The Stolen Train Engine - using a crisis for positive communication

We used a negative situation - a Škoda 380 train engine was seized by Austrian authorities - and turned it into a positive communication opportunity for high-tech products of Škoda Transportation, imbued with a sense of national pride. As a matter of days, the public and the media changed their opinion on the leading Czech manufacturer of trains and city train cars - until then, the company from Pilsen was seen in a negative light for the most part, owing to some disputable tenders, product pricing, delays in delivery, etc. We used the situation which has arisen for the communication of the unique train engine model Škoda 380, which the competition 'rather had seized by the authorities than having to measure up to it'.

Immediately after the seizure of the engine by Austrian authorities on the instigation of a competitor in May 2011, we opted for ACTIVE communication based in the following key elements in the strategy:

- NATIONAL PRIDE - the steps taken by foreign authorities are likely to draw more attention than if the dispute took place in the Czech Republic.

- FOREIGN ADVERSARY - the adversary (Canadian-German company) wants to make life difficult for our Czech company.

- IRRATIONAL AND BULLYING BEHAVIOUR - the seizure of a train engine worth CZK 130 million in a dispute over some CZK 10 million.

WEDNESDAY 18 May: The train engine is leaving for Vienna to get certification.

THURSDAY 19 May, 9.30: the train engine is seized by the Austrian authorities accompanied by Bombardier representatives. At noon we release to the press: 'Competition Will Not Stop at Anything'. Bombardier's poor response was 'no comment'. In the following days they gave several interviews in which they only confirmed that they had the train engine seized for the reasons which had only been speculated about.

SUNDAY 22 May: We make another press release insinuating the concern that the attack may be related to industrial espionage. The train engine was docked on private property to which the competitor Bombardier had access - documented with photographs. The train engine, despite many requests for it, had not been officially sealed.

Publicity in the media 1-5/2011:

The conclusion of three discussions on the online server idnes.cz (two prior to the seizure on 19 May and one after):

14 September 2010 - 66% of mentions were negative

15 December 2010 - 50% of mentions were negative

19 May 2011 (on the seizure) - 80% of mentions were POSITIVE

The project placed first in the Industry category in the Czech PR Awards organised by APRA (Czech Association of Public Relations Agencies) in 2012.