Vinted – crisis communications lessons for fashion brands and retailers
Why do fashion brands need crisis Communications training? People sometimes ask. Our crisis communications media training for fashion brands and online retailers is in more demand than ever.
The answer to this question and the reason why we’re seeing this growing interest in crisis media training for fashion labels and retailers is that they are more likely than ever to come under attack from the media.
Media training workshops
Our media training workshops for retailers demonstrate how company spokespeople can work closely with their PR consultancies or in house media relations team to deliver better interviews. As well as advising on what they should do and speaking to journalists we also provide them with advice on what to avoid.
With that in mind, here are five common pitfalls that retail spokespeople sometimes fall into when doing media interviews.
The recent BBC report on alleged unfair practices at Vinted is typical of the kind of investigative reporting that fashion brands can find themselves subjected to. According to the report, some 4,000 Vinted users have logged their disappointing experiences with the platform on a website called sadvintedfaces.com. Freelance marketeer Catherine Warrilow set this up after becoming frustrated with Vinted’s lack of helpful support and wondering whether she was the only one experiencing it.
She wasn’t.The BBC has interviewed a number of people who say Vinted unfairly banned them after accusing them of selling fake goods. We know that fakes are a huge issue for fashion brands and online retailers, but this publicity is obviously not helpful to Vinted.
So how should a fashion brand handle a crisis like this? What could Vinted do and say in response to the BBC’s report?
First, we would recommend that they put someone up for interview, rather than just issuing a statement. The statement read out on BBC Breakfast was adequate, but ultimately, it was just words on a screen.
Crisis media training for fashion brands
In our crisis media training courses for fashion brands, we look at how senior spokespeople can handle hostile interviews. We give them a range of tools and techniques that will enable them to come across as sincere and human while also maintaining control of the interview. This allows them to stay on message and get their points across without the interviewer pushing them into saying something that they would rather not say.
As well as their messages, spokespeople for fashion brands also need to think carefully about the language that they use. Corporate phraseology or jargon, for instance, will make you sound less sympathetic. However natural, everyday language will not only allow you to be clear with their messages but will resonate with a consumer audience.
Speaking to an audience
BBC Breakfast did have an interviewee. This was a consumer expert called Harry Kind. A statement, however eloquent, can never have the same impact and human element as a real person speaking to the audience.
The other problem with a statement is that it doesn’t allow the company to answer questions put by the interviewers and unhappy customers during the report. In this case, for instance, Harry kind mentions that the goal of Vinted according to its CEO is to grow the business as fast as possible with the same workforce. He and the presenters, Sally Nugent and Jon Kay, naturally asked how this could happen without damaging the service that Vinted customers receive.
Handling difficult questions
This sounds like a very reasonable point. However, we’re guessing that the company probably does have an answer to this question. In crisis communications training for fashion brands, we look at how spokespeople can handle difficult questions like this and then get back to the key messages.
Journalists will usuall only take an extract of a statement. There isn’t the time or they reckon, the interest amongst their readers, listeners and viewers for three or four paragraphs of comment and justification.
In this case the BBC simply quotes vinted as saying that “its teams worked hard every day to maintain a safe and trusted marketplace using a combination of trained moderation teams, member reports and detection tools to identify potential breaches of its catalogue rules.”
We like the examples in this statement as they back up the claim. However, what it lacks – at least from what the BBC quotes, anyway, is any sympathy. Compare it with the powerful, human comment by one unhappy Vinted user, tells the BBC: “I’m absolutely devastated because I love Vinted and I used it for so long and for so many different things…but now obviously that’s all ended.”
Crisis communication training courses for fashion brands
During our crisis communications training courses for fashion brands and online retailers we stress the importance of offering sympathy. It’s essential to differentiate this from an apology. “But we haven’t done anything wrong, or at least we don’t know whether we’ve made a mistake,” fashion brand spokespeople often say to us when they do our courses.
However, we point out that, even then, they can still show sympathy for customers or users who feel unhappy or believe they have been treated badly. In this case, Vinted is clear on the help that it offers to customers with queries but there’s no acceptance that something might possibly be going wrong.
When we work with fashion brands and online retailers to shape their crisis or issue management strategies, we recommend that they talk about carrying out an inquiry, or at least constantly reviewing their practices.
Role play media interviews
We conduct realistic media interview role-plays with experienced journalists who work as our media trainers under strict non-disclosure agreements. We’ll explore how to use this point about investigations effectively. We also advise spokespeople on the language that they can use to express some sympathy and concern for what has happened without sounding patronising or accepting responsibility and blame.
Media training courses for retailers
Our crisis communications training for fashion brands and online retailers cannot prevent investigative reporting and negative media coverage. However, we do help our clients to minimise the damage. In some cases, our training and advice have helped them enhance their brand image through their actions and effective communications. Come and talk to us. You can follow us on LinkedIn here.
