CrisisPR Lessons Learned from Natural Disasters

Hurricane Katrina and Hurricane Rita have provided a rare opportunity for all organizations to learn from the experiences of others as they responded to extraordinary circumstances. These 10 principals can serve as a checklist for crisis response or as guiding principles for your organization''s crisis communications philosophy.


Helping Smart People Make Complicated Information Relatable

Best of Silver Anvil Winning Program Builds Support for Human Space Exploration DPK Public Relations has a long relationship with NASA - Johnson Space Center that goes back to the Space Shuttle era, and we were proud to assist the Human Research Program's efforts to communicate about the science behind Astronaut Scott Kelly's Year in Space. The concept was simple: Kelly is an identical twin, so NASA seized the opportunity to monitor the impact of this prolonged exposure to zero gravity and compare those physiological and psychological measurements with those of his brother, Mark Kelly, who also is an astronaut. The challenge for any organization involved in science, technology or medicine -- or really anything that is complex -- is getting the smart people who are involved comfortable speaking in plane English about it. Making complicated information relatable isn't something …


Five Crisis Communications Fundamentals Every Organization Needs to Know

Access to Accurate Information Will Help Decision Makers Stop a Crisis Plenty has been written about how digital media has changed crisis communications. That makes sense, because the pace of scrutiny has accelerated with everyone carrying devices that can instantly broadcast video to a worldwide audience. What’s more, digital media creates a platform for people to express outrage, and that backlash can really sting. That said, the core fundamentals of crisis communications remain unchanged from when I entered public relations more than 20 years ago – and they go back a lot further than that.  Crisis communications is sometimes portrayed as a way to deflect responsibility or explain away a problem. In reality, crisis PR’s most important role is to aid in stopping human suffering and the potential for harm to the community as quickly as possible.  Crisis communications does …


Best of Silver Anvil 2017 Goes to Client NASA Johnson Space Center

NASA's One-Year Mission Earns PRSA's Highest Honor Congratulations to our client, NASA Johnson Space Center, for winning the 2017 Best of Silver Anvil Award. The agency's program, "Year in Space: Communicating NASA's Historic One-Year Mission from Space to Ground," won the Silver Anvil in the Integrated Communications category and a second Silver Anvil for Reputation Management. It was judged to be the best of all this year's Silver Anvil winners. DPK Public Relations is proud to have assisted with spokesperson preparation connected to NASA's historic one-year mission. We worked closely NASA's Human Research Program in the year leading up to the mission to hone messages and refine storytelling strategies. We later media trained many of the scientists and researchers involved in the mission. NASA Johnson Space Center's integrated communications campaign showcased diverse activities aboard the International Space Station and collaborated …


Founder Daniel Keeney, APR Quoted in Washington Post

DPK Public Relations Founder Daniel Keeney, APR was cited as a crisis communications expert in a Washington Post story about how businesses can navigate through an online attack. The story, "A company under Trump attack makes a bold move: It repeatedly ignores him," by Danielle Paquette examines how Rexnord Corp. handled a series of tweets from the President that sought to shame the company for its decision to move manufacturing work from Indiana to Mexico eliminating 350 jobs. For its part, Rexnord privately explained its rationale for the move to its union but has kept a very low public profile -- even when faced with blistering criticism from the President. In fact, a review of news coverage in the days and weeks after the plant closure news went public shows Rexnord officials declined to comment again and again. As often …


The Top 5 Benefits of PR Crisis Planning

Crisis Planning Can Reduce Crisis Risk and Speed Up Crisis Response Kudos to Jill Odom, editor for the trade publication, Total Landscape Care, for this week's story, "Expecting the unexpected: Managing a public relations crisis." Odom makes the case that every business -- even small businesses -- are at risk of a crisis and need a crisis response plan just in case. The article is worth reviewing and it prompted us at DPK Public Relations to catalogue a few of the biggest benefits we have observed businesses enjoying as a result of going through the crisis planning process. Here are the top five benefits of developing a crisis response plan: 1. The mere act of creating a crisis plan often establishes heightened awareness of crisis risks throughout the organization. By identifying and prioritizing the events that could threaten normal business …


Are You Doing Enough to Turn Employees Into Brand Ambassadors?

Three Out of Four U.S. Workers Don't Believe Their Employers' Brand Promise Do your employees really believe in you and your company? If CEOs and corporate communicators are being honest, they would not confidently answer 'yes' to that question. According to research from Gallup, three out of four workers in the U.S. feel their organizations do not always deliver on the promises they make to customers. Gallup's Nate Dvorak and Robert Gabsa write about this research and the implications in the post, "Companies Don't Have Effective Brand Ambassadors." As an ongoing responsibility, leaders and managers need to provide employees with relevant tools, education and support. In the modern economy, delivering a brand is becoming more than just providing that product or service; in many cases, it includes an experience and a specific emotion. The most successful organizations ensure they provide these …


Silence Can Amplify the Power of Your Words

Shut Up and Use One of the Most Powerful Communications Tools  We at DPK Public Relations appreciated a recent post by Dan Rockwell, "How to Capture the Opportunity in Awkward Silence," from his Leadership Freak blog. It describes the value of leaders allowing silence in the midst of meetings or interviews. So often, silence in a meeting ratchets up tension and anxiety. It is the third rail of interpersonal communication - touching it can be deadly! However, this negative response to a moment of contemplation can be harmful. It can prompt people to rush and make statements or offer solutions that lack a solid foundation and are ill conceived.  Right out of college, I worked briefly selling cars. As is the case with many salespersons, we were coached to capitalize on the discomfort created by silence. Make a closing statement and …


Fundamentals of Public Speaking: Using Nonverbal Cues

I just completed two days of presentation skills training with a large government agency and wanted to briefly share some thoughts about body language and nonverbal communications that came up repeatedly. First, it is essential that presenters think about and prepare for what they want to do with their body during a presentation. We tend to spend most of our time planning for WHAT we are going to say, but completely neglect HOW we are going to say it. The way you stand, your facial expression, your ability to make eye contact and what you do with your hands can each amplify or distract from the potential impact of your presentation. The way you stand. The most powerful way to stand is feet about should width apart, shoulders square and hands at your sides. Try standing that way. Do you …


Outcome of Chilean Mine Collapse Proves Effectiveness of Media Training

I am not sure how I missed this story when it first happened, but it is worth recapping even if the event happened a couple weeks ago. Those Chilean miners who once were trapped underground and now are hobnobbing with the rich and famous? They were media trained while awaiting rescue. Okay, that definitely deserves an LOL.   There are a lot of jokes that come to mind, but the reality is that sometimes I think the people who trudge into a media training session would prefer to be trapped underground for a month rather than participate in training to prepare them to handle media scrutiny. Their perspective changes once we get rolling, because what we do is fun and interactive, but I haven’t found too many people who get excited about spending a day in a media training session. They …