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The makings of a good apology will no doubt soon be a compulsory unit in all advertising and marketing schools.
The art of apology has spread as fast as the rediscovery of ethics in business. In Australia, a raft of royal commissions investigating wrongdoing by institutions, from banks to churches has brought focus on saying sorry.
When Brian Hartzer stepped down as CEO of Westpac, with the bank facing another money laundering scandal, he did so as the person “ultimately accountable” after falling “well short” of community expectations.
The Westpac board of directors, through its chair Lindsay Maxsted, was “truly sorry” and “unreservedly” apologised.
But it didn’t go unnoticed that Hartzer left the bank with $2.7 million in his pocket, in lieu of 12 months notice, but minus any short-term bonus.
“He finally got what’s coming to him,” quipped satirical comedy group The Chaser, with tongue firmly in cheek.
The story of sorry, without the punishment, is becoming familiar. It’s what Ross Martin, CEO of marketing services group Blackbird, calls the “sorry cycle”.
As more executives are caught misbehaving, corporate spin doctors have learnt to plan and prepare for the next sorry moment.
“Apology content has become a major component of any marketing strategy,” he says in a video interview with LinkedIn Editors. “The mea culpa has become habitual.”
The time between success and failure and then redemption is compressing, argues Martin. It goes from “I’m a massive success” to “I made a giant mistake” to “I am sorry”.
“It’s only one or two or three news cycles before you can get back on your feet and resume your career,” he says.
This is the sorry cycle. “It’s become a whole cottage industry. And now corporate PR teams are planning for those apologies knowing things will go wrong.”
Martin says it’s disturbing to think about planning an apology content strategy, to create a redemption story for yourself or your brand and then benefit from it.
Sue Cato, probably Australia’s best known spin doctor, says an apology is the best thing you can possibly do.
“You’ve got to give your stakeholders, your audience or your shareholders a reason to let you move on,” Cato told the Australian Institute of Company Directors magazine, Company Director.
If you find yourself needing to say sorry, here is a quick primer:
An effective apology needs two key components: take responsibility and admit the mistake; then promise to make amends or repair the damage.
Researchers identify six steps to an apology: expression of regret, explanation of what went wrong, acknowledgment of responsibility, declaration of repentance, offer of repair, request for forgiveness. But taking responsibility and making amends are the two most powerful.
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