MSLGROUP Crisis Network is a global network of 50+ MSLGROUP crisis experts,

with deep vertical expertise across industries and geographies, connected to each

other by our proprietary People’s Lab crowdsourcing platform. Our experts can not

only tap into each others insights in real time, but also leverage our proprietary crisis

toolkit including our crisis planning framework and our crisis simulation workshop

-- to help our clients plan for and respond to crisis situations effectively.

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Olivier FleurotChief Executive Officer, MSLGROUP

Foreword

As the world prepares for what could be a prolonged recession, business leaders also need to

prepare for a “new normal”, or a fundamental reset in the dynamics between individuals, influencers

and institutions around trust, power, risk and crisis.

I am delighted to present to you our report on managing risk in a world where every crisis is global,

social and viral. The report is a collection of insights and foresights from the MSLGROUP Crisis

Network, a global network of 50+ MSLGROUP crisis experts, with deep vertical expertise across

industries and geographies, connected to each other by our proprietary People’s Lab crowdsourcing

platform. Our experts can not only tap into each other’s insights in real time, but also leverage our

proprietary crisis toolkit to help our clients plan for and respond to crisis situations effectively.

In the end, however, managing risk in the “new normal” is less about saying the right things and

more about doing the right things. Corporations that are rooted in a shared purpose and have fully

integrated corporate citizenship into their strategy are more likely to respond to a crisis situation with

authenticity, transforming a potential crisis into an opportunity to reconnect with its stakeholders. So,

in many ways, what you do before a crisis happens is more important than what you do when a crisis

happens.

I hope that you’ll find value in both the insights and foresights in this report as well as in the

innovative model of the MSLGROUP Crisis Network.

Every Crisis is Global, Social, ViralNOVEMBER 2011

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The End of TrustThe decade has witnessed a profound erosion of trust in all types of institutions, including governments and corporations.

Even as North America and Europe prepare for a prolonged double dip financial crisis, we have seen social unrest in France, UK, Spain and Greece; a grassroots movement to occupy public spaces across the United States to protest against capitalism; right wing terrorist attacks in peaceful Norway; disclosure of state secrets by Wikileaks; a series of regime changes across the Arab world; and a sex scandal disgracing the IMF.

Even in the buoyant emerging economies of India, China and Brazil, the hitherto silent middle class is beginning to raise its voice and take to the streets to protest against chronic corruption that disproportionately rewards the entrenched elite at the cost of the other 99%; and the low quality of life that persists in spite of increased prosperity.

Trust in corporations, too, is at an all-time low, as a result of astronomical executive salaries paid by banks and auto companies, even as they were being bailed out by public funds; BP’s inability to either control the Gulf of Mexico oil spill for almost nine months, or take full responsibility for it; and perceptions of greenwashing by corporations, brought in sharp focus a series of viral campaigns by Greenpeace.

We are also seeing anger against the inability of governments and corporations to show the will to solve our most pressing problems: the short-sighted dependence on fossil fuels that threatens to undermine our planet’s ecosystem; the tradeoffs between economic progress and the good life, like urban pollution and lifestyle diseases; and the barriers to achieve the full human potential, with more than half the world’s population still struggling with poverty, malnutrition, disease and illiteracy.

Introduction: Every Crisis is Global, Social and Viral

Pascal BeuclerSVP and Chief Strategy Officer,

MSLGROUP

Gaurav MishraAsia Director of Social Media,

MSLGROUP

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Crisis management in today’s fragile world is

intrinsically interlinked with global shifts

in trust and power between individuals,

influencers and institutions.

Every Crisis is Global, Social, ViralNOVEMBER 2011

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Phto by mugley on flickr

Power to the PeopleAt the same time, people have new sources of power, as individuals and communities.

First, people are beginning to believe that governments and corporations have failed them and only they themselves can come up with innovative solutions to the world’s most pressing problems.

Second, people are leveraging social media platforms to create new public spaces for discourse and dissent that are irrevocably reshaping the global news ecosystem; organize themselves into distributed communities with a shared purpose and a shared vision for a better future; co-create new social innovation solutions and sustainable business models; and collaborate across continents to coordinate participation and action and act as catalysts for change.

Third, people are demanding that governments become both more transparent and less intrusive with their citizens; that government and corporations work together to create an ecosystem that enables civic participation; that corporations not only rediscover their social purpose but also put it at the core of how they engage with people, as employees, consumers and citizens.

Facebook’s Marc Zuckerberg underlined these shifts during the recent “e-G8” we organized in Paris: “People being empowered is the trend for the next decade: that’s the core social dynamics… People have the ability to voice their opinion, and it changes the world, as it rewires it from the ground up”. Unilever’s Paul Polman has also pointed to the new risks such power creates for corporations: “If [social media activists] can bring down the Egyptian regime in a few weeks, they can bring us down in nanoseconds.” Every Crisis is Global, Social and ViralThe social web is playing an important role in these shifts around trust, power, risk and crisis.

Specifically, we need to master three interplays shaping crisis in the “new normal”: the interplay between mainstream media and social media, the interplay between local and global dynamics, and the interplay between crisis planning and response.

First, the boundaries between mainstream media and social media are blurring as online influencers are linking to media stories and news organizations are quoting online influencers.

Second, no crisis is truly local in our interconnected world, as memes or hashtags can spread globally in seconds on the social web, yet local considerations must be factored into crisis planning and response.

Third, it’s critical to plan and prepare for crisis scenarios, but it’s even more important to respond to emergent crisis situations authentically, without over-reliance on scripted messages and workflows.

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Photo by Ben Chau on flickr

Every Crisis is Global, Social, ViralNOVEMBER 2011

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MSLGROUP Crisis NetworkIn a world where every crisis is global, social and viral, it’s critical to tap into the tools and insights from across our global network, in real time.

MSLGROUP Crisis Network is a global network of 50+ MSLGROUP crisis experts, with deep vertical expertise across industries and geographies, connected to each other by our proprietary People’s Lab crowdsourcing platform. Our experts can not only tap into each other’s insights in real time, but also leverage our proprietary crisis toolkit – including our crisis planning framework and our crisis simulation workshop -- to help our clients plan for and respond to crisis situations effectively.

In a world where every crisis is global, social and viral, here’s a roadmap to think about the interconnections between trust, power, risk and crisis, from our experts at the MSLGROUP Crisis Network.

In the first section, we explore how social media is changing trust, power, risk and crisis. We start by looking at the role of social media in societal upheavals in the West, including the terrorist attack in Norway, the riots in London and the Occupy Wall Street movement in the US. Then, we move to the East and look at how social media is changing the news ecosystem in China, eroding the wasta system of personal influence in the Middle East and uniting the Indian middle class in a grassroots movement against corruption.

In the second section, we outline how corporations can leverage social media to manage risk and reputation. We outline how social media can play a role at each stage in the crisis curve, describe the art and science of crisis simulation, recommend engaging third party influencers in crisis planning, share lessons from managing the global Crisis Command Center for BP, provide a playbook for handling a crisis on Facebook and end with tips and tricks on crisis management from our network of senior trusted advisors.

In summary, here are the most important tips from our global network of crisis experts that you will see across this report:

1. Proactively work on crisis preparedness, including crisis simulation workshops, crisis manuals, crisis collaboration wikis and dark crisis websites.

2. Create local crisis plans in collaboration with key influencers, instead of merely localizing global crisis plans.

3. Train staff, including the C-suite, on the new news ecosystem and guidelines for social media engagement, before a crisis hits.

4. Specifically plan for communicating with all key influencers, including employees, as part of crisis planning.

5. Build trust assets, including the reputation of being rooted in a shared purpose, strong relationships with key influencers, and strong owned media channels like blogs and microblogs, before the crisis.

6. Respond to the crisis with authenticity, integrity and the will to do the right thing, not only say the right thing.

We sincerely hope that the insights and foresights we are bringing here will be useful to you. To know more about the MSLGROUP Crisis Network, or to subscribe to receive similar insights and foresights in the form of a quarterly newsletter, please visit http://crisis.mslgroup.com.

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Photo by alancleaver_2000 on flickr

In a world where every crisis is global, social

and viral, it’s critical to tap into the tools and insights from across

our global network, in real time.

