Coping mechanisms
If you’ve faced a crisis situation in the past, you’ll know how time-demanding it can be. Don’t let your day-to-day work provide a convenient excuse to avoid dealing with the crisis. At the heart of managing the crisis when it does hit is effective communication – if you say nothing, people and the media will speculate and draw their own (and often wrong) conclusions.
If you don’t have time to deal with the situation, bring someone in who does, such as a crisis PR specialist. But remember: it’s not about spin – it’s about spelling out the facts and keeping customers, the local community, investors, employees, the media and anyone else connected with your crisis informed.
Go through these steps and you’ll be well on the way to managing the situation as best you can:
1. Assess the situation – what’s happened and why? Who does it affect and how?
2. Are you a victim or the perpetrator?
3. Who knows so far and who else needs to know?
4. Step into the other person’s shoes – what will they think or fear?
5. What do they need to know?
6. Who is going to tell them and how?
7. Think through your ‘what if?’ scenarios and put plans in place.
8. Think through the risks of the social media age – when - and when not - to engage.