SACRAMENTO, Calif., June 8 /PRNewswire/ -- Watching the public relations crisis engulfing BP as it struggles to manage the Gulf of Mexico oil spill, I am reminded of a wise old adage: When you're in a hole, stop digging. Every day, it seems, BP's leaders say or do something that makes the colossal environmental disaster even worse.

I spent many years managing public affairs for ARCO, which was eventually bought by the British petroleum giant BP. After the company's April 20 drilling rig explosion off Louisiana, many friends asked me how I would handle public relations if I were in charge.

At first I hesitated to embrace the role of Monday morning quarterback. But BP's repeated missteps have so astonished me that I could not hold back. So here goes:

Foot-in-Mouth Disease

If there's anything that can turn a major public relations problem into an utter disaster, it's an arrogant, tone-deaf company executive. Meet the 2010 poster-child for this type, BP Chief Executive Officer Tony Hayward.

Every time Hayward opens his mouth, bad things happen for BP. In a boneheaded move to minimize the worst spill in U.S. history, he called it "relatively tiny." Hmm … has he actually seen the black, gooey oil slick killing off fisheries and fouling the shore of multiple states?

About a week after the spill, Hayward was quoted in the New York Times as asking his inner circle, "What the hell did we do to deserve this?" Ah, nothing like playing the "we are not to blame" card to rouse some public empathy.

The real doozie, however, was Hayward's comment suggesting that he's a bit weary after working such long hours since the spill. "I'd like my life back," whined the pink-cheeked oil titan who reportedly makes upwards of $10,000 a day. Gee Tony, I bet the 11 people killed when your oil rig exploded and sank would like their lives back, too. And what about the millions of shrimpers, motel owners, and other people whose very survival depends on seafood and tourism? Or those whose retirement was dependent on BP's plummeting stock?

Suggestion: Send Tony Hayward on a long vacation, and hire someone like Colin Powell or T. Boone Pickens to do the talking.

A Believable Gameplan

As BP lurches from option to option in attempting to stem the flow of crude, the American public grows ever more dubious that the company has what it takes to resolve this catastrophe. Saturday Night Live has had a field day spoofing the various potential solutions BP has trotted out, with comedians suggesting satirical clean-up approaches like "dolphins with mops Scotch-taped to their fins."

Americans understand this is a complicated task, and we don't expect miracles. But company officials could have increased public confidence by managing expectations more intelligently from the get -go.

Suggestion: Lay out all the future options rather than making it look like you're coming up with ideas on the fly.

Showing We Care

It will take years for BP to mend its tattered image, but it can make a solid step in the right direction by pledging to do whatever it takes -- for however long it takes -- to help Gulf residents recover from the economic devastation caused by the spill.

Suggestion: Establish a $1 billion fund to aid Gulf residents, accompanied by a promise to spend as much as necessary to make the region whole again.

The Credibility Gap

BP's credibility has taken a beating, but much of the bruising has been self-inflicted. When a company official declares there are 1,000 barrels of oil a day pouring into the ocean and it turns out it's more like 5,000, public trust goes bye-bye.

Suggestion: When you don't know the answer, don't answer the question

As new chapters in the disaster continue to unfold, BP can take heart from one reliable truth: Eventually, another crisis will come along and nudge the oil-covered Brown Pelicans off the front page. Remember Hurricane Katrina? The Exxon Valdez? Tiger Woods? These and other stories held us captive for weeks, but ultimately were eclipsed by other news. So it will go for "The Most Hated Man in America" (as Tony Hayward was labeled by the New York Daily News) and BP.

In the meantime, company officials might want to start rewriting their crisis management manual.

Doug Elmets is president of Elmets Communications, a media relations and public affairs firm based in Sacramento, CA

SOURCE Doug Elmets

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