Articles by Levick Experts

From tires to toothpaste, product recalls make headline news. And rightfully so—when a product presents a danger to consumers, companies must act quickly to prevent further harm. Certainly, consumer well-being is the first priority, but companies also need to be aware of the very real harm that product recalls can have on their brand, their reputation, their stock and their future.

While not all product recalls make front page news, they are more common than you might think. The Consumer Product Safety Commission reports more than 450 voluntary product recalls occurred during 2006 alone. And how a company handles a recall situation can have a huge impact on their future.

In the 1982 Tylenol capsule recall—widely considered to be one of the finest examples of conducting a recall—the company decided to remove all Tylenol products from stores until it determined the source of contamination. What the company may have lost in short-term profits, they gained tenfold in consumer trust—trust that translated into future sales of more than $1 billion a year.

It's important that companies take action to prepare for a product recall prior to a recall actually occurring. And while specific actions will vary based on the product in question and the reason for the recall, certain elements of recall preparation remain constant:

•  Look at everything from the consumer's point-of-view: Product designers and manufacturers must step outside their roles and think like a consumer. From the physical structure of the product to its instruction, the consumer's perspective must be first and foremost. Envisioning how a consumer might misunderstand a particular set of instructions, or how language on the packaging may set up a false expectation can help a company avoid a recall situation.
• Have a solid crisis communications plan:  Engage team members from throughout your organization, along with your public relations and legal counsel. With that team, determine the key messages the public would need to hear during a time of a product recall crisis. What do your consumers need to know about your actions and your company?
• Determine the public face:  In crisis, the messenger can be more important than the message. Consider this when deciding who will serve as spokesperson for your company. Choose a person in your company who shares common characteristics with your consumers. For example, if the product in question was baby food, choosing a spokesperson who is a mother would create instant empathy and reassure consumers the company truly understands their concerns.
• Own the Internet: During a recall, anxious consumers will likely go online for the latest information. And while announcements and other company news may typically be buried in the 'press' section of your web site, consumers shouldn't have to go looking for information about the recall. Your web site home page is ground zero for leading consumers to your 'official' news on the subject, so make sure that information about the recall situation is front and center. A simple and prominently placed 'Click here for information about the recent recall' link that takes visitors to the latest announcement or blog post shows consumers that you understand how important the situation is to them.
  
  You'll also want to work with your Search Engine Optimization (SEO) team to make sure your recall information and messaging are easy to find when consumers, reporters, and Wall Street are searching online. If they can’t find your point of view easily, they will find others' first.

Creating a product recall communications strategy before a recall occurs serves as an investment in your company—and in your consumers. The more quickly you're able to effectively respond in a time of crisis, and the more prepared your company is to answer consumer concerns, the more likely the company and its reputation will survive the passing storm.