Every Crisis is Global, Social, ViralNOVEMBER 2011

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Photo by h.koppdelaney on flickr

Index

SECTION 1How Social Media is Changing Trust, Power and Crisis

14 Power to the People: When Main Street Occupies Wall Street PASCAL BEUCLER

16 The Norway Attacks and Social Media: Lessons in Crisis Management for Governments and Corporations JOHN INGE OGLAEND

19 Lessons in Social Media and Crisis Management from the UK Riots GARETH DAVIES

24 How the Great Indian Middle Class Used Social Media to Create a Grassroots Anti-Corruption Movement JAIDEEP SHERGILL

28 How Social Media is Changing the News Ecosystem in China BENJAMIN TAN

30 Wasta: How Power and Influence are Changing in the Middle East FRAN MCELWAINE

SECTION 2How to Leverage Social Media for Managing Risk and Reputation

34 How Social Media is Changing News and Crisis: The Crisis Curve Framework GAURAV MISHRA

37 Crisis Simulation, Experiencing a Crisis First Hand, Before it Happens ERIK NILSSON

39 Engaging Third Party influencers in Crisis Planning JACK YEO

44 Managing a Crisis Command Center in the Social Media Age: Lessons from BP STEVE MARINO

46 The Role of the Community Manager in Managing the Crisis on Facebook DIMITRI GRANGER, ROMAIN VEZIRIAN

48 In Summary: Being Trusted Advisors in a Turbulent World ANDERS KEMPE

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Every Crisis is Global, Social, ViralNOVEMBER 2011

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SECTION 1

How Social Media is Changing Trust, Power, Risk and CrisisIn this section, we explore how social media is changing trust, power and crisis. We start by looking at the role of social media in societal upheavals in the West, including the terrorist attack in Norway, the riots in London and the Occupy Wall Street movement that started in the US. Then, we move to the East and look at how social media is changing the news ecosystem in China, eroding the wasta system of personal influence in the Middle East and uniting the Indian middle class in a grassroots movement against corruption.

Occupy Wall StreetPascal Beucler, Chief Strategy Officer of MSLGROUP, outlines how the Occupy Wall Street protests have grown into a global movement of the “indignants”, or “the other 99%”, against the excesses of capitalism, especially financial institutions.

Norway AttacksJohn Inge Oglaend from JKLGROUP Norway outlines social media’s role in the recent terrorist attacks in Norway. John specifically focuses on how Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg and journalist Rune Thomas Ege effectively used social media to engage with the public with empathy in the aftermath of the attacks.

UK RiotsGareth Davies from MSL London talks about the role of social media during the recent London riots and argues that “there is no best practice for governments to use social media in such protests; instead, if you engage with communities and influencers on an ongoing basis, they will be more inclined to listen to you and to stand up for you in time of crisis”.

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Power to the People: When Main Street Occupies Wall Street

Pascal BeuclerSVP & Chief Strategy Officer,

MSLGROUP

Occupy Wall StreetAs we get used to the idea that the financial crisis is here to stay, it’s worth analyzing what’s happening in various European countries, and now in the USA, where the crowds of “indignés” (the indignant, the angry) are growing every day and occupying public spaces. It’s amazing to see how fast the game has changed within a few months: from celebrating regime changes in the Middle East, the West has had to deal with a series of revolutions at home, many of them triggered by the continuation of the crisis.

Even if mistrust of governments and corporations has been developing over the past decade (Enron, the burst of the high-tech bubble, 9/11 etc.), the continued financial crisis, in combination with the emergence of a new mindset, in a context of social media explosion, has dramatically transformed public opinion. And, in fact, far beyond public opinion, we should probably start questioning the “public acceptance” of our socio-political and economic systems, and be prepared to deal with bigger crises in the coming times.

The movement started in Southern Europe, particularly in Greece and Spain. Then the USA joined the movement, dubbed Occupy Wall Street. Hundreds of Americans have been camping there for weeks, and thousands are following their example across the country, from Boston and Chicago, to Houston and San Francisco. The protesters are using social networks, blogs and websites -- such as Occupy Wall Street, Occupy Together and Ad Busters -- to connect people all around the country.

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Photo by Nessy du Loch 2011 on flickr

The way Occupy Wall Street defines itself is insightful. Occupy Wall Street calls itself “a horizontally organized resistance movement employing the revolutionary Arab Spring tactic to restore democracy in America”. It relies on an approach it calls a “people’s assembly” to “facilitate collective decision making in an open, participatory and non-binding manner” and welcomes people from all colors, genders and beliefs to attend its daily assemblies. It has also published a “quick guide on group dynamics in people’s assemblies“ for others who wish to start their own people’s assemblies to “organize local communities to fight back against social injustice.”

Never have the ancient Agora (physical assembly, here and now) and the digital one (each and every social network, as well as the sum of all of them) been so closely inter-connected. The Occupy Wall Street movement is a really interesting hybrid of “traditional” and social media, “real” and virtual gatherings.

We are the 99%If the first “indignés” were activists, most of the newcomers are young employees and graduates. It looks like a whole generation is joining a deep and wide “value-for-all” movement here, best expressed by the “we are the 99%” group: “We are the 99 percent. We are getting kicked out of our homes. We are forced to choose between groceries and rent. We are denied quality medical care. We are suffering from environmental pollution. We are working long hours for little pay and no rights, if we’re

working at all. We are getting nothing while the other 1 percent is getting everything. We are the 99 percent.”

In terms of beliefs and values, whether American, Spanish or French, in my view these young people have three things in common:

1. They don’t trust institutions anymore. Trust in corporations is at an all-time low across the world. The destruction of wealth is rarely lethal. But the destruction of confidence, brand equity and reputation among financial institutions and public bodies is terribly damaging. In a world where banks and financial companies are seen as reckless, fraudulent and disconnected from reality, whilst governments around the world are blamed for their inaction, we shouldn’t be surprised to see more and more social outrage. Never have corporate reputations been so precious, and so fragile.

2. They have new power, and they know how to use it. They are in control. And the more it goes, the more they realize the power they have in their hands. Like Marc Zuckerberg underlined it, during the recent “e-G8” we organized in Paris, “People being empowered is the trend for the next decade: that’s the core social dynamics… People have the ability to voice their opinion, and it changes the world, as it rewires it from the ground up”. As a matter of fact, what the crowds of people gathering in San Francisco said is exactly that: “We just want our voice to be heard”.

3. They demand purpose, and shared value. Financial institutions, like other corporations, need to not only rediscover their social purpose but also put it at the core of how they engage with their stakeholders. There is no value creation without solid profits. But profits cannot be the only criteria of value creation. The “corporate” side of organizations is more and more important. People expect companies, brands, institutions, to commit to core values, among which transparency, sustainability and accountability are central. Value for All is the new mantra, everywhere.

When he published his short essay Indignez-vous!, could Holocaust survivor and French resistance leader Stéphane Hessel imagine the power of his call?

The Occupy Wall Street movement is a really interesting hybrid of

“traditional” and social media, “real” and

virtual gatherings.

Every Crisis is Global, Social, ViralNOVEMBER 2011

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Social Media: Another angle to the Norway Story

Following the Norway attacks, Journalist Rune Thomas Ege tweeted and gave interviews on the growing number of people using social media to share information.

The Norway Attacks and Social Media: Lessons in Crisis Management for Governments and Corporations

John Inge OglaendSenior Advisor, JKL GROUP Norway

Leadership in the time of crisisOn the day of the Norway attacks, Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg tweeted the following message: “Today, we have been hit by two savage and cowardly attacks. Tonight, we all stand together, taking care of each other”. In another tweet, he acknowledged Russian President Vladimir Medvedev who had expressed his support of the Norwegian people. A few days after the attacks, Mr. Stoltenberg also posted a picture of himself on Facebook: it showed him with his

iPad looking at his newsfeed. The entire press corps has praised his leadership and his approval ratings have gone through the roof.

Mr. Stoltenberg’s seasoned use of Twitter shows not only that leadership begins at the top but also how critical honesty, transparency and timeliness are in crisis situations. Moreover, we can see how important social networks have become. This crisis intersects social media from all angles: from the killer’s motives to people’s attempts to save lives and remember those who perished.

For corporations, obvious lessons can be drawn. If you do not have a social presence, and you encounter a crisis, you will miss out on most of the conversations about your company.

A Journalist’s Social InfluenceIt’s been amazing to watch the intersection of social media and traditional media in recent months. For his part, Rune Thomas Ege, a journalist at VG, Norway’s largest newspaper, was among the first to tweet eyewitness reports of

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Elected officials, the police, corporations, activists and everyday people can all use social media for good---when they chose to do so.

