| Crisis communications is the process of managing the strategy, messages, timing and distribution channels necessary to communicate effectively with the media, employees, core constituencies, clients, customers and stakeholders: ...as a crisis begins · to facilitate rapid de-escalation of the immediate crisis, and · to restore public order and to return to normal operations. ...as crisis is underway · to position the organization as capable of managing the actual incident, event or allegation which has triggered the crisis in the first place; · to ensure that all decisions and public statements are made from a common up-to-date base of information, and · to prevent crisis escalation. ...as crisis fades · to rebuild, recover, re-establish public composure and repair relationships; · to prevent recurrence or development of a chronic crisis, and · to enable the organization and its representatives to emerge with the highest possible credibility. The First Line of Defense is a Good Offense Try to anticipate the various types of crises that could impact your organization, and determine beforehand the necessary steps to manage them. Analyze your strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats (SWOT). The more prepared you are, the “luckier” you’ll be in handling them. You won’t always have time to make a prepared statement or stage a news conference. But the media will want a story now. So you need to be prepared to speak intelligently to the issue, acknowledge what happened even if it’s already obvious to everyone, and what steps you’re taking to remedy it. Keys to Effective Crisis Communications 1. Communicate Proactively If the initial issue isn't put to bed in the first 24 to 48 hours of a crisis, the tendency is for the hot issues to mutate as the media shifts their focus to other aspects of the story. The best way to avoid new issues emerging or "mutating" is to drive the communications process proactively rather than in a merely reactive manner. You need to act immediately to turn the story into what you are doing to ensure that it doesn't happen again. Be sure that inaccurate or misleading reporting is always corrected immediately. 2. Designate a Single Spokesperson It is critical to get the message out with credibility in the beginning of a crisis. Your spokesperson should be technically knowledgeable, in a position of authority, have strong professional credentials, be a quick study, have an even temper, a reasonable tone, an honest face, an ear for a good sound bite, and get along well with reporters. Tight control should be maintained over who speaks on behalf of the organization. All media and public communications should be limited to one spokesperson wherever possible. In the early stages, the more senior the spokesperson the better, as it implies that you take the issue seriously. Later on, as the crisis fades, the public affairs or Corporate Communications Director is sufficient for routine regular media briefings. Be sure to communicate internally before you make public statements. Otherwise chaos will truly reign and morale will sink even deeper; thus undermining the quality of the response. 3. Communicate Early, Often and Consistently The first few hours after a crisis or allegation arises provides the ideal time to develop credibility with the media and the public, and shape the media coverage. By communicating early on, and in a straightforward manner, you show that you have nothing to hide. Rigorously brief key officials prior to any announcement and role-play all awkward questions to ensure consistency of messages and the possibility of making accidental news. Throughout the crisis, if you communicate on a regular basis, you avoid the creation of an information vacuum. By so doing, you reduce the tendency of the media to fill the vacuum with minor, irrelevant, yet possibly "juicy" items, which merely serve to keep the story in the news. When you communicate accurately and regularly, you become the source of credible information, rather than others. Silence and invisibility are signs of unwillingness, incompetence and fear, which reinforce the perception that the crisis is under control, not you. Demonstrate empathy and caring about people; recognize public anxiety - don't dismiss it. Keep public and key stakeholders informed, such as regulators, partners, customers, suppliers, local, state and federal officials and politicians. Stay in contact with victims’ families. If they get all their news first from the media, then their trust in your abilities and honesty rapidly erode. 4. Encourage the "Front Door" Approach Be as convivial as possible by anticipating and meeting the needs of journalists and the public. If they don’t feel welcomed through the "front door," they will try to get the information through the "back door." This includes ex-employees, unnamed accusers etc. Besides being up-front and forthright, you can literally welcome them through your front doors, and provide them with a prepared media room near the sight of the crisis and brief them there regularly. Set up and operate channels for public input such as toll-free phone lines, on-line communications, fax-back systems, and public meetings. 5. Be Prepared Be prepared by anticipating every conceivable crisis situation or allegation. You will also create a better opportunity for accurate reporting from the outset if you prepare standard fact sheets, backgrounders, news releases, media statements and announcements ready to go to support your pro-active media relations. 