When you remove a webpage, or move it to a new domain, it’s nice for your visitors if you notify them and/or automatically redirect them to the new location. A quick Google search brings up lots of advice on 301 and 302 redirects.

While all of this technical code Web jargon mumbo jumbo may seem to have little to do with the polished rhetoric of public relations, it comes down, at it’s heart, to image. An image takes a lot of work to maintain, and it’s attention to detail that makes the difference.

An event planner, a good one, knows that before a big dinner, somebody needs to check the salt and pepper shakers to make sure not only that the lids are on tight, but also that the spices therein haven’t swelled too big for the holes overnight.

Maybe I’m cranky on Monday morning. Maybe I’m making a mountain out of a molehill.

But this is where AOL’s media relations page was. Now, it’s a sea of white with an island of Not Found in the corner. There’s no notice of where the page has gone, no redirection to Time Warner’s press release page, where it seems AOL announcements will be handled in the future.

It’s a small annoyance, hardly more than an itch on your tongue perhaps. But it does nothing for the image of an already turbulent company coming off an extraordinarily bad year.

Last year, when AOL’s 2006 PR nightmare reached its peak, when it appeared that the PR department, not because of their own faults but because of the faults of the company itself, was snapping under blunder after blunder, I poured salt in the wound.

The last quarter of the 2006 saw company shakeups and corporate communication heads roll. After the Christmas holiday, the aforementioned PR webpage just fell apart. Images stopped working, and appeared as those unsightly x’s.

New announcements, when they finally resumed after a week or two, showed up below an announcement that was dated December 22nd. That December press release wasn’t about anything super important, but it stayed put as datelines January 17, 22, and 31 popped up beneath it.

And I thought to myself then: has AOL really just let their media page go un-maintained? That’s like showing up to a job interview with a five o’clock shadow and a lit cigarette.

It’s the little things like a sharp pair of cufflinks, or shined shoes, or creased trousers, that convey a message – especially in times of trouble – that a person has it all together. A person in PR, even when his office is on fire, shows up outside looking sharp.

So what are we to think after AOL loses $140 billion in value, bleeds subscribers, has to overhaul their business model, has to tap dance all year around one crisis after another, if their public face appears out of the rubble dirty and broken?

We think that if AOL really has its act together, it should look like it has its act together by sweating the small stuff first – especially its appearance on the Web where its bread is buttered.     

Just my two cents, for what it’s worth.

Nearly two years ago, I crafted a blog elevator speech-the quick pitch on why blogs matter to public relations. It needs updating to better reflect the evolution within the last 20+ months. Assuming a blog fits into the overall strategy, this speech may be helpfuleither to manage expectations or to persuade opponents.

Blogs’ Importance to Public Relations 2.0

• Engage Customers to create a dialogue, gain their insights and spot issues early on.
• Amplify Messages through highly-networked blogs. Search engines, links, aggregators and RSS make your messages contagious.
• Gather and Distribute News. RSS makes it easier to know the news and distribute our own.

Too simple? Well, the above is already twice as long as it should be. Keep in mind the attention span of the elevator speech audience. Time is short and you need to persuade.

We could also use an elevator speech for Wikis and podcasts. Anyone?

Reader Comments…

Kevin Dugan is the author of the popular Strategic Public Relations blog. Kevin is Director of Marketing Communications for FRCH Design Worldwide.

Visit Kevin’s blog: Strategic Public Relations.

Wendy’s approach? The New York Times outlines it here, showing the need for a quick response and an open dialogue with the media.

For the 52-year-old Mr. Lynch, there was no time to prepare a sophisticated plan of action. The news media, he was informed, knew about the gruesome discovery, and wanted a statement. He did not wake John T. Schuessler, Wendy’s chairman and chief executive, that night, but sent him e-mail messages explaining the news and the steps he had taken.

Most of all, Mr. Lynch spent countless hours briefing the news media. “It went nonstop the next two or three days,” Mr. Lynch said, “even through the weekend. Even when the pope passed away, it still got coverage.”

Now that the hoax has been thoroughly reported, Wendy’s is focused on closure. Its Web site shows us that the fast food chain is minimizing any national reference to the incident. But its job is on the crisis front is just beginning.

After any crisis, you must rebuild your brand. The New York Times has another article detailing how Wendy’s is approaching this task, limiting follow-up communications to markets impacted by the hoax. It also reviews how other companies approached the rebuilding phase.

These articles offer a great example of how to handle a crisis communications situation, including strategy.

Link: Wendy’s Ace PR Effort

Kevin Dugan is the author of the popular Strategic Public Relations blog. Kevin is Director of Marketing Communications for FRCH Design Worldwide.

Visit Kevin’s blog: Strategic Public Relations.

Link:

GM is not keeping them separate when it comes to the LA Times. Evidently they are pulling their ads from this major daily due to issues over the editorial coverage and car reviews the automaker receives. GM claims that dealers in the area are complaining about factual errors and misrepresentations of GM.

This move might make GM feel better, and the LA Times notes it is investigating the matter. But will it really help GM in the long run? Any resolution of this matter will be colored by the fact that the undisclosed ad revenue, read: BIG $, was held to get this situation resolved. Wouldn’t a letter writing campaign from every dealer in the greater LA area be just as effective? If the LA Times is in the wrong, I assume this approach would still get them to rectify the situation.

Now GM needs a replacement, um, vehicle to reach customers in the LA market. It also forces the LA Times to be vigilant about positive press for GM in the future.

It seems to me that advertising and editorial needs to be kept on a separate agenda.

What? A post on GM and no mention of the B-Word? No worries, I direct you to Neville Hobson who brings us the latest on GM’s executive blog project.

Kevin Dugan is the author of the popular Strategic Public Relations blog. Kevin is Director of Marketing Communications for FRCH Design Worldwide.

Visit Kevin’s blog: Strategic Public Relations.