Photo credit: Twitter

Photo by OwlLens on flickr

the attack. He was tweeting in Norwegian, but was soon asked by people in different countries to tweet in English. Upon doing so, he soon gathered more than 3,500 new followers.

The websites of several foreign newspapers picked up Rune’s tweets in their Twitter feeds. Even though he had been at the bombsite he quickly moved to Utøya and continued to tweet from there, while writing for the newspaper. Due to his tweets he was soon contacted by news services from all over the world to give comments and report on TV. It can be argued that Rune, by his use of social media, set the agenda for many of the world’s leading news agencies; He was used as a reporter for news organizations in 14 countries, including BBC World, SKY, ABC, CBS, and as far as way as Australia and Chile.

Tweeting “Do Not Call People on Utøya” The first signs that something was truly wrong on Utøya, where 69 people were assassinated, came on Twitter. People on the island used Twitter, Facebook and SMS to inform their loved ones about the shooting as it happened. As it became clear what was going on, people started to call their loved ones on Utøya. The people on the island tweeted, pleading for people not to call, because it would attract the attention of the killer, and reveal the places where people were hiding. Others followed up and spread the message: “Do not call people on Utøya, they are hiding”. So action created counter-action in the social media sphere.

Eyewitness Accounts and Support GroupsOnly one day after the killing on Utøya the first eyewitness accounts appeared on blogs. Prableen Kaurs, the 18–year-old deputy leader of the Oslo Labour Party youth organization, wrote about the “Hell at Utøya”. Such blog posts gave people the possibility to share thoughts, feelings and analysis—a critical activity for crisis recovery, according to Psychologist Anders Skuterud in several media interviews.

In just a few days, people used social media to organize gatherings and memorials, such as rose marches in numerous towns across Norway. Online support groups were established for victims who survived; even the killer’s mother and his lawyers got their own support groups. In the immediate aftermath, the group “Light a candle for the

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Photo credit: Youtube

Photo by OwlLens on flickr

dead and injured after the tragedies in Oslo and Utøya” got 500 new members per minute.

Two Sides of the CoinWhile those are positive examples, hate groups also formed. On the morning of 23 July more than 70 such groups appeared on Facebook, with one totaling almost 12,000 members. Many of the groups named the killer and posted pictures taken from his profile on Facebook, now removed.

Much of the criticism of how the police have handled the situation, in particular debates about how long it should have taken to get to the island and by what means, has also taken place in social media. Many prominent politicians remained quiet for a long time, possibly sensing the strong emotions on the issue and fearing how people would react to their public statements. The police

have also been criticized for not participating in discussions on social networks. They have relied on the traditional media and used press statements and press conferences to communicate, thereby avoiding a two-way dialogue with the public.

The extensive use of social media as a source for reporting isn’t without problems. As argued by journalist Emanuel Karsten in SVTV Debat, the media acted as useful idiots for a calculating mass murderer. Furthermore, when journalists received the manifesto via email they were surprised to learn that it had been available on Twitter for a long time and had a massive circulation already. He achieved his goal of circulating photos and manifesto to a large audience by the use of social media.

Moreover, due to pressure to produce articles and be the first with new story angles, some journalists used any pictures they could get their hands on without thinking that some of them were coming form the murderer himself. Some journalists unwittingly published photos that he himself wanted published.

Nevertheless, we can all learn from what happened. Elected officials, the police, corporations, activists and everyday people can all use social media for good---when they chose to do so. Like I said, it comes down to honesty, transparency, and timeliness. It’s what we all want to see from people in a crisis.

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Lessons in Social Media and Crisis Management From the UK Riots

Gareth DaviesHead of Social Media, MSL London

Deconstructing the Role of Social Media in the UK RiotsSince the London riots we’ve seen many individuals, groups, organizations and the media dissecting every detail to understand where it all went wrong and what drove so many people to “revolt”. Amidst the many discussions and debates there has been much finger pointing and unfortunately

many have called out social media as a key factor in enabling the widespread, coordinated chaos many of us witnessed firsthand over the summer.

Whether it is right or wrong to blame social media will never be decided, as it really depends on whom you ask. Pose the questions to politicians and lawmakers and they may say technology is at fault, whereas if

you ask much younger generations they will simply say it is the focus for blame because many still don’t understand its usage or potential.

But either way, whilst you can’t blame individual trees for a forest fire, neither can you call out social media as the key “reason” that these riots happened in the first place.

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Photo by mastermaq on flickr

Looking at recent history, in particular the uprisings in Iran, Egypt and Tunisia, these revolutions were formed on the back of a desire to make a change. Whilst social media didn’t create such desire, it did show disparate groups and individuals that they were not alone whilst helping them act “as one”. It enabled them to coordinate and deploy a much wider, far-reaching effort.

This, at its heart, is what has helped social media become so widespread so quickly - the ability to connect with like-minded individuals over shared goals and interests. But more important is the fact that until governments and organizations understand this point, we will see many more knee-jerk reactions.

So how should we look to “better manage” the usage of social media in a time where protests and demonstrations are becoming increasingly prevalent across the world?

The answer is that there is no best practice in how to use social media in such situations. Restricting access in times of chaos is simply a knee-jerk reaction that needs extensive consideration. Both Twitter and Facebook provide real-time, always-on dialogue. If you switch off access in one country or region, others would find out and that in turn would create a crisis for the government or organization enforcing the shut down.

Being Social and Trustworthy in Times of Non-Crisis, Like Lady GagaIn my opinion, the true answer lies in how governments and relevant organizations use social media in times of “non-crisis”. David Cameron has sung the praises of the new e-reform system allowing UK citizens to propose new legislation and even Gordon Brown’s government got No. 10 Downing Street on Twitter. But how much of this is just show? How many politicians can readily say that they understand and regularly use social media? Even Barack Obama, who set the rules on how to use social media for electioneering, is limited in how much content he himself actually publishes versus a team of publicists who have the time to do it for him.

Photo by renaissancechambara on flickr

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Being Social and Trustworthy in Times of Non-Crisis, Like Lady Gaga. The true answer lies in how governments and relevant organizations use social media in times of “non-crisis”.

Photo by JohnLucas1983 on flickr

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In the social media space, credibility and transparency are your greatest assets you have to play. They can make or break a politician or an organization just as they can make or break a brand. But you need to be engaged with social media to understand its power.

Lady Gaga is considered one of the most influential people in the world – simply because of the size of her online, virtual following. Imagine if a politician applied the same rules to his/her own personal “MP” brand? She can call upon and rely upon her fans to support her in whatever she does simply because she has taken a journey with them. She regularly posts, she answers questions (by herself and not via a publicist) and she shares content and access to her life that has proved to be of real value to her fans. Subsequently she has an “army” who will stand by her side.

We’re not recommending that Britain’s public officials use social media channels to broadcast more– they need to use social media for better engagement, for igniting critical conversations with people who matter: people in communities that are highly active online; commentators with the influence to affect policy and legislation; people who represent the voiceless and those who have no inclination to interact with government (based on many factors but trust and credibility probably being the most prevalent).

By spending time building up credibility and acting in a transparent manner, governments will develop positive relationships with online influencers who will be willing to speak and act on the government’s behalf simply because they believe.

Think how different things could be if the government had used social media to listen to the growing concerns of the “disaffected youth” that they blamed for fuelling the anger and aggression that was at the heart of the riots. Think of how things could have changed had the UK and London governments created a rallying cry to local communities via social media to help stop or at least better manage those individuals causing the chaos.

When plugged in, governments gain greater visibility and a better understanding of what is happening at the grass roots. Subsequently they will be better informed and more able to react in a way that benefits all those involved. It’s clear that our government needs to connect with their “Little Monsters”.

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India’s Anti-Corruption MovementJaideep Shergill, CEO of Hanmer MSL in India, draws crisis communications lessons from the anti-corruption protests in India, led by 74-year old Gandhian activist Anna Hazare. Specifically, he highlights the importance of creating your campaign around an idea that resonates with people and using powerful symbolism and imagery to move people.

China’s New Media EcosystemBenjamin Tan, Client Engagement Director for MSLGROUP Greater China, talks about how social media, especially microblogging service Sina Weibo, is changing how news stories and crisis situations spread in China’s government controlled news environment. Benjamin says that citizens trust mainstream media for business-related crisis situations, but turn to social media for government-related crisis situations, like the recent train crash in Wenzhou.

