Clear communication leads to reputation boost

Clear communication can boost your reputation. Bad communication can have dire consequences. Remember Gerald Ratner’s remark about his company’s poor products that led to its near collapse? Or US Vice President Dan Quayle correcting a student’s spelling of potato by adding an incorrect ‘e’ at the end.

Ratner was naive to think no one would report his speech. The media ridiculed Quayle’s phonetic fatigue. Both men’s gaffes remind us that clarity and common sense are essential in communication.

Communicate clearly to avoid misunderstandings

I learned the importance of clear communication yesterday when I pitched up at a well-known company to donate blood at a mobile NHS unit. I couldn’t see the vehicle in the host firm’s car park. Instead, I found it parked on the other side of the road at Daewoo’s offices.

One of the NHS team stood outside the booked venue. She asked me to return in half an hour while they set up at Daewoo and explained the communications snarl-up.

“No one in the host company knows about us, even though we sent a letter and it’s advertised everywhere. No one’s taking responsibility and the security guard won’t let us in,” she said. “So we’re phoning everyone with an appointment and asking them to come back later.”

Where the letter went astray is a mystery. But the adverts in the business park clearly stated where the NHS would be pitched. It also wasn’t the first time the firm hosted the NHS. So, anyone with an ounce of common sense would have let the unit in. The car park had room but the company refused entry to the unit because the team would have to enter the building to use bathroom facilities periodically.

Daewoo’s sound judgement saves the day

Luckily for the NHS and its donors, someone at Daewoo had sounder judgement and let them set up there without a fuss.

Granted, minor incidents like these don’t have the impact of a Ratner or Quayle remark. However, they can still harm corporate reputations. In this case, clear communication on the original host’s part would not have sparked this blog. I haven’t mentioned names, but someone else might have done so and harmed their reputation.

It takes much effort on my part in finding time to donate blood. Chiefly, I was annoyed with the host company for the inconvenience it caused me, other donors and the NHS staff who do such a great job.

As for Daewoo, it gets my vote for not hesitating in providing a common-sense solution that saved the day.