Crisis Management - Working with the Media on a Food Incident

All experts agree that restaurants should decide whether to contact the media about a food-borne illness outbreak on a case-by-case basis. But, if the media will find out about it anyway, or, more important, if some customers may unknowingly be at risk, you have no choice to alert the press.

Don't go into a denial mode or see the situation of "us vs. them." It doesn't work. Others are shaping the media story, and if you don't give your side of what is going on, if you are not quickly and decisively correcting information that is wrong and helping those who are afflicted, there will be even more of a crisis mentality. Presenting the facts forthrightly to the media and begin to take corrective actions right away. If you do that, you'll survive the first 48 hours and set yourself up for surviving the entire ordeal. It's not only the best thing to do, it's the right thing to do. After all, customers have to trust you.

The message you present to the press must be very clear, very straightforward, very candid. Go through exactly what happened and exactly what you've done to prevent any further incidents.

How you talk to the media is crucial. "When done properly, handling media interviews can be excellent for communicating what you want to communicate during a food-safety crisis situation. Crisis is by its very nature chaotic, and you really can't manage a crisis. But you can manage the communication element.

Don't do an interview as soon as the media calls. Coach staffers to hand the phone to a manager or executive, and that person should ask the reporter the following questions:

• What's your deadline?
• What is it that you want to know?
• Who have you talked to?

On the first call, you'll probably be asked the questions and you have a right to know what it is the reporter wants to talk to you about and who else he's talked to. That will give you some idea of what the angle of the story is. The reporter has probably researched your restaurant, talked to the health department and maybe even some of your customers and competitors, so you're entitled to be as prepared as he is.

Never be belligerent. Avoid confrontation with the media at all costs. Educate front-line employees to say calmly, 'Can I ask you to wait right here while I get the manager?... Then, have a manager or corporate spokesperson politely do the talking.

Usher all members of the media outside.If there is a camera crew in the restaurant, say calmly, "I'd be happy to talk to you, but for the sake of customers' privacy, we don't allow filming inside the restaurant, so I'll be happy to talk to you outside." This also allows the manager time to gather his thoughts. Treat an aggressive camera crew the same way you would an irate guest.

What to Say

The crux of how to talk to the media involves deciding what messages you want the world to hear. Never go into the media interview without knowing what it is that you want to say. Ask yourself, "What do I want people to remember about my company, or about me and my restaurant?" Then think of simple ways to make those points. Think of what you want the headline to be.

Typical points that would be most effective:

• "We take food safety very seriously." Back this statement up by having - and mentioning - foodsafety policies and procedures already in place that exceed complying with the law. Such procedures might include sending food samples to labs, taking food temperature three times a day, training employees regularly, having food-safety signage posted and the like.
• "We care." If you don't say it, people won't hear it. You might phrase this, "Our first concern right now is with the people who are in the hospital and their families."
• "We will do better from now on." In other words, you will reform your procedures so this will never happen again. You do not need to mention specifics at this time but make sure they know that as soon as you know exactly what happened, you will do everything possible to make sure it doesn't happen again. It's not as important to have all of the answers to the questions as it is to have the commitment to do the right thing.
• Most important, do what you promise. Public relations is no substitute for doing the right thing.
• Take care of those who were harmed. Don't discuss specific compensation; just assure the world that you will take care of the affected and/or their families.
• Don't say anything - anything! - off the record, experts agree. There is no such thing.

Follow those simple steps - having excellent food-safety procedures in place; putting together a crisis-management team and plan; nurturing good relationships ahead of time with health inspectors and the media; and being honest but savvy when talking to the press - and you can weather any food-borne illness crisis.

You have two choices: You can prepare or you can react. If you're prepared, you will be more successful than if you react, guaranteed.