[orangethirty]

I don't get why do small startups screw up small apologies. Here is a simple guide.

1. Understand the problem. What/why/how/who/when did you do wrong ?

2.Contact said person and try to make things right by fixing the issue. Key word is try, but do it genuinely.

3. Write a good press release in the form of a blog post. Title it: Our apology for $problem.

4. In the press release include:

- We are sorry this happened.

- This is how we are fixing/going to fix it.

- If you have been wronged by this get in touch at $email.

- Thank everyone for their feedback.

5. Publish a second press release as a blog post stating what you are doing to prevent $problem.

6. With the gained attention, market a new product/service/special to show people you are focused on doing good busines. Call it the "We are sorry special pack" or whatever.

Make sure to post it on every social media site out there so that people know you are taking care of your customers.

[noibl]

You were doing well up until:

> With the gained attention, market a new product

[orangethirty]

What's wrong with that? This is a business we are talking about, not a charity. Anytime a business finds itself in a good position to profit it should. A blunder is a great way to get new customers if you handle it well. For one, people will have seen your customer service in action. Nothing says trust me like showing people that you can make up for stupid mistakes. After all, customers just want to be done right. Two, you will get a ton of attention, mostly being free! Its like a second launch for crying out loud. Now its the time to show people what you offer. But dont just show them a catalog. Do it in a manner that is parallel to the issue at hand. Did you send a Darth Vader figure to someone who ordered a Luke Skywalker one? Apologize and make a special sale on both figures. Three, I believe you think that all of this should happen in a short time-frame. Not at all. You should let some bit of time pass by (but not too much) in order to let anger calm down. On week #1 you fuck up and apologize. On week #2 you make the sale. Rinse and repeat. That's how a lot of PR strategies work (ahem, AirBnB). They make shit up, stir it, calm people down, and then grow like stink.

I know this will make people here angry, because some of you think the business world is all pink unicorns. Nope. Its a make it or die environment. Thats why most startup people never want to go out and make a sale. Its so much easier to just talk about traction than to hit the pavement to get some money in your pocket. Send all insults and hate to my inbox (address on profile).

[noibl]

Thank you for your post, which again starts off sounding reasonable and only later loses the plot completely.

> On week #1 you fuck up and apologize. On week #2 you make the sale.

Have you considered developing this into an ebook?

> Send all insults and hate to my inbox (address on profile).

What?

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[Edit before seeing reply:] With apologies in business, you want the reader to believe what happened was a mistake, an error, and that it doesn't reflect on your internal ethical code (corporate or personal). In order for that to happen, people need to know that you recognise that you did the wrong thing, but that's only half of it. They also need to figure out whether you're likely to do more bad shit in the future. And your ability to transmit that information to them by talking about it is extremely limited. So: don't fuck up! Because it's really not a marketing opportunity.

[orangethirty]

Yes, you are right. My tone is off. Sorry about that.

May you explain where I lose the plot? I'd like to clear it up in a manner that is beneficial to all.

I'm constantly getting hate mail for being a marketing/sales/copywriting consultant. Every post here usually gathers me some nice hate mail from other members. Not meant to you personally. I apologize if that came out wrong.

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Thank you for the edited response. That is actually my point. Though you write it in a better manner. Sorry for the miscommunication. I'm tired from coding all day (its almost 1AM and Im not done), and do get stupidly cranky. Apologies.

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The stir it part refers to how some marketers hack growth. I personally don't use such techniques because it can easily backfire. My personal opinion is that some big startups that have enjoyed quick growth have used such manner. But I think that is another thread altogether.

Experience has taught me that even when we make business mistakes we can still profit. In fact, a lot of growth can come out of such situation if it is handled correctly. My example above is not so good. Let me usea better another one.

Startup A manages to get into some hot water by wronging a customer. The issue is that a credit card charge was improperly handled, and they did not take care of the customer as they should have. The customer writes a blog post venting about how frustrated he/she is. The blog post goes viral. Startup A contacts the customer, fixes the issue by calming the person with gifts and apologies. Then they go and make the press release explaining what happened. They scold their stupidty publicly, and show how they fixed it. Then they have the customer give faith that all is now good. Some days pass, and Startup A makes a new blog post explaining the new measures they are using against improperly handled credit card charges. In the blog post, they include a comprehensive tutorial on how to properly handle credit card charges for other startups. It goes viral, because it is showing the human side of the company. After that, the startup creates a special offer and markets it to its new audience. People make notice of how "well" all was handled and say "let's give them a chance" and order.

Startup A managed to turn a blunder into a marketing opportunity. I have personally seen businesses go from broke to gold mine by using such tactic.

[noibl]

> May you explain where I lose the plot?

I guess, if I were to pinpoint, it would be with the words 'stir it'.

BTW, I neither deserve nor need an apology from you. Don't be sorry! We're just disagreeing. And I really do think we have a fundamental disagreement about priorities here. Apologising doesn't resolve that (though I acknowledge I haven't articulated my side of it very well).

I don't know why someone would send you hatemail over you expressing an opinion. That doesn't sound right at all.

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> People make notice of how "well" all was handled and say "let's give them a chance" and order.

I think that's fine in cases where the 'mistake' clearly (or with reasonable doubt) was an actual mistake. This applies to outages, billing issues, product quality issues... Hounding on Twitter, not so much.

> I personally don't use such techniques because it can easily backfire.

I think if the reasons why they backfire were more important to businesses than the fact that they backfire, everyone would be a lot happier.

[orangethirty]

I hate to bring this point out like that but:

Everytime you face a disagreement apologizing humanizes you in the mind of the other person. Their approach will usually soften and will show sympathy. It allows your point to be driven further into the exchange, make the other side friendly, and reduce the amount of potential loss.

Though I did do it in a genuine manner. Its that I have been in marketing for so lonf that things just become second nature. I hope to one day meet you and buy you a cup of coffee (water for me, due to past heart issues).

It is like the roboticist who one day wakes up and realizes that his body is now made out of metal. :)