Note from the editor: Yesterday, I published a brief post pointing our readers to a book Todd Defren mentioned on his blog. As Todd noted, the author of the piece is a client of his. While I don’t at all doubt his sincerity in praising the book, I thought it very worthwhile to provide an objective review of the material, as well. This has been graciously provided by Owen Lystrup of the Into PR blog, where his review is also posted.
- Erin Caldwell, managing editor

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Erin at Forward Blog posted a reference to this book, 77 1/2 Public Relations Tips: Things Everyone in Business Should Know. Since I’m a sucker for books, I bought the thing ($7 at Amazon). She noted Todd Defren’s take on the book, “This is a quick read that will make any PR newbie sound like a PR pro.”

Well, it’s not quite that, but it is a pretty quick and useful tool. Here’s my review:

When I found out 77 Tips was actually a 63-page online book, I was a little skeptical. But, I’ve spent $7 on a lot worse in the past, so I went for it.

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How many of us smacked our foreheads when we learned this week that the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) waited two weeks before alerting the public that the personal data of 26.5 million veterans was stolen? Now, instead of educating veterans about how to protect themselves from identity theft, VA is busy trying to put out an unnecessary fire, leaving that job to the media and other third parties.

When you mess up, you still have a chance to make things right by apologizing and taking the lead in educating those affected. The only things we’ve heard from VA involve checking your credit. Besides a Web site where vets can go to learn about fraud alerts and other identity theft remedies (they’ve finally posted information on their web site), the real focus should be on a quick, timely response to the situation. This will help salvage your reputation from being completely damaged, and (most of all) it will give those affected the information they need to be confident that they are OK.

VA was honest, but waiting two weeks before telling the public, and the ensuing irresponsibility (their explanations are sounding more like excuses) will most certainly damage their reputation. When a crisis hits, come out talking immediately, show your compassion and humility, and talk candidly.

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