Middle East, Jasmine Revolution and WastaFran McElwaine, Managing Director of Capital MSL in Dubai, says that social media is changing how governments and businesses manage crisis situations in the Middle East, as “wasta”, which means using your power to influence outcomes, does not work on social media. Fran says that social media has an invaluable role to play in financial communication, especially in situations that are time critical, like crisis situations and quarterly results.

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Photo by ssoosay on flickr

How the Great Indian Middle Class Used Social Media to Create a Grassroots Anti-Corruption Movement

Jaideep ShergillCEO of Hanmer MSL India

India’s Anti-Corruption MovementFor over a week in August 2011, New Delhi’s Ramlila ground took on the air of Cairo’s Tahrir Square. Revolution was in the air.

The agitation for a strong anti-corruption law and an independent authority that would investigate charges against ministers and the bureaucracy – launched by 74-year-old Gandhian, Anna Hazare – had reached a crescendo.

As the government resisted, Indians across geographies and communities rallied in support of Hazare and forced Parliament to relent.

What was astonishing about the movement, which began in January, was the exceptional use of public relations tools and techniques without the help of a communications agency.

The campaign made impressive use of symbolism (fasts and meditation),

social media (Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, apps), news media, television and mobile telephony.

The “Social” RevolutionThe lessons were clear: A good product generates its own PR. Hazare’s Jan Lokpal Bill satisfies the need to reduce corruption. Clear messaging and use of the right communication tools for our age (it was a social media-fueled stir, which is why it had such a large youth participation) made it

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a mass movement. In contrast, the government goofed up repeatedly in its crisis communications.

A team of IT experts ran the India Against Corruption campaign’s main website along with 14 city-centric websites round-the-clock. They also monitored TV channels and posted videos on the internet to create a buzz across the globe.

Another team ensured that the latest information about Hazare was posted on social networking sites such as Facebook (nearly 514,000 likes by early September) and Twitter @janlokpal, (more than 140,000 by early September). His video from Tihar jail has had 163,000 views.

What Hazare Taught Us1. Have an idea that connects:

Rocked by five major scams over the past year, India was angry with the government for its seeming lack of will to tackle corruption. A strong, independent agency that could investigate ministers,

the bureaucracy, the judiciary and even the prime minister was an idea whose time had come.

2. Create symbols, icons: Every timeless brand has its symbols – Nike and its swoosh, for instance. They also have their icons – Steve Jobs at Apple, for example. Similarly, Hazare and the Gandhi cap became the icon and symbol respectively of the anti-corruption fight. The movement’s slogan, “I am Anna Hazare”, internalized the struggle for millions of people. It made individuals want to act.

3. Create a compelling experience: Hazare chose the Ramlila ground for its size, allowing thousands to take in the atmosphere. Having experienced their own power, the people began to believe they could change things.

4. Make a media plan: The campaign was timed perfectly. Launched between the cricket World Cup and the Indian Premier League,

it filled a media vacuum. Team Anna made sure the campaign was centrestage in the media all the time. Hazare himself refused to leave Tihar Jail after his arrest. This created a larger impact than any media interview could have had. There was another critical aspect: the campaign had only three or four people speaking to the media. This was smart thinking. The fewer the voices, the less scope there was for distortion of the message.

5. Use the right imagery: The image of Hazare meditating at Rajghat (where Gandhi was cremated) or of him lying down at Ramlila ground and clapping along to devotional songs proved to be iconic. With a giant image of Mahatma Gandhi in the backdrop, the message was not lost on anybody – “here is a frail 74-year-old taking on the establishment, much as another frail old man had done in the 1930s and 1940s, and he deserves your support.”

Photo credit: Indiaagainstcorruption.org

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How the government got it wrong Prime Minister Manmohan Singh used to be known as the architect of India’s economic reforms. Today, he’s the face of a discredited government.

1. It kept the blinkers on: The government steadfastly refused to accept the need for an anti-

corruption law, showing that it was out of touch with the nation’s mood. Reeling from a wave of corruption scandals, it would have done better to start the process for framing an effective law. As a result, a perception was created that the government was trying to stall an effort to cleanse the country.

2. It arrested Hazare: If arresting Hazare was ill-advised, taking him to Tihar jail was a PR disaster. Tihar is where those accused of some of the worst corruption in recent times were lodged. As a result, Hazare turned his arrest into victory by refusing to leave jail, even when allowed to, until his demands were met. This shamed the government.

Photo credit: Youtube

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Photo credit: Facebook

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3. It failed to communicate: Top leaders stubbornly refused to engage with the media. This allowed the anti-graft crusaders drive the debate. Singh’s silence gave the impression that he wasn’t really in charge. Silence makes you look guilty. The government should have been honest about its misgivings and communicated like crazy. As a result, Team Anna pushed its point of view, but there was no counter, cementing the national mood. The government should have seized the initiative by moving aggressively on the unfinished economic reforms agenda, but it did not even celebrate 20 years of reforms

in July. A publicity blitzkrieg would have done wonders for its reputation, especially with young middle-class Indians who benefited most from the reforms. It is these people who heeded Hazare’s call.

4. It sent out the wrong message: When he did speak, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said all the wrong things: “There is no magic wand to curb corruption.” He should have declared that the battle against corruption was integral to the reforms process. As a result, people thought that Singh was not serious about battling corruption.

In summary, the India Against Corruption movement is an important case study, both on combining traditional control on messaging with the virality of new media tools and on responding to crisis situations catalyzed by grassroots dissent on social media. While Indian politicians have surely learned much from the experience, there’s much that corporations in India and elsewhere can learn from it too.

In general, for crisis situations involving public authorities, people trust social media and ignore traditional media, especially if the government is clamping down on part of the story.

Photo by davesamuel.20091965 on flickr

How Social Media is Changing the News Ecosystem in China

Benjamin TanClient Engagement Director,

MSLGROUP Greater China

Microblogging is shaping a new public space in China The prominence of social media, specifically on Weibo, the microblogging service similar to Twitter, which is blocked in China, is playing a huge role in how news spreads in China. All the main internet players in China, including Sina, Sohu and Tencent have weibos with more than 100 million users

on each. Many journalists are also present in social media, and they often publish their stories on Weibo.

While Chinese netizens pay considerable attention to corporate and non-profit scandals such as the one with China Red Cross (a man with ties to the organization funded his girlfriend’s lavish lifestyle), such issues pale in comparison to crises

affecting personal safety, personal grievances and perceived negligence by authorities. One can see this in the cases involving the milk scare, the train crash in Wenzhou, in eastern China, and the scam with a furniture chain, whose Chinese owners claimed that China-made goods were imported from Italy.

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These crisis situations can originate from a short news article and spread to social media and back to traditional media, and vice versa. In general, for crisis situations involving public authorities, people trust social media and ignore traditional media, especially if the government is clamping down on part of the story.

In China, it’s not uncommon for government authorities to clamp down on government-related crisis news by leaning on the traditional, local media channels -- this happened with the Wenzhou train crash. It is harder, however, for officials to stop all the news and opinion-sharing on social networks, as they cannot control the entire digital sphere.

For crisis situations not related to the government, the traditional news organizations have more leeway. Therefore, traditional media often provides more insights into such crisis situations (given journalists’ investigative nature) while social media provides more timely updates. Social media also allows people to share their comments and concerns, and in most cases, vent their frustrations.

Corporations in China are using social media for crisis communicationsAs far as corporate crises are concerned, the media tend to cover not only the actual event but also previous issues or crises involving the company in question. This has been made easier due to the availability of historic news in the digital space, creating a negative long-tail effect.

Some corporations in China still choose not to respond to crisis situations, hoping the situation will pass. When a crisis hits, they react to the situation without a strategy and come off scared, or engage a PR agency and go through the motions but in reality don’t listen to counsel and simply use the PR firm as a media buffer.

However, as social media is changing the public sphere and the news ecosystem in China, it is also changing how corporations plan for and respond to crisis situations. More corporations are taking crisis preparation seriously, by training their spokespeople to handle a

crisis and building owned media assets online, so that they can be deployed during a crisis. Some corporations have even taken to SEO/SEM to manage their search engine rankings, making sure that their name is associated as much as possible with positive news and thought leadership.

Specifically, B2C corporations are focusing increasingly on social media to mitigate crises while B2B companies are still focusing on traditional media to get their message across. B2C companies are investing in social media monitoring systems and crisis strategy, focusing on the interplay between social media and traditional media.

In summary, gone are the days when an executive could rely on personal influence with a journalist and make the problem go away. The Chinese netizens are less patient with corporations, and less forgiving, if they perceive any response from corporations to be insincere.

