July 28th, 2008 // 6 Comments
Filed: Tech
Funny thing about Apple is that the company generally gets high marks for the way it manages communications, sticks to its message, remains consistent, maintains its brand image and so forth. But people in the PR business, and reporters who cover Apple, generally don’t think much of the way the company manages PR. “Say nothing” isn’t really a PR strategy — it’s an absence of a PR strategy. When times are good, when the company is on a roll, you can get away with it. The real test of a PR operation, however, is how it handles rough patches. I asked a veteran PR guy what he makes of how Apple has handled the situation around Steve’s health. His first response was, “Not well.” The rest of his message:
In general, you want to do a couple of things:
1. Own your own news.
2. Get all the news out at once and declare an end to the news cycle.
Apple hasn’t done either of these things — if what is being reported currently is true, then they’ve gone through several cycles of news for no reason at all – could’ve gotten all the news out and been done with it.
The reason they haven’t is because of what you noted in your blog — they have a culture of secrecy that is so profound that it colors what they do. Taking one step toward sharing information is thus dangerous.
Also, seems like Steve really believes this is a private matter — and I could make that argument as well. So those two things together are driving their decision making.
The last paragraph is the key one. You can make the case that Steve’s health is a private matter. If so, then make that case and stick to it and live with the consequences. The waffling and walk-backs and staged leaks and off-the-record comments only make things worse.
Where’s the money quote?
You’re so money that you’re the money quote, other guy named Tom.
It is a private matter. But unfortunately, the company is so strongly tied with the CEO. The other blog has mentioned Howard Shultz of Starbucks, but how many people that go to Starbucks know of the guy? Everybody goes food shopping, do they know the name of the CEO of the chain they frequent the most? Unless it’s Walmart, they don’t. And even then, so all the people that shop at Walmart know who Sam Walton was? Probably not. But the same can’t be said for Apple users. We know about Steve, the history, all that geeky crap. And it’s happened before, Steve not being a part of the company. So we have history to look at also. And when you make yourself a public figure, you open yourself to scrutiny. Unfortunately, he is a public figure. Go more private, cancel all keynotes, or hand over the keynotes to someone else, and the speculation on health won’t be there. It would have never been there if he didn’t appear on stage at WWDC. Sure, because he’s done it for so long, there would have been. But that’s the point I’m trying to make, it’s too late to go private.
And in the end, will the company wind up like Walmart (okay, maybe not as big), or will it wind up like Wild Oats?
- Barry
“or will it wind up like Wild Oats?”
Oh God I hope not, I miss the old Bonnie’s and Henry’s. They are still not a bad place to shop, but I can see major food store characteristics sneaking in.
How come all the nurses and hospital staff sneak and look at the health files of, oh, say…Britney Spears who is nothing more than a gnat on a horses’ ass, but when it comes to the creative mind of Apple, no one is sneaking into the records?
I am sure that the powers that be would pay more to know Job’s health condition, than the gossip rags pay to know which shrink Britney is seeing.
Come on hospital people, the HIPPA thing is only a guideline
Looks like someone has been talking to Frank Shaw at Waggener Edstrom for a little PR perspective.