Imagine waking up to negative viral news about your company. It could be a burdensome situation to handle. Once in a while, companies can get into a crisis, whether it’s a lawsuit, a defective product, or even a core staff member divulging sensitive company information. Regardless of the cause, negative PR can lead to a bad reputation for the company and even disrupt its structure. Crises need to be handled properly, and this is where crisis management strategies come in.
A crisis management strategy is a collection of decisions made by the management of a company to deal with a crisis. Usually, it is a good idea for crisis management strategies to be created way before a crisis hits.
Here are five useful strategies your company can take advantage of to manage crisis:
- Anticipate crises:
It is always a good idea to anticipate and prepare ahead for crises that may arise from within and outside the company. Company executives can do this by going through several potential situations in brainstorming sessions and proffer solutions. Companies can also create a crisis response plan to keep everyone ready if an emergency arises. - Build a robust crisis management team:
In the face of a crisis, the first thing to do is create a strong crisis management team. It could be led by the CEO and staffed with other company executives and those from the legal team and public relations department. This team’s purpose will be to assess the situation objectively and proffer solutions that can be used to quell the situation. - Create a crisis communication plan:
In creating a crisis communication plan, a critical step is to choose a spokesperson who will be the company’s face throughout the crisis period. This person does not necessarily have to be the CEO, but he must communicate effectively and handle pressure well. It is also crucial that every staff member is on the same page to prevent contradictory information. The team must also draft out communication statements for the media to reduce the extent of the damage. - Engage in brand monitoring: The purpose of brand monitoring is to become aware of negative feedback on your brand as soon as it happens. Your team should track what is being said or written about the company in the media and move swiftly to arrest the situation if need be. This helps to reflect your company in a positive spotlight as much as possible.
- Evaluate the crisis management team: After the crisis has been dealt with, it is essential to settle down, appreciate your team, and analyze how they could better handle the situation. Evaluate how the team performed and suggest better methods to avert a crisis next time. Chances are, another problem will come up, but the lessons learnt from the previous crisis will help in preventing the next.
So, if your company is ever involved in a crisis, these five steps could help your company get back on track in no time!
