It’s been quite a year.
There’s the ongoing war in Ukraine, the death of Queen Elizabeth II, and we’ve had three different Prime Ministers.
And while global health scares appear to have taken something of a backseat, they’ve been replaced in the headlines by the cost-of-living crisis.
Delve a little deeper, and a year that has seen record temperatures has also brought warnings of a ‘climate catastrophe’.
Amid all this, there has also been a succession of brands and individuals that have found themselves in the media spotlight for all the wrong reasons.
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Here’s a look at the ones that stood out for us and the lessons you can learn from them.
Adidas and the toxic influencer
Time is not your friend when it comes to crisis media management.
You must act quickly and decisively.
Someone needed to tell Adidas.
While brands like GAP, Balenciaga and JP Morgan Chase quickly cut ties with Kanye West, following a series of offensive and anti-Semitic comments, the sports goods giant’s response was marked by indecision and silence.
The company initially said it had started a review of its partnership with the musician, who now goes by Ye, on October 1. But it did not join others in severing ties until October 25.
That silence and inaction allowed criticism of the brand to grow.
#boycottadidas trended on social media. And staff spoke out about the partnership.
In a viral LinkedIn post, Sarah Camhi, the company’s director of trade marketing said: “Coming off of the adidas global week of inclusion, I am feeling anything but included.
“As a member of the Jewish community, I can no longer stay silent on behalf of the brand that employs me. Not saying anything, is saying everything.”
She added: “We have dropped adidas athletes for using steroids and being difficult to work with but are unwilling to denounce hate speech, the perpetuation of dangerous stereotypes and blatant racism by one of our top brand partners.
“We need to do better as a brand.”
The deal with Ye was believed to bring in $697 million a year. And Credit Suisse estimated the turbulence surrounding the partnership could hit the company’s earnings by 23 per cent.
But the damage to its reputation could be more significant and take longer to recover.
As well as highlighting the importance of responding to a crisis quickly, this saga is also a reminder of the risks of working with influencers. Is it covered in your crisis communication plan?
KFC and the “unacceptable” promotion
KFC is often heralded for its crisis communication skills.
But not this year.
The fast-food chain found itself in crisis mode after sending a promotional message to customers in Germany, urging them to commemorate Kristallnacht with cheesy chicken.
It sent the message to customers through its app on the 84th anniversary of the Night of Broken Glass. This was when Nazis led gangs in the torching, vandalising and ransacking of Jewish shops, businesses and synagogues across Germany.
The attacks left more than 90 Jewish people dead and are widely seen as the beginning of the Holocaust.
The message said: "It's memorial day for Kristallnacht! Treat yourself with more tender cheese on your crispy chicken. Now at KFCheese!"
A subsequent message, reportedly sent around an hour later on the app, said: “We are very sorry, we will check our internal processes immediately so that this does not happen again. Please excuse this error.”
German newspaper Bild described the message as “tasteless”. Daniel Sugarman, Director of Public Affairs at the Board of Deputies of British Jews called it "absolutely hideous".
"How wrong can you get on Kristallnacht KFC Germany. Shame on you!", tweeted Dalia Grinfeld, the associate director of European affairs at the Jewish NGO Anti-Defamation League.
KFC is apologizing after a promoting a menu item as a way to commemorate Kristallnacht, the 1938 attacks by Nazis on Jews viewed by many as the start of the Holocaust. https://t.co/ToQikof7el
— CBS News (@CBSNews) November 11, 2022
KFC has apologised after sending a notification to German customers encouraging them to commemorate the Kristallnacht anti-Jewish pogrom with fried chicken and cheese.https://t.co/SqFrh22Omy
— News24 (@News24) November 11, 2022
KFC apologises after German Kristallnacht promotion https://t.co/Ogxq8n9oo6
— BBC News (World) (@BBCWorld) November 10, 2022
A formal KFC response later apologised for the "unplanned, insensitive and unacceptable message".
It said the message was created by its computer systems and that an internal review process was not followed.
It added: “We understand and respect the gravity and history of this day, and remain committed to equity, inclusion and belonging for all.”