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Unfortunately wasta does not work with social media, where it’s more difficult to influence outcomes by using power or personal relationships.

Photo by Magharebia on flickr

Wasta: How Power and Influence are Changing in the Middle East

Fran McElwaineManaging Director, Capital MSL

Dubai

In the Middle East, the traditional reaction to a crisis has been to keep silent and wait out the issue. However, the advent and fast adoption of social media among key influencer groups has meant that this is an even less satisfactory strategy than it was a few years ago. Following the 2009 financial crash, our clients are beginning to recognize the value of having a solid

crisis containment plan in place, but it is still a long way from being the accepted norm.

Arab Spring and the end of Wasta The recent Arab Spring that relied heavily on information-sharing through social media is clear evidence of how “behind the curve” the establishment is with regard to

managing the social conversation. The typical response is to “shut it down” with a big hammer, instead of managing conflict in more subtle ways.

Generally speaking, negative sentiment and information spread extremely quickly on social media. Conversely, most companies and organizations are afraid to engage

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Photo by Magharebia on flickr

with social media, as they are uncomfortable with the mutual two-way dialogue that such networks impose. This means that companies are usually slow to respond to issues and lose valuable time in containing them.

There is a specific Arab word - “wasta” - that means using your power to influence outcomes. It is generally considered a good thing to have lots of “wasta”. As most of the mainstream media in the region are heavily self-censored, most senior individuals are used to leveraging their wasta to ensure there is no negative coverage of them in the media. Unfortunately wasta does not work with social media, where it’s more difficult to influence outcomes by using power or personal relationships. Again, for most organizations it requires a cultural shift that is not comfortable.

Social Media and Financial CommunicationsWithin the realm of financial communications, social media has an invaluable role to play, especially in situations that are time critical, such as during the announcement of quarterly results and in the event of

crisis. Twitter is especially useful for alerting audiences about impending announcements and directing them to websites, blogs, videos or whitepapers with in-depth analysis.

For general financial communications, which are not necessarily time-sensitive, and where ongoing in-depth analysis and factual support are essential, the use of digital media is often constrained to micro-sites where there is an opportunity to provide detailed information that can be regularly updated.

Social media engagement is very much the domain of the young, educated and articulate in the Middle East - all the more reason for companies in this region to take it seriously. The expertise here is considerable and we have the capabilities to host, design and build very sophisticated social media engagement programs that allow people to interact with brands and companies.

As an example, when our banking client started seeing signs that a merger deal might not go through, they realized that they would need

to reassure investors, employees, clients and partners, to maintain a stable stock price. Capital MSL created an email sent to clients and partners, updating them on the developments and reassuring them of the bank’s commitment to working with and serving them; relationship managers called their contacts, following a message training from Capital MSL. We also briefed the CEO for a townhall meeting to update and reinvigorate employees.

As a result, the stock price stabilized within 36 hours. The messages in the media and marketplace were almost entirely positive, with neither party being criticized. Anecdotal feedback from people in the market, investors, partners and employees was also overwhelmingly positive.

Today, social media will play an important role in managing all aspects of such a crisis, from holding townhall meetings from employees on private community platforms, to using public social media channels for communicating with external stakeholders in real time.

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SECTION 2

How to Leverage Social Media for Managing Risk and ReputationIn this section, we outline how corporations can leverage social media to manage risk and reputation. We outline how social media can play a role at each stage in the crisis curve, describe the art and science of crisis simulation, recommend engaging third party influencers in crisis planning, share lessons from managing the global Crisis Command Center for BP, provide a playbook for handling a crisis on Facebook and end with tips and tricks on crisis management from our network of senior trusted advisors.

Crisis CurveGaurav Mishra, Asia Director of Social Media for MSLGROUP, shares a framework to understand how social media is changing news and crisis. Gaurav outlines the four stages in the crisis curve: flash point, spotlight, blame game and resolution and highlights the role of social media at each stage. He then describes three types of crisis situations based on the interplay between social media and mainstream media: real world, slow burn and flash mob. Finally, he details a crisis planning and response toolkit, with tactics for each type of crisis and each stage of the crisis curve.

Crisis SimulationErik Nilsson from JKLGROUP Sweden believes that “that the best way to prepare for a crisis is to go through one.” Erik has run several crisis planning workshops with clients across Europe using MSLGROUP’s proprietary crisis simulation tool. The tool creates fictitious newspaper articles, TV broadcasts, interviews, blog posts, tweets and events etc. in a secure IT environment to stress test the organization’s readiness to manage a crisis. Apart from the workshops and the simulations, Erik has created crisis manuals and even crisis war rooms to help clients become better prepared for crisis situations.

Mapping Your Key InfluencersJack Yeo, SVP at MSL Chicago, says that “third-party influencers play an important role in both how organizations prepare for crisis situations and how they are perceived during one.” Jack uses MSLGROUP’s proprietary IM MSL influencer mapping approach to identify an organization’s most important influencers and recommends that clients invite important influencers to share their perspectives in crisis planning workshops.

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How Social Media is Changing News and Crisis: The Crisis Curve Framework

Gaurav MishraAsia Director of Social Media,

MSLGROUP

Social media is playing an important role in shaping news stories in general and crisis situations in particular. Specifically, even as social media makes it easy to track an emerging crisis situation, it makes it difficult to effectively manage the crisis situation.

Social media and the news curveAll news stories develop in a similar manner, following the news curve. The news curve has four stages: breaking news, context, analysis and archival. The breaking news stage is

concerned with questions like: what happened, with whom and where? In the context stage, more information is added, as background. In the analysis

stage, opinions are shared and responsibility is assigned. In the archival stage, the story goes off the newspaper front page, the website homepage and the evening news on TV.

Social media is playing an important role in shaping the news curve. The news curve is becoming shorter in the “breaking news” and “context” stages, but longer in the “analysis” and “archival” stages. The news curve is also becoming more fragmented and news stories are becoming more viral. Different social media behaviors play different roles across the four stages of the news curve. News stories are now being broken on the official Twitter channels of news organizations and shared via retweets. Context is being added by sharing links on Twitter using a hashtag. Blogs and video blogs are playing an important role in shaping opinion. Finally, search is making it easier to find and share archived stories that act as context for new stories.

The 26/11 Mumbai terror attack in 2009 is a good example of how social media is shaping the news ecosystem

even in emerging economies. During the 72-hour terrorist seize of India’s financial capital, Twitter, Flickr and blogs became important tools for citizen journalists to share original reporting, news, and opinions. Social media, especially Twitter, played an important role in shaping the mainstream media narrative during the crisis, both in India and internationally.

Social media and the crisis curveThe four stages in the crisis curve correspond to the four stages in the news curve: flash point, spotlight, blame game and resolution. Like the news curve, the crisis curve is becoming shorter in the “flash point” and “spotlight” stages, but longer in the “blame game” and “resolution” stages. Like the news curve, the crisis curve is also becoming more fragmented and crisis stories are

Breaking newsSharing stories viaretweets

ContextSharing links viahashtags

Analysis Sharing opinions via blog posts

ArchivalSearching for

stories via Google

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Based on the interplay between social media and mainstream media in the run up to the crisis flash point, crisis situations can be categorized into three types, each needing a different approach: real world crisis, slow burn crisis and flash mob crisis.

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becoming more viral. As a result, even as social media makes it easy to track an emerging crisis situation, it makes it difficult to effectively manage the crisis situation.

The interplay between social media and mainstream media is an important aspect of the crisis curve, with online influencers linking to media stories and media quoting online influencers.

Three types of crisis situationsBased on the interplay between social media and mainstream media in the run up to the crisis flash point, crisis situations can be categorized into three types, each needing a different approach: real world crisis, slow burn crisis and flash mob crisis.

In the “real world” crisis, a real world incident (oil spill, financial scam, sex scandal) precipitates the crisis. Mainstream media puts a spotlight on the crisis while social media amplifies the crisis. For instance, during the protracted BP Gulf of Mexico crisis in 2010, the flash point was the oil spill itself, but social media played a critical role in the spotlight, blame game and resolution stages. BP’s crisis response was a textbook case study in terms of its scope and scale. However, a series of failed attempts to control the oil spill over months, then-CEO

Tony Hayward’s “I want my life back” comment, and the online spoofs they inspired, did not help BP’s cause.

