Tell HN: What I learned from the AirBnB / EJ incident
I'm trying to learn from other people's lessons (it's the cheapest way to learn). Here's what I learned from the recent incident as well as others recently talked about in the 'sphere. Whenever there is a crisis:
* Respond quickly
* Respond in the open so that there's no he-said / she-said
* Be fair, and err on the side of the customer
* Don't spin the company line - be thoughtful, especially if someone has lost money / time / confidence / data / faith in humanity
* Think "This could be me / this could be someone I know & love"
* If relevant, get the authorities involved quickly so that you can be sure it's not a shakedown.
* Assume the customer is telling you the truth unless you have specific and verifiable reason to believe otherwise
* Get insurance
* Don't let others (especially those with interests) speak for you.
* Try to establish a single point person for all contact with the customer, and make that person easily and quickly available to the customer at the customer's behest
* Try not to respond to what's said in the press
Did I miss any good lessons here?