The story led to damaging global headlines, with the New York Times, BBC News, Washington Post and Jerusalem Post among those that covered the story.
KFC did respond quickly to the crisis, but the initial message was woefully inadequate. The story is also a reminder that while automation can be valuable, it poses reputational risks without proper human oversite.
The boss who showed how leaders should manage a crisis
Much of this year feels like it has been spent discussing rising prices.
We’ve all been trying to find ways to cut back.
Cast your mind back to the start of the year, and you may remember a company issuing some less than helpful cost-of-living advice.
‘Keep warm’ tips from OVO energy included cuddling pets and doing star jumps..
Keeping the oven door open after cooking and “challenging the kids to a hula-hoop contest” were other recommendations.
advice from Ovo, Britain’s 3rd largest energy supplier, to beleaguered customers:
— Jim Pickard (@PickardJE) January 10, 2022
- wear jumpers
- do star jumps
- don’t drink alcohol
- hug your pet
- eat ginger https://t.co/aytZXCAj6g
The advice saw the company accused of being “insensitive” and “clown-like”. And it was at the centre of damning headlines and social media posts.
OVO responded quickly. The advice was removed. And the company apologised saying, the tips were “embarrassingly unhelpful and poorly judged.”
And company founder Stephen Fitzpatrick gave several media interviews.
“It was really embarrassing,” he told Channel 4 News. “It was a stupid thing for us to have written. It is something I regret. I am very sorry that we sent it. It is a big company and somebody had a bad day.
“We deserve to be getting a lot of trouble from this.”
On BBC Breakfast, he added: “It was a ridiculous piece of advice. It should never have been written. It should never have been sent, and we should have caught it.
“We found out about half an hour after it had been sent out. We retracted it. We made a big apology.
“And clearly, for all the customers that we know are worried about paying their energy bills, this type of message is deeply unhelpful and upsetting, and I apologise. It was a bad day, we made a mistake, and we have tried to put it right as fast as possible.”
"It was a bad day, we made a mistake"
— BBC Breakfast (@BBCBreakfast) January 12, 2022
On #BBCBreakfast the boss of OVO Energy Stephen Fitzpatrick apologies to customers who were told to 'cuddle a pet or loved one' if they can't afford to put the heating on.https://t.co/ECCQaTFdMk pic.twitter.com/uqWYWBdiCL
He sounded genuine and sincere. And it was a great example of how visible leadership can help organisations manage a crisis media management incident.
Center Parcs and the ‘mark of respect’ PR disaster
Fuming holidaymakers, backtracks, U-turns and accusations of ruining holidays – Center Parcs endured a torrid time in the media spotlight.
The upmarket forest retreat firm found itself at the centre of a social media storm and damaging headlines after announcing it would evict guests from its sites on the day of the Queen’s funeral as a ‘mark of respect’.
The decision meant guests in the middle of their holiday would leave the park and either go home early or spend the night elsewhere.
You say "out of respect", but where's the respect for your customers in this?
— Jonathan Phillips (@DigitalJonathan) September 13, 2022
Is it really that you're looking to avoid paying your staff a bank holiday rate instead?
So, essentially...you're inconveniencing and disappointing hundreds/thousands of hard-working people (and quite possibly costing them money) so that you can show your 'respect'? People who will have been planning their stays or trips for months. Bonkers. Absurd.
— KevInCornwall (@KevCOYG) September 13, 2022
After a huge backlash, there was a partial U-turn. Those already on holiday could stay, but all the amenities would be closed, and they would not be allowed to leave their lodges. And those due to arrive on the day of the funeral had to delay their holiday by a day.
This was followed by another change of policy, where it was confirmed guests could leave their lodges and walk around the closed holiday villages – nothing says ‘holiday’ quite like walking around amenities you can’t use.
Cleary, Center Parcs felt it was doing the right thing by its staff in closing to allow them to watch the Queen’s funeral.
But in doing so, it neglected another crucial audience - its customers. Annoying people it had just trained in archery, shooting and swinging through trees didn’t feel like the brightest idea.
