From The Consultant: 4 Things A PR Professional Should Know About Crisis Management

Crisis communications/management is a field that I’ve been incredibly drawn to. Therefore, it’s what I talk about the most on my blog. Usually, I aim to provide feedback on what I would do in certain situations, but I don’t believe I’ve ever talked about what a public relations professional should know about the subject. Let’s change that!

Respond Immediately

Long gone are the days that you could wish away an issue. Certainly you can, but not responding immediately is definitely a bad look. Remember when Equifax had a data breach? Their slow approach was a topic of discussion, even though a potential data breach should have been at the top of their potential risks. Therefore, a slow approach doesn’t work very well for many companies. I typically like to have a crisis communications plan with sample holding statements in order to respond immediately.

Apologize No Matter What

Sometimes⁠—most of the time⁠—an apology is warranted whether you agree or not. Imagine a customer accused your company of selling fake leather handbags, spurring other customers to do the same. Even though you know your handbags are made from real leather, this kind of allegation is very serious. On a personal level, an apology is not warranted. However, it’s still good practice to issue one. A simple one such as this will do: “We are so sorry that you’re unhappy with the quality of your handbag. We can assure you that our bags are made from 100% real leather. If you' would like a refund, please reach out to help@handbags.com.”

Be Honest

When I was little, I always heard, “honesty is the best policy.” This phrase is still true today. A lot of customers can smell a phony statement a mile away. The Jaclyn Cosmetics Apoca-lipstick is a great example of that. Honesty is the best policy and I think customers would rather hear, “we messed up and dropped the ball,” rather than a bunch of excuses.

Don’t Be Lazy

If you are a public relations consultant that likes to dabble in multiple industries, it’s very important to do your research on those industries. It is also wish to have some legal knowledge if you’re going to be involved with litigation PR. So don’t be lazy when it comes to your approach to helping out your client. Each client deserves your best effort when it comes to crisis management.

Visit the Walden PR Blog for more public relations and crisis communications content.

Photo by Alexa Williams on Unsplash