In the “slow burn” crisis, social media conversations (product quality, customer support, employee discontent) build up into a crisis and are picked up by influential bloggers and even mainstream media. For instance, in 2005, influential blogger Jeff Jarvis blogged about a series of bad customer service experiences with Dell, and became the focal point of the Dell Hell crisis. Dell Hell forced Dell to recommit to creating a positive customer experience and led to several remarkable social media initiatives including the Direct2Dell blog, the Dell Ideastorm ideation community and Dell’s social media command center.

In the “flash mob” crisis, a social media meme (Greenpeace campaign, anti-brand hashtag, anti-brand video) creates a flash mob, turns into a crisis, and is picked up by mainstream media. For instance, in 2010, Greenpeace created a viral video led campaign to protest against Nestle procuring palm oil from Indonesian rainforests and endangering orangutans. Protestors hijacked Nestle’s Facebook page and filled it with abusive comments and Nestle Killer profile pics. Surprisingly, Nestle’s strong corporate citizenship

reputation for creating shared value did not help during the crisis. In the end, Nestlé announced that it would stop procuring from suppliers associated with deforestation.

Using social media to manage a crisisSocial media has a specific role to play at each stage of the crisis curve. MSLGROUP has created a crisis management toolkit that includes tools and best practices for each stage in the crisis cycle.

In the flash-point stage, we track negative social media chatter, identify early warning signals, isolate issues, and resolve them, before they turn into a crisis.

In the spotlight stage, we plot a heat map of crisis flows between social media and mainstream media, identify influencers who are acting as hubs driving these flows and focus our crisis management efforts on these hubs.

In the blame-game stage, we help clients shape the narrative by leveraging owned media channels like blog and YouTube to reframe the issue more positively and avert direct blame.

In the resolution stage, we optimize owned media content for search results, so that positive and neutral

Before CrisisPlan for crisis scenarios

Flash PointTrack earlywarning signals

SpotlightPlot heat map ofcrisis flows

Blame Game Shape narrative via owned media

ResolutionOptimize for

search results

Before crisis: Map out alternate crisis scenarios in advance, and plan for their best, worst and most likely cases, in order to respond to them effectively.

Flash point: Track negative social media chatter, identify early warning signals, isolate issues, and resolve them, before they turn into a crisis.

Spotlight: Plot a heat map of crisis flows between social media and mainstream media, identify influencers who are acting as hubs and focus crisis management efforts on these hubs.

Blame game: Shape the narrative by leveraging owned media channels like blog and YouTube to reframe the issue more positively and avert direct blame.

Resolution: Optimize owned media content for search results, so that positive and neutral stories show up alongside negative stories on keyword searches related to the brand.

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NSOCIAL MEDIA FOR CRISIS COMMUNICATIONSSocial media has a specific role to play at each stage of the crisis curve. MSLGROUP has created a crisis management toolkit that includes workshops, tools and best practices to map out, plan for and respond to the specific demands of the crisis situations at each stage in the crisis curve.

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stories show up alongside negative stories on keyword searches related to the brand.

Most importantly, it’s critical to map out and plan for crisis scenarios in advance, in order to respond to them effectively. We have created a toolkit for mapping out alternate crisis scenarios and planning for their best, worst and most likely cases.

This toolkit include a workshop for scenario, keyword, influencer, spokesperson and message mapping, and platforms like a wiki-based war room for crisis collaboration and a CMS-based dark site for crisis response.

In the end, however, managing any crisis successfully, including a crisis on social media, is less about saying

Morefragmented,but more viral

Shorter head Longer tail

Flash Point

Spotlight Blame Game

Resolution

What happened? With whom? Where?Sharing stories via retweets

Who is involved? Has it happened before? Sharing links via hashtags

Why did it happen? Who is responsible?Sharing opinions via blog posts

Off the front page and the evening news.Searching for stories via Google

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NTHE NEWS CURVE AND THE CRISIS CURVE All news stories develop in a similar manner, creating a news curve, with four stages: breaking news, context, analysis and archival.

The four stages in the crisis curve correspond to these: flash point, spotlight, blame game and resolution. Social media plays an important role in shaping them, making it more difficult to control a crisis.

the right things and more about doing the right things. So, corporations that are rooted in purpose are likely to respond to crisis situations with authenticity, and overcompensate for mistakes, transforming potential crises into opportunities to reconnect with their stakeholders.

The ‘real world’ crisisA real world incident (oil spill, financial scam, sex scandal) precipitates the crisis. Mainstream media puts a spotlight on the crisis while social media amplifies the crisis. Example: BP Gulf of Mexico Oil Spill

The ‘slow burn’ crisisSocial media conversations (product quality, customer support, employee discontent) build up into a crisis and are picked up by influential bloggers and even mainstream media. Example: Dell Hell.

The ‘flash mob’ crisisA social media meme (Greenpeace video, anti-brand hashtag, anti-brand video) creates a flash mob, turns into a crisis, and is picked up by mainstream media. Example: Nestle Kit Kat Greenpeace video.

Each circle represents a story on mainstream media or social media.The size of the circle represents the influence of the story.

Newspapers/ Television

Blogs/ YouTube

Twitter/ Facebook

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THREE TYPES OF CRISIS SITUATIONS The interplay between social media and mainstream shapes the crisis curve, with online influencers linking to or sharing media stories and media quoting online influencers.

Based on this interplay in the run up to the crisis flash point, crisis situations can be categorized into three types – real world, slow burn and flash mob -- each needing a different approach.

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We have also built a unique crisis system that allows for fake articles, broadcasts, interviews, blogs, tweets, and events to occur in a secure IT environment housed on our client’s servers.

Crisis Simulation, Experiencing a Crisis First Hand, Before it Happens

Erik NilssonCrisis Management, JKL GROUP

Sweden

I wish I knew then what I know now At JKL GROUP, our simulations are based on the belief that the best way to prepare for a crisis is to go through one. Indeed, after going through a real crisis, our clients often say to us: “I wish I knew then what I know now.”

With the rise of social media, increased media and consumer scrutiny and the fact that news

spreads around the world in mere seconds these days, more and more companies and their top executives are requesting programs to help them prepare for and avert crisis situations. Most executives today know the risks that come with unprepared organizations. In our experience, what separates good crisis management from bad crisis management is mostly how well prepared the organizations are.

Bringing Realism to Crisis SimulationThe key to a successful simulation lies in the realism of the case. Our simulation system allows for any type of organization to go through a highly realistic scenario to prepare for a future event, such as a crisis, major business transaction, bad financial news or even an executive kidnapping for companies working in volatile parts of the world.

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Since the fall of 2009, we have developed crisis-preparation plans and media simulations for investment banks, financial institutions, law firms, and energy and infrastructure companies. Together with the client, we invent a realistic crisis situation. In fact, several of the situations we have “invented” have occurred later on.

We have also built a unique crisis system that allows for fake articles, broadcasts, interviews, blogs, tweets, and events to occur in a secure IT environment housed on our client’s servers.

Once a client asks us for the training, we take between one to three months to develop all the materials, including: information and background on the fictitious crisis; scripts and key messages for all spokespeople; pre-recorded TV broadcasts or fake articles, blogs and tweets about the crisis; and crisis response content such as press releases, tweets, and Facebook updates.

Building Crisis PreparednessWe also do a review of the company in question to assess if corporate decision-makers have the tools and people in place to handle a crisis.

These tools include a crisis manual, which in our view should be very short because in a real crisis no one will read a long document. (They

might not even read the short one, to be honest.)

In addition, the “war room” at the company is where all relevant individuals would gather to handle the fictitious crisis during the training and during an actual crisis. The room needs to have business equipment such as phones with conference capability, high-speed and wi-fi Internet connection, paper and pens, and a printer.

Of course, the people and departments that need to be at the ready include legal, operations, PR, HR etc. This process allows us to develop deep insight about the client’s organization, issues, opportunities and level of preparedness.

The training itself usually lasts between 2-3 hours, followed by an hour or so of feedback and assessment of the team’s performance.

Defining and Evaluating SuccessThe follow-up covers all aspects of the simulation, and is given on both an individual and group basis. Feedback areas include: » How did the crisis management

group function as a team, did everyone have a designated role? Was there any expertise missing in the group, or anyone that was not needed?

» To what extent did the group use manuals, policies and directives? Should they be changed in any way?

» Did the group reach out to all relevant stakeholders? Internal audiences? Politicians?

» How did the group handle the crisis situation? Did they get off to a good start, what could have been done differently?

