"#MostUsedWords App" Launches #PR Offensive After Criticism [Abbott PR Blog]

Not that giving all one's personal data to a third party has ever been safe, and not that Facebook "quizzes" have ever been safe, either, but the firestorm around the new Facebook app "Most Used Words" really struck a chord with the 17 million Facebook users gave it permission to use its data.

And after the Comparitech blog did a breathless take-down of the Korean-based Vonvon, creator of the App, on its site Sunday, Nov. 22 in which it called it a "privacy nightmare." Comparitech specifically attacked the App's "oxymoronic privacy policy And called the company and the App a "shady data dealer" but not the only one to "masquerade behind a viral quiz mill."

The "nightmare" angle spread like a virus, shared across Facebook, becoming a trending topic there and also on twitter, where many accused the App of "stealing" personal data.

By Tuesday, the company had already sprung into action.

It posted updated language on its website that it was, as of Tuesday, Nov. 24, acting to "proactively" address the concerns by "significantly" reducing "the magnitude of access privilege" required by the App. It also clarified that the App does not collect users' email addresses, "so there is no way we can spam you." It also note

It's CEO Jonghwa Kim also took to the battle to Comparitech itself, sending a rather predictable legalistic and threatening message to the firm (noting that he was "deeply concerned about your false accusation") but also mentioning the positive steps it had taken, and explaining that the information collected, "is never stored in our databases." Comparitech published his letter as an update to the original post.

As for emails, Kim notes bluntly that, "As we do not store any personal information, we have nothing to sell. Period." He swears that the App never deals with Third Parties.

The company has been in existence for less than a year, but says it has more than 100 million unique users from US, UK, France, Brazil, China, Japan, Korea, Thailand, etc. and operates in 15 languages.

THE BOTTOM LINE:

It remains to be seen whether this coverage will damage this Korean startup. It also remains to be seen whether this App is any more damaging or dangerous than any other Facebook App.

But the PR response by Kim and his company seems on point, and an effective demonstration of how crisis management is done: directly address both the alleged technical and ethical problems, then let people know.


By Stephen Abbott, Principal of Abbott Public Relations, a division of Abbott Media Group, which creates written messages which inspire, inform, educate and engage, in mass media, publishing and public relations. On twitter and Facebook.

No More Back-Slapping Hucksters: The True Role of Public Relations

I’m sure it’s happened to you before. You drive by a business, and, perhaps not even noticing it at first, you cringe.  

"It’s funny," you may think to yourself, "but I haven’t been in the place since last November." Maybe you can't even remember why.

One way or another, you were put off by the place, and never went back.

Then you drive by a second business, and you almost want to invent a reason to stop and go back in, even though you may have no business to transact there. 

How does that happen? And (you might be thinking) how can I make THAT happen for MY business?

Some people view public relations as the domain of glad-handing, back-slapping "yes-men" or pretty faces who tell clients whatever they want to hear. But the  truth is, this kind of PR person wouldn’t be much help to the client who cringed, above, or to that client’s business. They instead could be an expensive distraction. Or worse, as waste of money. Simply trying to distract customers from a bad experience doesn't fix the underlying reasons for the bad experience. And it won't change perceptions if they have new bad experiences if they return.

Changing a negative reputation into a good one, or at least a neutral one, or reinforcing a business’ already-positive image, is really what public relations is all about.
In the negative example above, becoming aware of the company's problems - whether it's poor service, shoddy merchandise or even the bad odor of the establishment - by using customer feedback effectively, then making sure that current and past customers know you are aware of their past bad experiences and are taking steps to correct them, are the first steps to changing bad perceptions.

Perhaps a sign out front, reading, "Newly remodeled," touting a new product line, or, even better, new management, would help entice disgruntled customers back into the door. But of course, real changes will have had to have been made. Customers are savvy, and can see through the old "new paint job" or "new signage" approach, IF there aren't real changes made along with them.

An ad in the paper and a mailer to past customers trumpeting a totally new approach to customer service, may help, too, as long as that claim is then TRULY backed up with EXCELLENT service and products and a clean environment when customers begin to return. (Because, again, savvy customers can not and will not be fooled - and you should not try.)

For the business with an already good reputation, but with little repeat business, a company e-newsletter, mailed every other month to regular customers and containing special deals to reward their loyalty may help remind them why they liked the business so much on previous visits. 

Special programs to reward regular customers solidify that important base, and increase word-of-mouth buzz about a company. And of course, an effective social media presence on facebook and twitter, with perhaps a video element on YouTube, also backs up a company's reputation and are channels for effective and immediate feedback.

A paid advertising campaign highlighting satisfied customers may also be necessary to let people know that they, too, may have good experiences there.

All of this underlines the seriousness of the profession of public relations. It involves the art of effective communication, writing skill, and  the ability to determine a course of action that will truly be effective in widely varying situations and appealing to diverse publics.

PR isn’t just happy talk, it’s a profession that helps make companies more successful through an approach of identifying positives and negatives and creating plans to addressing them in a systematic way.

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Stephen Abbott is owner and principal of Abbott Public Relations, a division of Abbott Media Group, which can be found online at www.abbottmediagroup.com

Taking Online Libel Cases Public Poses More Danger to Reputation

A libel suit filed by a Knoxville marketing firm illustrates the dangers of reputation on the Internet - and how delicate the balance is between solving a problem and perhaps making it worse.