Joking aside, those customers would have saved up for their holiday and been looking forward to their time away. Telling them they had to break that holiday up – or start or finish it early – was never going to land well.
The death of Queen Elizabeth was a massive story. And the bank holiday for her funeral was announced at short notice.
But people had been talking about and planning for what would happen when the monarch dies for years. Effective crisis media management involves working through different scenarios and understanding how best to respond. And how best to communicate that response, what messages work and which ones could cause more problems.
There shouldn’t have been any need for rash calls and announcements that upset the people you want to come back to your parks.
A councillor’s meal deal promotion
A councillor creating a post to raise awareness of an Asda meal deal might seem like an unlikely cause of a crisis.
But if you’ve been on our crisis communication training courses you know you need to expect the unexpected.
Cllr Tom Maclean found himself the focus of headlines and calls to resign after using the image of a far-right mass murderer on his post.
The town councillor in Colwyn Bay included a picture of Anders Breivik, who killed 77 people at a Norwegian summer camp in 2011, to highlight the £1 meal deal.
Councillor used picture of mass murderer Anders Breivik to promote Asda meal deal Metro
Councillor apologises for posting image of Anders Breivik to promote mean deal Telegraph
Facebook: Councillor posts fake Asda ad of Anders Breivik BBC News
Councillor shared image of mass murderer Anders Breivik to promote Asda meal deal https://t.co/QlggOC4cXP
— WTX News UK (@WtxNews) November 10, 2022
The councillor apologised and claimed not to know who the “ghastly figure” was.
He said: “I was highlighting the £1 meal deal for the over 60s which Asda are rolling out which I think is a good idea in these difficult times.
“My post included a clip art frame, and it was subsequently brought to my attention it featured a person I have since been told is a pretty ghastly figure.
“Naturally once I was made aware of this, I removed the post and I apologise for my mistake and any offence caused. In life, we live and we learn anew each day.”
But community groups continue to push for his resignation.
North Wales Life wrote: “It is quite clear Tom Maclean needs to step down as a councillor and from Theatre Colwyn and St Joseph’s food bank.
“He claims he did not know who the mass murderer was, but someone so active only and politically would know, this is why no one believes him.”
How P&O sunk its reputation
No look back at the crises of 2022 would be complete without revisiting the P&O debacle.
The company produced a masterclass earlier this year on how poor communication can make a bad situation much worse.
The once proud ferry company sacked 800 employees through a pre-recorded video message – a move that resulted in widespread condemnation, protests, and accusations of “gangster practise”.
Labour's Shadow Transport Secretary Louise Haigh described the firing as a "despicable assault on workers' rights".
Justin Welby, the Archbishop of Canterbury, called the decision “inhumane and unethical”.
And the RMT union called the company’s actions one of the "most shameful acts in the history of British industrial relations".
The biggest failing of the story has been the way the job losses were communicated.
No one should find out they have lost their job through a pre-recorded video message.
It is cold and feels uncaring, cruel and cowardly. It also doesn’t allow those impacted to ask questions about their plight.
When organisations have challenging messages to communicate, they must show they care and understand the human implications.
Pre-recorded video messages to those immediately losing their jobs are not the way to do this.
There are obvious logistical challenges that mean, covid aside, it would have been difficult to get everyone together in the same place.
At the very least, however, the video should have been live and offered the opportunity for questions.
When you are in a crisis media management mode, you must communicate. And then keep communicating.
It was hard to find much from P&O Ferries beyond brief statements. And most of those statements were reactive, denying what has been reported.
For example, it denied it acted insensitively in the way employees were removed from the vessels.
Why wasn’t there more effort to communicate why it had taken the decision and what actions it previously made to prevent this situation?
Message development and testing, for internal and external audiences is a crucial part of crisis communication. P&O Ferries didn’t seem to have any messages that went beyond ‘it has been a tough time, and we have to make changes’.
Those at the top knew job losses were coming, so why were messages not better prepared?
Months on, and the reputation damage remains. English Heritage has recently announced it has ended its partnership with the company.
All brands will find themselves in troubled waters at times. But reputations don’t need to sink.
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