» Did the group have sufficient information for decision-making? Did they initiate all the relevant internal processes?

A crisis simulation is a great way to stress-test your organization’s readiness, to identify areas of improvement and to prepare the crisis team for a real crisis situation. In short, it’s an exercise that will put your organization through a crisis, but on your terms.

CMT GROUP works together with the crisis in

their normal crisis situation

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JKL monitors CMT and manage development of

the case in real time

During the simulation, participants from the CMT can be interviewed live

News Portal

Client’s Crisis Management Team Simulation Management - JKL

Media Team 2Client team 2

Communication ManagementClient team 3

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Mapping out, building relationships with and engaging influencers can play a critical role in both crisis planning and response.

Engaging Third Party influencers in Crisis Planning

Jack YeoSVP, MSL Chicago

The Power of InfluencersI once orchestrated a crisis simulation for a meat-processing client to help the decision-makers prepare for a potential H1N1 outbreak. We asked the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service to review the scenario created for the simulation exercise and invited the agency to participate in the drill. The agency’s input and feedback made the session more realistic and

initiated a better working relationship between the agency and my client going forward. This relationship later proved to be invaluable when a separate and different strain of H1N1 first appeared in the United States a year later.

Just goes to show that you can never underestimate the power of influencers who can speak for you when times get tough.

Mapping Your Influencers So who is an influencer? Third-party influencers are high-profile individuals or organizations with the ability to change the perception of your company, organization or product, or affect the debate or policy around a particular issue. Influencers can be regulators, government officials, industry leaders, academics, associations, NGO groups or members of the media. They are regularly

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Photo by Danilo Prates on flickr

interviewed by news organizations and also have a significant digital footprint through blogs, Twitter, etc. They can either validate your company’s policies and procedures in a crisis situation or bring additional scrutiny to your response.

One of the best practices I have seen for identifying third-party influencers is our IMMSL model for influencer mapping. It’s a straightforward and uncomplicated approach to identifying and understanding the individuals and groups that can most affect your company or organization’s reputation.

Our influencer maps determine who a particular client’s influencers are, and why. With an understanding

of each influencer’s relevance to a client, we can prioritize and customize outreach during crisis situations.

Bloggers and Your Reputation Bloggers are critical third-party influencers, as media outlets regularly monitor them for story ideas and to identify sources to quote in their stories. Your organization should be monitoring and engaging the blogs that focus on issues critical to your business. It’s a smart way to stay ahead of the curve.In fact, we gained critical intelligence regarding a beat change at a major national newspaper from a posting in a specialized blog—before the change was fully explained in the

mainstream media. As a result, my client was one of the first companies in the sector to reach out to the newspaper’s new reporter. We briefed him on the issues and trends affecting the company and industry at large, thus helping to set the agenda for future media coverage.

In summary, mapping out, building relationships with and engaging influencers can play a critical role in both crisis planning and response, especially in a world where social media plays an increasingly important role in crisis situations.

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Photo by xavi talleda on flickr

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BP Crisis Command CentreSteve Marino, SVP and Social Media Lead for MSLGROUP Americas, shares his experience of leading the social media response for BP during the Gulf of Mexico oil spill crisis and creating real-time content for BP’s Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and Flickr accounts. Based on his BP experience, Steve also shares best practices in running a crisis war room.

Community Management in Times of Crisis Dimitri Granger and Romain Vezirian from Net Intelligenz at Publicis Consultants in Paris share tips and best practices for managing a crisis on Facebook. They recommend mapping out alternate crisis scenarios and creating a decision tree to respond to them. They also highlight the important role played by a trained and skillful community manager in building relationships with influencers and managing a crisis on Facebook.

No Issues are Local IssuesAnders Kempe, President of MSLGROUP in EMEA, sums up the key trends, tools and tips. He says that 24-hour global news cycles and the interplay between social media and mainstream media mean that “no issues are local issues” anymore. So, companies need to prepare more seriously for crises, by mapping out crisis scenarios, testing their preparedness using crisis simulation workshops, creating crisis manuals, and engaging with all their stakeholders in good times and in bad.

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Photo by pochacco20 on flickr

Photo credit: Twitter

Managing a Crisis Command Center in the Social Media Age: Lessons from BP

Steve MarinoSVP and Social Media Lead for

MSLGROUP Americas

Managing BP’s Social Media Crisis Command CenterWhen I was working for another PR network, my team and I were responsible for the entire social media strategy and implementation for BP’s Gulf of Mexico response, reporting directly to Luc Bardin, group chief sales and marketing officer. We also worked extremely closely with the corporate communications team, which managed the global website. We managed, maintained and developed content for BP’s Facebook page, Twitter account, YouTube page and Flickr account. Finally, we developed and managed the social media campaign in the autumn of 2010 when BP executives were testifying on Capital Hill.

We had a global team of 57 people working in four shifts to provide 24/7 monitoring and conversation moderation on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube. Of these people, 22 were dedicated to creating content, developing 20-24 stories and updates for social media on a daily basis, in addition to providing “breaking news” updates. Four people from our Washington, D.C. office worked out of the Houston command center on a rotating basis—the team worked seven days a week for 18 weeks. It was a true team effort, with people based in New York, Washington, Chicago, Atlanta, Denver, Los Angeles, San Francisco and Sydney.

The Ups and Downs of BP’s Crisis ResponseOur team’s work needs to be seen in the context of the technical, environmental, and leadership issues that needed to be addressed. Our task was to provide factual information and to address the issues as clearly and as timely as possible. That said, we had a few social media milestones:

» Probably, all of us remember when former CEO Tony Hayward was quoted as saying, “I want my life back.” When we published his apology on Facebook, the page instantly became the place to watch for new and breaking

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information. (Twitter was a headline-generation tool to drive traffic to the detailed content that lived on Facebook.) Here again, we were not there to minimize any issue but to hit it head on. In the end, we had nearly 40,000 “fans”—people who came to our page to learn what was happening.

» Our 24/7 social media monitoring alerted BP to new issues before they reached the mainstream media (e.g., turtle burning during in-situ oil burn-offs); this provided BP press officers extra time to develop responses and quell concerns or misinformation.

» We assigned a “roving reporter” in New Orleans to generate Flipcam video content on real people working on the Gulf of Mexico response with unprecedented and unrestricted access inside the Crisis Command Center, at community outreach offices and at cleanup staging facilities across the Gulf region.

Photo credit: Facebook

» In two hours, following a request from Doug Suttles, who has since retired as chief operating officer of BP’s exploration and production division in the US, we developed a “dashboard” for bp.com to accompany live footage of the Macondo well head. This way the public could see everything that BP could see, allowing BP to be fully transparent as to what they were doing down at the well head. This page became the most popular page on all of bp.com

» BP’s YouTube channel was so popular with nearly 70,000 viewers because we used it to provide the public with detailed technical briefings delivered by SVP Kent Wells. Kent was good in front of the camera, presenting complex technical details of the operation below the surface of the Gulf of Mexico in easy-to-understand language.

» Sitting in the Houston command center, we were watching CNN anchor Rick Sanchez. During the broadcast, we corrected CNN’s reporting errors by sharing the correct information on Twitter. We turned to each other, agreeing, “BP now truly believes in social media.”

Helping Shape BP’s Crisis ResponseBP used social networks to answer the public’s questions and concerns regarding the spill, while maintaining a policy of full transparency. Social media gave the public a way to voice their anger over the situation, and BP allowed the public to do so on Facebook and YouTube. It was an open (while respectful) two-way dialogue. Without social media, BP could not have communicated directly with all the people engaged on the issue, and I believe that social media helped shape BP’s crisis response in a meaningful way.

Our 24/7 social media monitoring alerted BP. To new issues before they reached the mainstream media.

Every Crisis is Global, Social, ViralNOVEMBER 2011

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The Role of the Community Manager in Managing the Crisis on Facebook

Dimitri GrangerDeputy Managing Director,

Net Intelligenz at Publicis

Consultants France

Romain VezirianFacebook Community Manager,

Net Intelligenz at Publicis

Consultants France

so passionate about each and every case. On that note, here are our tips for getting the most from Facebook, even in a crisis.

Facebook: a living paradox for brandsBrands around the world are making Facebook the center of their digital communication strategy, making massive investments in editorial content and the recruitment and engagement of fans. Like it or not, Facebook has become the symbol of the social web, where people gather to discuss just about everything. No wonder brands want to invest in this platform so badly! But herein lies a paradox: you may “think” you control your communication on this new medium (by deciding what status updates and images to post), but you are also exposing yourselves more than ever before to critics and naysayers. You need to act on a daily basis knowing that both are true.

