Does the CIPR need to be more representative?

CIPR presidential candidate, Rob Brown, has initiated an interesting discussion in his LinkedIn group about whether the CIPR needs to be more representative of people working in the industry since membership seems to be skewed towards London.

But a more fundamental question needs to be asked - has it ever been representative?  With fewer than 20% of practitioners choosing to be members (if the CIPR's figures estimating the size of the industry are to be believed), then can the CIPR ever claim to have been representative?

I think the real issue here is that too little is known about the nature and scope of the industry and without a clear idea of the scale of the industry in the UK, the CIPR can never hope to know what or who it is representing. Perhaps the presidential candidates need to be lobbying for a full scale survey of the PR industry in the UK?  And if the CIPR cares about this issue maybe funding could be found for a PhD studentship to conduct it?

Managing online reputation: Waitrose - crisis or no crisis?

I watched with interested yesterday (November 09, 2011) as the Twittersphere exploded with rumours about a crisis unfolding on Waitrose’s facebook page.  With reports of Waitrose heading for a ‘Nestle’ incident ringing in my ears, I immediately logged on to facebook to see what all the fuss was about.  At teatime yesterday, the outpouring of outrage on the page was threatening to take on a life of its own as people who had no knowledge of the interest chipped in with their twopenneth. 

At that point it did indeed look as if a crisis was unfolding before our very eyes, as any PR worth their salt knows, the media abhors a vacuum, and social media is no different.  Waitrose was notably absent from the discussions evolving online and, starved of facts, people made judgements based on assumption and rumour, with tensions running very high at one stage.

However, about an hour ago, Waitrose stepped in to fill the vacuum and provide a statement which, as I write, seems to have stopped the discussion in its tracks and satisfied the disgruntled posters.  So what can Waitrose, and the rest of us, learn about this incident?  The key to successfully managing an issue and ensuring that it doesn’t become a crisis is to keep communicating.  Keep on talking, explaining and reassuring people and you gain their trust.  Dialogue requires effort from both sides and it is only through dialogue that mutual understanding and goodwill can be attained.  So, even if the claims being made cannot be verified or are being exaggerated, continuing to engage with detractors on their terms is a sure fire way of keeping a lid on things until you can establish the facts.

  

As for Waitrose, it seems that a crisis has been averted and goodwill maintained. A happy ending?