Tragically, on Sunday, February 26, VIA Rail’s train number 92 derailed in Ontario, killing three of its crew members and injuring many passengers. You can read VIA Rail’s press release for the details.

This was certainly a crisis situation and VIA Rail responded. How they responded and whether or not the communication was effective or timely has all been up for debate.

Regardless, there’s always PR impact in these types of crisis situations. Immediately following the accident, the public turned to Twitter and other media outlets to find out what happened. They wanted answers. What went wrong? How did this happen? How many people were affected? What will happen to other scheduled trains?

The VIA Rail communications team did a lot of things right. Seemingly, they tried to get the facts before engaging in social media. Here are some highlights of what VIA Rail did following the initial crisis:

• Identified the deceased and notified their families
• Made sure all survivors from the scene were properly cared for
• Made sure everyone on their team used clear and consistent messages when “speaking” publically
• Issued a press release once they had the facts
• Answered all questions and concerns from the public on social media sites after the communications plan was aligned
  • Even went as far as answering each individual’s concern or question
• Set up a special toll-free number for anyone seeking information about passengers
• Made alternative plans to accommodate already-scheduled trips

With every crisis there is something to be learned and there’s always room for improvement in case of another potential crisis. Here are a few of our suggestions:

• Although all traditional media were part of the communication crisis strategy, social media needs to be more than an after-thought.
• With social media being a massive source for people to get their news, there needs to be a “voice of authority” present as soon as possible – even if the message is “we don’t have answers yet, but we’re working to get them.”

What would you add to this list?

You walked in to work this morning, coffee in hand, ready to take on another week. But your colleagues are doing (what look like) sprints, papers are flying and your Blackberry’s buzzing like a chainsaw.

You know it’s bad. All signs are pointing to a corporate crisis.

Now’s not the time to lay blame. And until time travel’s perfected, it’s up to you – the PR pro – to help your organization weather the storm.  

You’re used to leading teams and guiding organizations down the right path. You try to keep a clear head about the whole thing but the office uproar is distracting.

To help you stay focused, here are some simple Dos and Don’ts to keep in mind when dealing with your crisis:

The last thing you want to do in the throes of a crisis is make things worse.

Remember to always refer to your crisis communications plan. But, if it gets lost in the chaos, you can fall back on these 5 reminders.

Most companies have crisis management strategies in place that management can deploy when an event threatens its brand and reputation. However, for most companies, these crisis strategies are developed within the framework of managing its own issues. It usually sounds something like this, “If it happens to us, we’re prepared to manage it.” 

But what should an organization do when a competitor is hit with a crisis or issue? What if the crisis is significant enough to affect not only the competitor’s brand but the reputation of the entire industry?

Although these types of catastrophic events are rare, such moments present significant challenges to a company that is not equipped to deal with the situation. It’s not enough for companies to have crisis management strategies in place so they can manage their own issues; companies should also have them ready when a competitor is hit with a crisis.

On January 13, 2012, a catastrophic event took place as the cruise ship, Costa Concordia (a subsidiary of the Carnival Corporation), ran aground and partially sank on the western coast of Italy. Although most of the 4,200 passengers and crew were rescued by the heroic efforts of the Italian Coast Guard, several people lost their lives and many are still missing.

Oil recovery workers pass in front of the Costa Concordia cruise ship Photo: REUTERS

Within hours of the tragedy taking place, Costa’s Communications team deployed their crisis management plan, setting up an assistance hotline and an information feed directly on their website. However, Costa has a major PR task ahead of it as it deals with the embarrassing revelation that the vessel’s Captain abandoned ship early claiming he “tripped into a lifeboat.”

Unsettling images of the tragic event have been broadcasting on TV stations, appearing in newspapers and streaming on news websites across the globe. This media coverage will have a destabilizing and potentially negative long-term effect on the reputation of not only Costa, but the cruise line industry as a whole. Consumers that were previously considering a cruise vacation may now seek the perceived ‘less risky’ choice of an all-inclusive resort or hotel getaway.

The fact is: this issue won’t just affect Costa and the Carnival Corporation; it has serious implications for all major cruise lines.

In response to this event, the Communications teams from Carnival Corporation’s competitors should be proactively communicating their commitment to safety to the media, their agency partners and their customer base. As tragic as this event is, this crisis presents an opportunity for competitors in the cruise line industry to unite, review and take group action to ensure the enforcement of safety regulations and evacuation best practices so that events like this never happen again.

A similar response was taken during BP’s Gulf of Mexico oil disaster in 2010, when industry competitors Exxon-Mobil, Chevron, Shell, and ConocoPhillips, teamed up to put together $1 Billion USD in funding to develop technology and response plans for capturing and containing oil spills.

Communications teams are responsible for managing the reputation of their organization and must not ignore the impact that a competitor’s crisis might have on their reputation. In situations like the one above, Communicators cannot solely rely on media monitoring tools and clipping services to effectively manage the impact of a competitor crisis.

With a brand management solution, organizations can effectively manage multiple issues at the same time and Communicators can strategize, develop and implement an effective crisis management plan to mitigate the negative impact on their corporate reputation – even if it’s in the wake of a competitor’s crisis.