Speaker 1: It seems that the number of food and consumer goods companies getting themselves into a crisis is increasing. Poorly managed incidents and product recalls can quickly escalate into a crisis, which not only has a short-term financial impact, but a much more significant impact on the company's reputation and brands. Companies most commonly get themselves into a crisis through poor response strategy. Hi, I'm Steve Hathoran. In this week's video, part six of our series on what an effective product recall and crisis prevention program should contain, I'm looking at what I think is probably the most critical but least well-developed part of managing major incidents and product recalls, your response strategy. On our 10 key elements, we're here at number six. Your brand, and I'm talking about brand in its broadest sense here, is ultimately about how your key internal and external stakeholders feel about you, your products, and your company. They're trusting you, their willingness to buy from you, and their willingness to influence others to do the same. It is your most valuable asset. Without it, you really don't have a business. But in a major incident or product recall, it can be fragile. This is not just for consumer-facing brands. B2B businesses still have relationships with customers that are very much part of their brand. Unfortunately, however, in a potential crisis, many companies focus on image. They call in the PR consultants and focus on how to make the situation sound better, how to band-aid over this with clever words. This is corporate PR fluff. This often sets up a conflict in the minds of customers and consumers between what the company says it stands for and what action it actually takes. You see, it's conflict and confusion that creates a crisis. Instead, focus on that infinitely more powerful aspect of your brand, which is your identity or your DNA, which is really about how you make the situation better and communicate your actions effectively. Do that, and your response has substance. It means something. Companies in crisis lose sight of these critical relationships. Britax, the owners of Bob jogging strollers, say that they are the leaders in safety technology. Yet, when over 200 incidents of front wheels coming off their jogging strollers caused dozens of injuries, including to a number of very young children, they chose to blame consumers and defend themselves in court, instead of addressing the real concerns of the parents in improving the safety of the product. Heinz, makers of iconic children's products, chose to argue their case in court and were ultimately fined for misleading consumers about a product containing nearly 70% sugar, instead of addressing parents' real concerns about sugar content in snack products for their children. Thermomix in Australia paid over $4 million in fines after misleading consumers about the safety of its popular kitchen appliance, instead of addressing a spate of serious burns to consumers. You see, in a potential crisis, the promise you've made to your customer or consumers, whether stated or implied, comes into question. Address that promise and restore it, and you stand a good chance of actually enhancing your reputation and strengthening your business over the long term. Fail to address that promise and you are almost certainly headed for a crisis. Every crisis prevention program should contain some key questions to keep the incident management team focused on the reputation of your business and brands and restoring the business when the incident is over. This is what good response strategy is all about. Use the incident or recall as the opportunity to enhance your relationships with your customers and consumers, and you can actually have a positive impact on your brand. Remember that it's conflict and confusion that creates a crisis. Your aim is to provide clarity and consistency. Consistency with your brand promise. Consistency between what you say and what you do. If you'd like to get started putting a program in place that will actually help you prevent a crisis, head to our website www.recallinstitute.com and book a call with me, or leave me a direct message below. For more information, you can download our free guide, the 10 Key Elements of Crisis Prevention, from the link below. Thanks for watching, and I'll see you next week when I'll talk about communications, but communications based on substance, not on PR fluff. I'll see you then.