Knoxvillenews.com reports that a Knoxville marketing firm filed a $2 million libel lawsuit against a former client, claiming comments posted on Facebook and Twitter have hurt its reputation:

According to the suit, [the restaurant owner] defamed the marketing firm in two Aug. 17 Facebook entries that said, "Do not EVER use [-----] mktg. firm!" and "CROOKS! - Stolen email list, and have tried to pressure me by threat of lawsuit to sign a 'license agreement' to use their mktg materials."

The next day saw more potentially damaging posts, of the same nature, naming the marketing firm, and claiming they had “hacked” into the restaurant’s facebook page and taken it offline. (It’s back online, with almost as many friends as before.)

This dispute is probably like many others throughout the country and indeed, may never have been noticed even by local media.

But the kicker is this line from the story:

The posts were published to more than 300 Facebook friends of [the restaurant] and 247 followers on Twitter, according to the suit.

The fact that less than 300 people on facebook and 247 on twitter heard about this fiasco beforehand. Now, not only do tens of thousands of Knoxville residents know about the accusations, millions throughout the world do, since this was posted online.

Before, they had badmouthed the firm to a few hundred people online (and a few more in the restaurant.) Now, not only has all of Knoxville become aware of this dispute, the entire online world knows.

One has to use responsible words even on social media sites, and “crooks!” is pretty strong and defamatory language, and that’s unacceptable.

And making things worse by spreading the defamatory comments has always been a danger with lawsuits.

But in today’s interconnected world, the “audience” isn’t just Knoxville, it’s tens of millions of people in cities and towns across the world who now know what was said, and about whom, making managing that firm’s image all the more difficult.

The lesson here is (from purely a reputation management viewpoint) if the grievance is tolerable, or minor, consider letting it go, or binding arbitration, or a settlement with a clause not to discuss it further or online.

Be aware that your lawyer may see it differently, and other cases may be so egregious that they demand legal action.

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Joining the Social Media Revolution: Blogs, Twitter and facebook

Are you blogging? Are you Tweeting? Are you on facebook?

If you have no idea what more than one of those things are, or how to use them to benefit your business, you’re missing out on what is shaping up to be an online social media revolution.

Online social media is all about interaction with your customers and with potential customers via the Internet.

Blogs, Twitter and facebook are just three social media sites that can help you reach out to potential clients and build your online reputation at the same time.

Getting Started with Blogs
Blogging has become the craze of the 21st century, and there’s no sign of this particular craze going away. Literally hundreds of millions of people have blogs.

With easy-to-start blog sites like blogger.com (run by Google) you can be up and running with a blog without any technical hassles. This particular blog site makes it remarkably easy - setting your background colors and format has been made idiot-proof, and you’ll be blogging very quickly.

Why blog? Blogging allows you to show your expertise, to connect with customers, and cast your name into the large waters of the Internet and be heard, via search engines.

For example, my post on the Abbott PR blog (abbottpr.blogspot.com) about a rather ill-advised General Motors TV ad pushing for a bailout called “Why GM’s “Ripple Effect” PR Video Will Fail” was picked up by Google, and is now the number one search for *“Ripple Effect” video PR* That’s valuable to your business.

Uses of a blog can be to post your thoughts on a trend in your field, to post news releases, to discuss new policies, and to make other announcements.

Tweeting About Yourself
Twitter is a rapidly growing phenomenon and a relative newcomer to the Online world.

The company describes itself as: “privately funded startup with offices in the SoMA neighborhood of San Francisco, CA. Started as a side project in March of 2006, Twitter has grown into a real-time short messaging service that works over multiple networks and devices.”

Basically, you sign up, and begin typing messages - called “tweets” - all of which are limited to 140 characters. The limitation, says the company, inspires creative and thoughtful expression, and so it does.

You can use your computer to tweet, or you can send messages via your cell phone or from your desktop, using various other online services that have sprung up.

Some users never get past posting exactly what they’re doing RIGHT NOW, the original intention and most used purpose of the service.

But getting past the “my cat just rolled over” or “I’m eating” phase is important, and some major business gurus, like Guy Kawasaki (twitter.com/guykawasaki) have Twitter accounts, and use them to promote their books and ink to news stories online that deal with trends in their business or breaking news.

And - as with blogs, the service is a great way to express your expertise in your field, and thus build up your reputation.

Search your profession right now at http://search.twitter.com to find how people in your profession are using this service to do just that.

The social networking aspect of Twitter consists of gathering “followers” on Twitter by becoming “friends” with others, and is an excellent way to expand the reach and knowledge of your company, and yourself.

Gathering facebook Colleagues
Facebook is an excellent example of an online social media network because it is so vast. Over 600,000 NEW users join facebook EVERY SINGLE DAY!

Originally started with college students in mind, high school students and then their parents quickly got facebook pages, too. Finally, businesses have joined the fray, and facebook allows companies large and small to have pages that reach out to a wide variety of demographics. (Advertising opportunities on facebook are also worth looking into.)

Like other services, you can sign onto facebook and create a personal page relatively quickly. Once that’s done, starting a business-related page, posting “notes” (basically blogging) and using the "status update" feature to discuss your business life, as well as your personal life, can

And like Twitter, facebook "friends" can be gathered in your social network, though you should start with friends, colleagues and nearby residents in the real world, then THEIR friends online will join you as well. You can also start or join existing “groups” that promote your products or your profession.

From this very brief introduction, you can begin to see that the opportunities for self-promotion and reputation building are indeed huge online.

These new social networking sites are new and exciting ways of expanding your reach beyond the four walls of your business, and for spreading the word about your own expertise and services to the virtual Internet Community that’s becoming commonplace in the 21st Century.

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