6. Announce Bad News First & Announce It All at Once Ensure that all the news- good or bad- but particularly the bad, is communicated as soon as you can confirm it. If the news media or another party reveals the bad news about you, the perception will be that you had tried to hide it. If you are the one to announce it, you can be sure the facts are accurate and the story is in context. And if you can anticipate bad news down the line, and it’s confirmed, give it to the media all at once. You’ll have a really bad day, but if you announce them one at a time, you will, in effect, be conducting a public "striptease" of bad news, and you will be guaranteed a bad month! This is how media feeding frenzies are developed, as the bad news continues to whet the public’s appetite. Be Prepared Have a Crisis Team. Be sure to have a strong leader who has the authority to make important decisions, or make sure they can quickly contact someone who can. Have Subject Matter Experts (SMEs) from within different areas of the company who can help with each type of crisis that could potentially occur. This includes representatives from human relations, operations, security, environmental resources, and of course, public relations. Be sure to have a notification policy so that employees at all locations know whom to notify immediately after a potential crisis takes place. Be sure you know what your individual responsibilities are in a crisis. Even minor tasks shouldn’t be taken for granted, because every second counts in a crisis. Have your answers ready. Consider all potential communications crises that could arise. Prepare a series of written statements and press releases dealing with each potential crisis you can anticipate. Create a list of detailed questions and answers so that you’ll be ready to answer some basic questions from the media about all of those crises. These questions include: · What happened? · What caused it? · Is your company taking responsibility for it? · How could you let this happen? · Who is responsible? · Why didn't you take precautions to prevent this from happening? · What are you going to do about it? · How dangerous is it? · Who is to blame? · Was anyone hurt or killed? · Are you going to compensate the victims? · When will the situation be under control? · Can it happen again? Media training. Ideally, you will schedule media training and rehearsal sessions before a crisis occurs. This way you can practice your crisis communications and media interviews based on actual scenarios that you’ve identified. Bring in instructors with knowledge of your industry and not just your local operations. They should have hands-on experience in answering questions in crisis situations, as well as past news media experience in asking tough questions. Naturally, no matter how well prepared you are, no one plan will magically avert all the situations you may encounter. Crisis simulation. This can take months of work, but you will have valuable information on how to improve your plan. Stage it on an evening or weekend to test your notification procedures. Hire former professional journalists to act as reporters, have plenty of them and let them do their job. Record the whole event on television videotape so you can critique it later. When you consider the potential public relations fallout from a mishandled crisis, increased emphasis on planning and training may be a small investment. Your Crisis Communications Plan · The simpler the better. In a real crisis, no one has time to read a treatise on crisis management theories. They want to know what they're supposed to do now. · Arrange it in logical sections with directories and index tabs so you can find exactly what you need without having to read the entire document. · Give some thought to design. Use plenty of headlines, subheads and large type. This is a document that will be updated from now on, so use a three-ring binder that can accommodate changes as well as wear and tear. Print it on water/soil resistant paper. · Use flow-charts, contact trees and check lists of all types to make it easy. · Have copies of written statements and press releases dealing with each potential crisis you can anticipate. You can use facts from the real incident to fill in the blanks. · Identify your Subject Matter Experts in the company and know where you can locate them at all times. Have alternates/backups in case someone is on vacation or out sick. · Outline each member's responsibility · Have a notification procedure for key contacts. · Keep an up-to-date media contact section with names, affiliation and phone numbers. · Keep a directory of regulatory and emergency departments as well as civic officials. · Include fact sheets on the company, your products, their uses and benefits, and have statistics, backgrounders, etc. · Include procedures for notifying neighbors in the event of danger or an evacuation. Make sure someone is in charge of community notification and knows exactly what needs to be done. · Identify the person assigned with dealing with reporters. · Identify the person who has instructions on notifying next of kin in the event of serious injuries or fatalities. · Consider having a section of your website dedicated to emergency situations, so that you can refer people to information on that site if appropriate. What To Do When A Crisis Strikes Assess the situation and get out in front of it as soon as possible—take the lead and take control. Don’t simply react to events. The most important objective in a crisis is control the situation and minimize loss. You will need to do the following: 1. Investigate the crisis Find out… · What happened? In as much detail as possible. · What caused it? · What is your organization doing about it? · Who is involved? · Where did it happen? Are other sites affected? · What product/ service was involved? · Are there any possible lawsuits? 2. Assure all proper individuals/agencies are notified · Are regulatory officials, law enforcement, emergency workers on scene? · Are the news media there? · Should others be contacted? (regulatory officials, law enforcement, emergency workers, etc.) 3. Determine your message and response to the situation Within the first couple of hours of a crisis, you will need to: · Take all the information you collected and sort it into three categories: known, unknown and presumed. The goal is to move everything into the "known" category as the facts are confirmed. · Define the nature of the crisis: what is the issue? (incompetence? greed? waste? mismanagement?) · Assess how the media will play the story, and determine what it will take to de-escalate the crisis. · Determine the key actions necessary to accomplish the goal. · Brief the key spokesperson and prepare media tools It’s important to manage the messages, by keeping them clear, honest and consistent. If your message is patently false, premature, or unsupportable by readily available facts, then don't say it. Perceptions must be managed in addition to reality. The media and the public react primarily on perceptions of competence, truth, openness etc. If you are not communicating those values, then the opposite perception can take hold. If a negative perception takes hold early in the response, it can be very difficult to shake. 