CRISIS? WHAT CRISIS?
The prospect of a PR crisis can be daunting to business owners, particularly SMEs who are unlikely to have a crisis management plan in place.
Some business owners think it won’t happen to them. But a crisis can sneak up and strike when you are least expecting it. Best advice is be prepared!
Consider all the potential crisis situations e.g., a financial issue, product recall, personnel grievance, a natural disaster etc and work out a responsive plan for each scenario. So, when a crisis does happen, the business can take control and respond in a timely manner.
Golden rule: Avoiding the ‘no comment’
Depending on the nature and scale of the crisis, it is often the local or national media that jump on the story first.
One of the most important things to avoid is the ‘no comment’ response because if you refuse to speak to the media, it can come across as evading the issue which implies guilt.
Dealing with the press when you are under pressure can be quite a challenge even for an experienced spokesperson. A careless comment or offhand remark can easily be misinterpreted and end up making the situation worse.
So, while still gathering the facts and deciding on the company position, the best option is to issue the media with a short holding statement. This avoids the ‘no comment’ and buys more time until a more detailed response can be developed.
The impact of social media
The emergence of social media can make a crisis increasingly difficult to control.
Negative views and opinions shared online can be damaging and very difficult to counter. Although all the major platforms have reporting mechanisms to get posts taken down, this rarely happens quickly unless the content is libellous or breaks specific guidelines. Decisions need to be made on whether individual posts should be responded to, ignored, or hidden from view, and if the holding statement can be used as a way of response. It’s not easy and decisions will need to be made on a day to day or even hour by hour basis as the crisis develops.
It’s not just about the media
Undoubtedly the media can play a vital role in how the crisis is portrayed to the outside world. But it’s important to remember that crisis management is not solely a media relations exercise.
It’s vital to look at the bigger picture by identifying key stakeholders and working out the most effective way to communicate with those groups to keep them informed as the crisis unfolds.
This will probably include the traditional print, online and broadcast media but may also incorporate a mix of social media, newsletters, events, videos, briefings and other communication channels.
A crisis can have a spiral effect on a business and negatively affect so many areas of the operations. If not managed correctly, customers may stop buying your product or service; trade customers might delist your brands; employee morale may collapse and it may become difficult to recruit; investors may lose business confidence. That’s why it is so important to be honest, open, and transparent and to keep the communication flowing with all stakeholders.
On a positive note …
Remember, every crisis presents an opportunity.
Although it’s easy to see think about the negatives, good management should ensure that the operation is in a better place after the crisis than it was before. Instead of thinking of a crisis as a disaster, use the take aways from the situation to make the business stronger and better.
For further advice on crisis news management, please contact Jane Newick 07907 566773