Media Relations Plan For Make a Wish Foundation Prepared by David Gellner COM 487 Professor Lois Breedlove

MEMO TO THE MAKE A WISH FOUNDATION TO: David Williams FROM: David Gellner Date: 7/23/2012 Subject: Summary of Crisis Management Plan Enclosed in this memo is a review of steps that should be taken into account if a crisis happens in the Make a Wish foundation. It is important to understand that although this foundation is known worldwide for its specific actions in helping children with life threatening conditions, a crisis in many areas of operation could substantially affect the future for this organization. The best way to prevent a crisis is to constantly be on guard for potential threats and to follow a crisis management plan. First I will start with an outline of what the foundation is all about. The Make a Wish foundation is a non-profit group that is dedicated to fulfilling wishes of children 18 years of age and under with life threatening medical conditions the opportunity to experience a wish. The purpose of doing this is to enrich the childrens lives and offer them a sense of enjoyment and hope. The foundation was started in 1980 and since then has granted over 220,000 wishes. The foundation is currently working across the United States, and worldwide with partners. Make a Wish is one of the best known non-profits in the country and has been granted with a positive public opinion. Media coverage is vital for maintaining this positive public opinion and image. A variety of different types of media ranging from mainstream media, social media, and independent media are essential. In the event of a crisis the media is crucial in being able to establish a favorable outcome. Mainstream media has the most power to influence a wide array of people and can cause the most damage, therefor it should be of utmost importance to establish a contact with them first. After this is done, it is important to contact local media and let them know what is happening. Social media also needs to be monitored and responses on this medium must be of a consistent message. It is best if you have the same person or people establish contact and responses for social media. Key media contacts have been provided in an excel spreadsheet in this crisis management plan. As previously stated, it is best to contact large news organizations first and then work your way down. All messages to the medium must be similar in content and there cannot be a varying array of details given to different media. The message must be consistent no matter what media you are dealing with, if it is not this will substantially hurt your reputation and outcome during the crisis. Enclosed in this plan is important information for all media personnel to have if a crisis occurs. It is important that all major and local media contacts information is at hand and up to date so they can be reached. It is also of vital important to make sure that reporters and the media have ways of reaching and contacting the appropriate people. In the event of a crisis you must respond

rapidly to all inquiries so that misinformation does not spread about your organization. It is my suggestion to have a specific person or persons to contact in the event of a crisis. Make sure that there information is public and easily accessible by all. With Make a Wish being a national organization run by chapters in each state, it is also important to have all their information available in case of need to contact. In order to respond to the media you must have all the information present. Enclosed in this plan is also a social media suggestion on how the foundation should handle any misinformation or misuse by an employee. Suggestions for a crisis management plan are also included. Some of these suggestions include but are not limited to, establishing a national crisis management response team, analyzing potential sources of crisis in a crisis action assessment, establishing a specific individual that will be the spokesperson in the event of a major crisis, having a national plan formulated that all chapters can follow, implementing a strict social media policy for all employees, being proactive in searching for any potential crises, establishing a good relationship with all important media contacts, and lastly establishing a code of ethics that all in the foundation must obey by. It is my suggestion that the Make a Wish foundation should establish a national media relations plan and crisis management plan that all chapters must use in the case of these events happening. Also this plan should be utilized with all partners of the foundation, even if they are international or made up of different organizations. As stated in one of the foundations goals is to improve and spread the wishes that are granted nationally and worldwide. It is essential that the image of the foundation is maintained and the best way to do this is to establish consistent, detailed media relations and crisis management plans that everyone related to the organization must follow.

Media Relations Plan for Make a Wish Foundation Goal 1: Maintain Make a Wish Foundations good image and reputation. Objective: Focus in providing chapters in the United States and abroad with ways of reaching media thats important to them. Tactics: 1. Provide a layout sheet with all important facts and statistics for each chapter to use in contacting the media 2. Including important tips on how to contact the media and what to say to them when you are in contact. 3. Set up a contact database within the company where questions and strategies can be combined to help each individual chapter. Goal 2: Increase the foundations media attention. Objective: Increase national and international media coverage for all chapters. Tactics: 1. Refer them stories of current children that have been helped by the foundation. 2. Send out press releases to boost interest in our social media outlets that show the actions of our foundation. 3. Generate a buzz with local media by showing them stories of children signed up to receive wishes, which in turn will generate support. Goal 3: Maintain the ethical standards and prevent a substantial crisis from happening. Objective: Focus on areas where substantial crises can happen and where they would be devastating to the company. Tactics: 1. Create a company standard for ethics and procedures when helping children. 2. Make sure that no children are ever alone with just one person / employee that is with the organization or another organization. 3. Focus on protecting the children 4. Establish a social media plan for employees

Analysis of Make a Wish Foundation The Make a Wish foundation started in 1980, when it gave its first wish to a young boy named Chris, who dreamed of becoming a police officer. Make a Wish is a non-profit organization whose mission is to grant wishes to children 2 years of age to 18 years old that are diagnosed with life-threatening medical conditions. Since the foundation was established more than 200,000 wishes have been granted. The foundation boasts an impressive statistic that a wish is granted by the foundation every 38 minutes. The foundation has 64 chapters across the United States, including Puerto Rico and Guam. Nearly 25,000 volunteers help the foundation across the United States to make these wishes come true. The foundations current home office is located in Arizona. The average cost of a wish is 7,205 dollars. Every dollar that is donated to the foundation over 75% goes to specifically granting a wish. On wish.org you can view all the statistical evidence of where every fund that is donated goes to. Some of Make a Wishs competitors in the nonprofit area include but are not limited to : The American Red Cross, American Heart Association, World Vision, Susan G. Komen for the Cure, and Doctors without Borders. The foundation is consistently ranked among one of the top 10 charitys to donate to by nonprofit ranking websites. The current CEO of the organization is David Williams, who joined in 2005. Prior to joining he spent 10 years with Habitat for Humanity, where he eventually was CEO of the organization. As CEO of Make a Wish he has increased donation revenue substantially and also has the organization granting more wishes than ever before.

