The Toronto Transit Commission (TTC) has taken a lot of heat in the last few weeks and seen their fair share of bad publicity. But I can’t help but think they could have been more proactive in stemming the tide.

Not by having their PR and Communications staff running spin these past few weeks (because it seems they don’t have anyone), but in managing their reputation in the downtimes.

If the TTC had been more engaging with their riders, quicker to embrace technology and offered simple cornerstones like better service, perhaps people wouldn’t be so quick to vilify them.

Take last week when an independent contractor was responsible for a collapse in a tunnel and shut the service down for the night. The TTC was blamed and took almost all of the heat for a situation in which they were (relatively) innocent. But had they been pro-actively banking credibility and goodwill through other actions, perhaps riders would have cut them some slack.

Because the TTC has almost no interest in public opinion (the luxury of being publicly funded) there’s almost no take away for them. But the lesson that translates to your business is pretty simple.

When things are going well, don’t rest on your accomplishments – get out there and engage. This should theoretically be the easiest time to do so. Give your loyal customers something that will earn their trust while building your reputation. That way, when times aren’t quite so rosy, there’s a far better chance your customers will give you the benefit of the doubt.