CRISIS COMMUNICATION

A crisis is not a catastrophic event,but rather an event that , left to usual business processes and velocities, causes significant reputational, operational or financial harm.

A CRISIS IS A SITUATION THAT RUNS THE RISK OF:

 

Escalating in intensity. Falling under close media or Government scrutiny. Interfering with the normal operations of business. Jeopardising the positive public image. presently enjoyed by a company or its officers.

Identifying Crisis.
Is this a non-routine event? non Does it risk undesired visibility?  Would that undesired visibility in turn threaten reputational damage?


When Crisis Occurs

        

Never delay in responding. Dont ignore the problem. Dont deny the severity of the problem. Never tell a lie/ mislead the people. Tell the entire story to everyone. Dont shift blame. Dont over-confess/ let out frustration. overDont panic. Never punish people who bring problems to your attention.

When to respond in a crisis



Are others speaking about us now? Will they be soon? Will those who matter to us expect us to do or say something now? What is the minimum amount we can say now that shows we are taking this problem seriously?

Communicating Crisis
  

 

Tell it all what you know; legally permitted. Tell it fast to control or eliminate rumours. Tell them what you are doing about it Outline the processes. Tell them when it is over Get back to work People not involved in crisis mgt. Should resume their prior duties.

DEALING WITH RUMOURS

  

Telling more and telling it faster eliminates rumour. Requires courage and discipline. Rumours arise when official information is lacking or is not believed; company must provide sufficient clarifying details & information.

Law of Rumour
R=ixa where : R is the rumour, its reach, intensity, duration & degree that people will rely upon it. i is the importance of the rumour to the listener or reader; a is the level of ambiguity/uncertainty surrounding the rumour.

Controlling a Rumour in the News Cycle



 

Forty Five minutes reporter, few people know; convince, story disappears. Six hours t.v, radio, internet; little difficult Three Days Newspaper; reputation damage; two weeks of ve coverage Two weeks magazines, publications; major damage