Analysis of various kinds of media coverage the organization needs. It is vital to maintain the reputation and image of the Make a Wish foundation. One of the best ways to accomplish this action is through the media. All media organization and outlets are important but I feel that the best way to establish national recognition and exposure is through the mass media outlets. Followed by the mass media it is important to have an ongoing reputation and relationship with the local media. Social media is also gaining in popularity and power and can be used to the organizations advantages. Mass media such as CNN, MSNBC, and FOX are essential for gaining and maintaining a nationwide reputation. These outlets have massive followings and have a wide audience that they attract, that is why it is important to try and get the organization into these outlets as often and consistently as possible. One of the best ways to do this is to acquire celebrity assistance, as they often can easily attract these outlets. Local news outlets are also important to attract for the organization. One of the reasons that these outlets are vital to the organization is because they attract a considerable local following and have substantial power in the local community. This is especially important for chapters that are lacking in resources such as volunteers and funds, so much attention should be placed on these types of outlets. Also, it is a good idea to contact a wide range of local media, especially if a wish is being granted in their area. This will increase publicity and favorability for the organization in that community immensely. Social media is the final outlet that the organization should try and capture. The main social networking sites such as Facebook and Twitter are increasing in popularity daily. Every wish that the organization completes should be put onto these social media sites. It is important with social media to have a constant stream of news and updates about the organization to retain and capture followers. It is also of upmost important to constantly monitor social media for negative attention. A potential conflict with social media is that it can be misused by employees, which is why it is essential to constantly monitor and implement a social media plan.

Key Media Contacts National Media Contact Phone Numbers ABC NBC CNN CBS FOX LA TIMES NY TIMES USATODAY WALL STREET JOURNAL WASHINGTON POST NEWSWEEK TIME AP REUTERS (212) 456 7777 (212) 664 4444 (404) 827 1500 (212) 975 4321 (212) 301 3000 (213) 237 5000 (202) 862 0300 (703) 854 3400 (212) 416 2000 (202) 334 6000 (212) 445 4000 (212) 522 1212 (212) 621 1500 (646) 223 4000

Each chapter should also have a list of contacts for specific media in their area such as Local news media, Police and Fire Departments, Local Businesses, and key government officials and offices.

Important information for media relations personnel It is important for each media relations personnel to be provided with a substantial amount of information about the company. This should include the bios of key executives such as David Williams the CEO. This information can be found at this link:
http://www.wish.org/var/wish_user/storage/original/application/08a9a4e1405d7f4c990b200bce0e1a2 1.pdf

It is also important that each media relations personnel is provided with the organizations annual reports for the past five years. Helpful media relations books that can guide them in the event of a crisis. Important company data and statistics. Corporate goals and objectives. A fact sheet about the company. And all company produced material so it can be reviewed upon if asked questions about its publication. A policy should be implemented on who speaks during a crisis. Some suggestions that I have come up with are: Each chapter needs to have a specific spokesperson that has all the information listed above. This person should also be trained how to adequately respond to the media in the event of a crisis. After establishing a spokesperson it is also important to establish a crisis management team that will aid the spokesperson in responding to the media in the event of a crisis. This team needs to be pre-established and have annual meetings reviewing the crisis management plan. It is of the upmost importance that during a crisis each spokesperson and person representing the organization is consistent in their response to the media. The worst thing that can happen is for the organization to give varying information and reports. A social media plan should also be implemented: The plan should include: who is in charge of each chapters statements on their Facebook and Twitter accounts. One person needs to be in charge of what is said on these accounts, after reviewed by the crisis management team. It is also important in social media that all statements are consistent with what is posted not only in social media but in press release and physical statements. All employees and volunteers should be briefed on certain guidelines and rules when posting on social media, especially in the event of a crisis. In the event of a crisis all employees should refrain from speaking about the event and publicly using their social media accounts. It is also vital that employees understand that they represent the company and anything they post could negatively affect the organization.

Recommendations for Crisis Management Plan The following are my recommendations/suggestions for a Crisis Management Plan that should be implemented immediately. The first thing that needs to be done is to evaluate potential areas where a crisis can arise. Specific areas that should be noted should be in the areas of: Misuse of funds, mistreatment of children by staff, damaging statements by former staff, and a potential breach of confidentiality. After these areas have been evaluated the plan should include all contacts necessary for the cooperation of all involved in the company. Each specific chapter should have a designated spokesperson, as well as a crisis management team. The home office should also have a crisis management team that should be ready to help any chapter in the event of a crisis. It is also vital that any information that is given to the media be accurate and consistent with other reports given by anyone involved in the company. Have available press and media kits that show how to easily access key media information such as press releases, financial information and other information. After the creation and implementation of the crisis management plan, every chapter should review its plan annually with its crisis management team. Any specific changes should be made based on the chapters needs, but it is also vital to relay this information to the home chapter so it can review its own national plan. It is essential for each chapter to be familiar with this plan and practice it whenever possible.

Projection of globalization of media plan It is essential to continue to grow the Make a Wish foundation, and one of the ways for this to happen is to gain global support. The foundation should especially focus in emerging countries such as India, China, Russia and Brazil. There is a lot of room for growth in these areas, especially being that they are emerging would mean that you could gain vital contacts with the media. Each media plan that is being used should also be changed specifically for the culture and area that the chapter/foundation is operating in. Specific areas such as China, Japan, India or Brazil might have a different culture or view, especially when it comes to media contacts. The plan should be changed accordingly for each area.