Learning from Boeing's Mistakes: Crisis Communication is Key

It's been all over the newsstands.

Boeing's two crashes that have killed a total of 346 people have recently undergone house condemnation, according to this article.

These crashes were no doubt horrific, but many people are sharing opinions on the communication strategy of the company, saying it is not going to fly (see what I did there?).

I decided that in light of this news, I thought I would share my top three tips on how Boeing could better handle their crisis communication efforts. These tips could easily be modified to any crisis communication situation.

1. Be transparent.

One thing that I have learned over the course of my undergraduate studies is the idea of transparency and how crucial it is to public relations. It should go without saying that business leaders should always be transparent, but they don't always reflect that in their communication efforts. In Boeing's specific situation, they have continually said that their aircrafts are safe, but I have yet to see any verbiage on how the company is handling the situation or what they are doing to improve efforts. Especially where lives are at stake, transparency is key in helping the general public know exactly what the company is doing to protect passengers. Perhaps Boeing could try something like this next time:

"We understand the seriousness of the situation and we are working toward identifying the problem and creating a solution to keep all customers safe."

2. Take responsibility.

I'm not going to say that Boeing hasn't taken responsibility for their actions, but I do think that taking responsibility is critical for the public to know, and as such, they should include it in their communications. The loss of life is tragic and current and future passengers need to know that Boeing recognizes its fight errors and is working toward a solution. Boeing has maintained that accidents don't happen often, and they are probably right. However, Boeing should still acknowledge their fault in the accidents. This will help them show customers that they care and help them build positive relationships and connections with customers. A good example of this would be:

"We acknowledge and take full responsibility for the accidents that have occurred. These tragic accidents should have never happened, but we are working toward a solution."

3. Respond quickly and interact with customers.

I do not know how Boeing handles communication with customers via social media and other channels, but this is good advice, nonetheless. In a crisis, it is always good to respond as quickly as possible. If a company waits too long to respond, the media may start to speculate and false information could be circulated. Being the first to the narrative is key in situations like this. Additionally, interaction with customers is so important when in a crisis. If customers have questions, the timely response on the platform used by the customer is going to be the best option for maintaining a good reputation and circulating correct information. Boeing, if they haven't already, should make sure that they have a team in place to respond to customer questions quickly and accurately when a crisis occurs (or at any other time for that matter).

Using these tips, Boeing can ensure that they have a crisis communication strategy that takes flight (okay, I'll stop with the airplane puns)!

Want tips on crisis communication? UVU PRSSA and @uvuprssa provide tips and workshops on crisis communication and other valuable PR subjects. Give them a follow!

Photo by Ross Parmly via Unsplash