Agnes Huff, Ph.D has the following suggestions that can help you manage communications in the event of crisis and protect your company’s reputation.
- Always prepare for a variety of crisis situations
- Be realistic about the outcome expected
- Communicate with empathy, compassion and care
- Develop a communications plan for your team and train them
- Enlist the help of others internally and externally
- Form an inclusive communications team
- Get the crisis behind you as quickly as possible
- Help the media as much as you can
- Incorporate internet strategies in your plan
- Just do the right thing
- Keep your cool. Stay in control
- Look before you leap or you will be in big trouble
- Maintain an appropriate sense of humor throughout the crisis
- Never go off the record
- Open the door to two way communications
- Prepare your 3 key messages before your briefings and stick to them
- Questions all potential crisis strategies and ask ‘What if’
- Respect and respond to media inquiries quickly and professionally
- Stop to talking when you are finished
- Think before you speak
- Underestimate the power of media at your own risk
- Verify all information – no matter how reliable the source
- Work hard to coordinate, cooperate and solve issues a they arise
- Xerox paper so you don’t lose critical information
- Your reputation depends on how you handle the media. And last of all …
- Zero tolerance for media distortion, inaccuracy and bad press
Presented in PRSA International Conference, Anaheim, CA