4. Respond to all inquiries, regulatory officials, customers and the media It’s important to protect your image by expressing concern and control. Reassure people that your company knows what it’s doing and that it is doing the right thing. The media deal in sound bites, not long-winded explanations. You must know the message you want to convey, package in such a way that the media can use it and the public will understand it, and deliver it in a way that people will believe it. Don’t get caught up in details which may breed additional questions and fuel controversy, blowing the situation into more than it is. Don’t avoid the media or be unavailable for comment, because first, if you create a news vacuum by not talking to them, it will certainly be filled by someone else who does not share your agenda, and second, it can be interpreted that you’re hiding something or that you’re apathetic, both of which are very negative messages. Media Response · Quickly issue a brief statement acknowledging what happened. o Include the known facts, and what is being done to mitigate the situation o Acknowledge responsibility as quickly as possible o Express your concern for the public’s safety/ customer service, etc. o Direct all media calls to one spokesperson · Tell the media that you’ll keep them posted as the situation develops (and be good to your word). · Decide on a time for a first media briefing, and brief the media as often as warranted. · Be as honest as possible. Stick with the facts. Never speculate. · Let reporters know you’re on top of the situation, that you’re taking positive actions and you’re in control. · Tell them that your employees and your customers are always your top concern. · Tell them that you have procedures in place to handle this type of situation, and if necessary, go into details about the policy without giving out too much information. · Do whatever you can to work with public officials. Don’t fight them. Working together, you can be a team looking out for the welfare of your customers and/or employees. · Praise your employees. They are the best public relations team you’ll ever have. Make sure they’re on your side and let them know you appreciate it. If applicable, praise emergency workers. · Thank the public for their understanding when necessary (people will live up to the reputation you have just attributed to them) · Don’t be afraid to apologize for inconveniences your organization might have caused. · Make sure your spokesperson is well-versed in the situation. · The spokesperson must believe what they say is true. They need to be credible and human. · Stick to the message and don’t get sidetracked by addressing other issues. · Be sure to monitor all media to stay ahead of events and ensure accuracy. · Keep listening and responding. · Remain calm Dealing With The Media During A Crisis: What to do: · Know your message and stick to it · Speak with one voice, your designated spokesperson · Be as frank and honest as possible · Keep it as simple, get to your point quickly · Package your message so the media can use it · Treat all reporters fairly · Align yourself with the public · Make sure you understand questions before answering them · Correct wrong assumptions or misinformation What not to do: · Speculate · Go off the record · Get mad or become defensive · Say “no comment” · Minimize the situation · Respond to hypothetical questions · Use technical jargon · Assign blame or state cause until all the facts are known · Repeat questions or inflammatory words · Mislead or exaggerate Handling a media interview 1. Give the message. As in all media situations, you’re there because you have a message that you’re trying to get across. You’re not just there to answer reporter’s questions. In a crisis, the message centers on the company’s concern for people, etc. and their interest in doing whatever it takes to protect the public. Work this message into every answer you give. 2. Keep it simple. Don’t ramble on and give too many details. Be concise. Be able to give the essential message in 10 seconds or less—a sound bite. Reporters have to deal in sound bites and quotable quotes. They can’t use long-winded and complex responses. Use simple words that clearly convey the message. Also, reporters often cover stories because they’re available or because of their proximity to the event. Don’t assume they know as much about your company, industry or the event as you do. They have to take what you say and create a story from it, so make sure they understand you. Take the time to clarify. 3. Be genuine. You’ll be more credible if you are yourself, and you don’t work from a script. Prepare, but believe what you say. If you don’t, how will others? 4. Be accurate. Make sure whatever information you provide in an interview is absolutely accurate. Your credibility can be destroyed if the information you provide a reporter turns out to be false. Don’t speculate. What the Media Do in a Crisis · Find out about the crisis very quickly – often before you do · Monitor each other/emergency communications channels · Divert extra resources and personnel to cover an emergency · Allot extra time and space for coverage - including live broadcasts · Instantly turn a "local" event into a national issue · Go where they want, unless clear boundaries are set up · Probe for details, share information, use sophisticated equipment · Use their own knowledge, experience and data bases · Report what they know - quickly, constantly and endlessly · Lay blame, perpetuate myths, report rumors · Advance the news agenda into speculation, next steps, implications, issues · Go to where they have access for responses, expert opinions, etc. · Get suspicious when confronted with silence or information vacuums · Try to get visuals and use whatever means at their disposal to do so What the Media Can Do for You · Assist in pre-crisis education · Warn or re-reinforce a warning · Get information to the public · Reassure the public · Repudiate rumors · Help the response by providing evacuation information, how to access funds/insurance, etc. · Generate outside help from volunteers and others |
| Managing Crisis Communications |
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| Anne P. Sharp |
| Anne P. Sharp Los Angeles CA, USA Telephone (310) 600-9247 |
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