By erik on September 19, 2018
These tips could help you survive an outrage outbreak Though public outrage has always been a driving force in PR crises, I think we’d all agree it’s become a whole new beast over the last few years. Not only is it easier to share negative opinions than ever before, but it’s also more rewarding. Social […]
By Jonathan & Erik Bernstein on October 17, 2016
Superannuation and dog racing provide examples for this guest post [Editor’s note: Many thanks to frequent contributor Tony Jaques for allowing us to use this article, originally published in his Issue}Outcomes newsletter. Tony often covers news out of Australia and the surrounding regions which lets us take a look at great crisis management case studies […]
By Jonathan & Erik Bernstein on October 19, 2015
Just how good ARE your crisis prevention and response-related plans? We were once asked to analyzing the crisis planning done by a large private college. What we found was that they had a half-dozen plans which all fell into the general category of “crisis management.” ▪ A crisis communications plan. ▪ A disaster response plan. […]
By Jonathan & Erik Bernstein on August 26, 2015
Throwing money at the problem isn’t always the best solution As part of its continuing crisis response for the massive hack that exposed the personal data of cheating site Ashley Madison’s customers, page operator Avid Life Media is offering up a $500,000 CDN (~ $380,000 US) reward for information that leads to capture and arrest […]
By Jonathan & Erik Bernstein on August 14, 2015
A bad decision made more damaging by poor crisis management Bic has long been criticized for its line of pens marketed toward women, called “Miss Bic” and Bic for Her”, but an ad the pen manufacturer created for South Africa’s Women’s Day pushed the disgust beyond sideline conversation and into the mainstream. Words really can’t do the […]
By Jonathan & Erik Bernstein on July 9, 2015
Grocer in a pickle after overcharging allegations surface once again Late last month, Whole Foods found its integrity questioned on a national level after an audit of its New York stores by the NY Department of Consumer Affairs revealed rampant mislabeling throughout the store’s prepackaged foods, often resulting in customers paying more than they should […]
By Jonathan & Erik Bernstein on June 10, 2015
Falling down is inevitable, it’s how you stand back up that matters in the long run Sometimes you run into unexpected delays or out-of-the-blue issues that make keeping specific promises you’ve made to stakeholders impossible. While it’s inevitable that people will be upset (and rightfully so), there is one thing you absolutely must do if […]
By Jonathan & Erik Bernstein on June 7, 2015
All it takes is an open wallet to have a target hacked We all know hackers are out there, but did you realize many are selling their skills openly to anyone who will pay a fee? Earlier this month Business Insider’s Cale Gutrie Weissman spoke with security experts to find out just how easy it […]
By Jonathan & Erik Bernstein on May 27, 2015
28% of crises spread internationally within one hour Thanks to the Internet and digital communications, crises are no longer local events. Nearly two-third of crises cross international borders, and many become stories in a great number of countries. The below infographic, created by Freshfields Bruckhaus, chronicles a crisis’ journey across the globe, and the damage […]
By Jonathan & Erik Bernstein on April 19, 2015
Sometimes crisis management means telling the bossman to stop talking Chip Wilson made his fortune selling yoga pants at $100 a pop, but as we found out last year during the Lululemon sheer pants debacle was that while he had marketing savvy, he was pretty darn stupid regarding how to speak to stakeholders. Wilson went […]
Jonathan L. Bernstein, founder and Chairman of Bernstein Crisis Management, Inc. has more than 25 years of experience in all aspects of crisis management – crisis response, vulnerability assessment, planning, training and simulations.[Read more ...]
Erik Bernstein is president of Bernstein Crisis Management. Erik started with BCM in 2009 as a writer and subsequently became social media manager for the consultancy itself as well as for a number of BCM clients before moving to the president position.
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