What To Do During and After a CrisisFirst and foremost, brand and community managers need to identify what kind of “crisis” just

struck the company. A vast array of problems can come your way when you manage a corporate or brand Facebook page, from the smallest issues (simple questions that can be answered with one email) to the most complicated ones (coordinated attacks of activists, product recalls, etc.) On Facebook, as recent French examples have demonstrated, a crisis can come out of nowhere even for beloved brands that have never experienced controversy.

Brand and community managers also need to know who has asked the question or posted the negative comment. Has her/ his comment started a large discussion on your page or is it limited to this one person? Understanding the scale of the issue is critical. Next, you need to figure out what to say and how to say it.

The tone you use is of utmost importance: never underestimate the power of the words you choose. It is even more important on Facebook, as your customers will read your updates, right after you press “enter”. Also, you should focus on your fans.

As you have seen throughout this report, crises are heightening in complexity with the rise of social media. At the same time, our experience has shown that companies that embrace the social nature of our times, and have well-developed social media strategies in place, fare much better when a crisis hits than non-social companies. Moreover, we tend to believe that crisis resolution on Facebook is simpler than on other platforms, simply because the means for multimedia, two-way dialogue is right there.

The wide array of situations that can arise has taught us that there is never a one-size-fits-all solution. Each brand, each company has its own history. And that’s exactly why we are

The community manager behind your Facebook page needs to know every trick in the (Face)book.

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They are the people who follow and know you. They are the ones who could also start defending you when you are in the middle of a crisis. Most importantly, you should not stay silent. The less you communicate, the more people will talk about you, and the less you will be able to control what they say.

Moreover, the community manager behind your Facebook page needs to know every trick in the (Face)book. Specifically, a good community manager will know how to: take individuals’ problems to a private channel like Facebook messages; erase content that doesn’t respect your page’s guidelines; block the ability for abusive community members to publish anything on your wall for a limited time; create a dedicated tab to move complaints to a more convenient, less visible spot; and create a private group to channel the conversations on a sensitive subject.

Beyond knowing “how” to use these tools, your community manager also has to know “when” and “why” to use them: Do you want to ban a fan and risk being seen as an evil censor by the rest of your community? Do you want to answer every question, thus giving way too much importance to a single fan who will never be happy?

Six Tips for managing a crisis on FacebookIn short, here’s what you need to know to handle a Facebook crisis:

1. Prepare yourself: anticipate the sensitive issues and possible scenarios surrounding your business, and create action steps for each situation.

2. Set up rules by publishing your page’s guidelines in a dedicated tab: otherwise, how would your fans know what is allowed and what is not?

3. React, and react fast! Letting three hours go by during the day without answering a tough question is already too much delay.

4. Inform, inform, inform. In a crisis, this is the mode to adopt. Eurostar provided a good example of regular updates and clear explanations when bad weather last winter affected train service.

5. Always choose your tone carefully. When a company is attacked on Facebook, it often publishes corporate and defensive statuses. Never forget your messages will be read on people’s newsfeeds, next to their best friend’s or mother’s updates. You are their guest.

6. Review and learn. Analyzing how your fans have reacted during a crisis can prove quite useful for the future. Whether they have ignored you, joined you, criticized you or supported you—that is all useful context for how you communicate on your Facebook page moving forward.

Every Crisis is Global, Social, ViralNOVEMBER 2011

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In Summary: Being Trusted Advisors in a Turbulent World

Anders KempePresident, MSLGROUP EMEA

It Happened on Twitter: The Case of an Insurance Company I’d like to talk about a recent case, several aspects of which demonstrate how we can help our clients when we live up to our vision of being trusted advisors—especially in crisis situations when things get pretty rough.

Imagine a venerable, refined, honorable insurance and finance company. A company that does what it’s supposed to do and does it really well, that delivers high-quality service with good terms and returns for its clients. A company that is based on a solid, well thought-out value system, that doesn’t pay huge bonuses to its managers and that always puts its customers first. A company that is an industry leader in customer satisfaction and is distinguished by its strong brand.

Naturally, rapid on-line communication with clients is part of the company’s service offering. But one day this happened a bit too quickly, and a poorly formulated tweet made the company appear ignorant and arrogant. A matter that was, in concrete terms, handled correctly was communicated in the wrong way.

There was a risk that the ensuing debate—both online and offline—could go seriously wrong (not to go into details, but adjectives like ”greed” and ”homophobia” were rife). The Twitter message exposed the client’s ignorance and lack of routines in terms of dealing with its homosexual clients.

Fortunately, the situation was cleared up thanks to the company’s swift, professional action (supported by a crisis communications and social media team at MSLGROUP EMEA). Our client quickly made a decision to compensate its client for damages and to implement an ambitious drive to increase LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender) awareness within the company, to improve neutrality in treating gender and family constellation issues. Company officials provided open, ongoing communication about their realization that they had more to learn, and they were clear about their explicit defense of human rights.

Instead of a full-blown crisis, our client attracted much attention for taking prompt, forceful and prudent action. The client has learned important lessons for the future and has decided to further enhance its offering and communication.

The two things are connected—a company can never communicate away its flaws without changing its behavior.

I believe that the company’s brand will be strengthened over the long term thanks to the firm manner in which their representatives handled this specific case. And I’m convinced that we will have an improved relationship with this client. We successfully demonstrated that we are a friend and trusted advisor to turn to when times get tough.

The Changing World of CrisisThe case also reinforced for me several trends that are changing how we plan for and respond to crisis situations. We live in a time of globalization that is obvious to everyone. Crises can happen any day, anywhere and be spread around the world in a matter of seconds. The media monitors activity on social networks to determine what is news worthy, which is why we often see stories start on social networks and then become the day’s headlines. Corporate decision-makers need to understand this dynamic. Once your company’s crisis is on the front page of a paper, on the home page of a website or on cable news throughout the day, you know it’s serious.

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Ergo, companies are beginning to prepare more seriously for crises, using simulation training and other strategies. Another consequence of the rise in social media is that companies need to engage with all their stakeholders---in good times and in bad. Companies need to have solid relationships in place with the people in the communities in which they do business and all the other organizations in their ecosystem. So, when a crisis does happen, it is easier to reach these people, listen to their concerns and respond. Today, crises are not solved on a technical basis with four guys locked in a boardroom. Crises are resolved by listening to people, responding and acting in a positive way that solves the problem.

The Trusted Advisor’s Role in a CrisisFinally, I want to share some of the lessons that were reinforced during this experience:

» Communications agencies (advisors) must understand the client’s business and competitive environment—mastering all types of communication is not enough.

» Advisors must also understand their clients’ clients and the way they think, and must be able to guide clients in an environment that takes into account the explosive force of politics and the media.

» No issues are local issues in the fast-moving world of social media—advisors must never be overly alarmist, but no issue is too small to be taken seriously.

» Any deficiencies in the client’s business must be corrected. Advisors need to dare to give uncomfortable advice when the situation so demands, and this requires a solid relationship with the client.

Crises are resolved by listening to people, responding and acting in a positive way that solves the problem.

Every Crisis is Global, Social, ViralNOVEMBER 2011

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To know more about the MSLGROUP Crisis Network, or to subscribe to receive similar insights and foresights in the form of a quarterly newsletter, please visit http://crisis.mslgroup.com or contact us:

PASCAL BEUCLER

SVP & Chief Strategy Officer, MSLGROUP

pascal.beucler@mslgroup.com

DAVID CHAMBERLIN

SVP, Crisis and Issues

david.chamberlin@mslgroup.com

STEVE MARINO

Social Media Lead for MSLGROUP in Americas

stephen.marino@mslgroup.com

STANISLAS MAGNIANT

Social Media Lead for MSLGROUP in Europe

stanislas.magniant@consultants.publicis.fr

GAURAV MISHRA

Social Media Lead for MSLGROUP in Asia

gaurav.mishra@mslgroup.com

www.mslgroup.com

MSLGROUP Crisis Network is a global network of 50+ MSLGROUP crisis experts, with deep vertical expertise across industries and geographies, connected to each other by our proprietary People’s Lab crowdsourcing platform. Our experts can not only tap into each others insights in real time, but also leverage our proprietary crisis toolkit including our crisis planning framework and our crisis simulation workshop -- to help our clients plan for and respond to crisis situations effectively.

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