13 golden rules for public relations crisis management!

No business can escape facing a public relations crisis at some point, and how you respond could either enhance your image or severely damage your brand , or even have a significant impact on your business. Especially in this day and age, once negative news spreads, organizations need to be prepared to respond to any public relations crisis quickly and effectively using all available platforms.

So if you don’t want to end up on a list of the worst PR stories, or risk losing business (even though it could have been avoided), then any company should adhere to the 13 golden rules of PR crisis management .

1. Take responsibility

First, don't try to cover up a PR crisis; this will only exacerbate the damage. Instead, take control of the situation by taking responsibility, reacting immediately and giving feedback. To acknowledge the concerns and problems of the people and respond with the right conversation. Write press releases and post them on social media to take control of the situation and make the information visible.

Case Study: Haidilao Rat-gate Incident

(1) Event restoration:

On August 25, 2017, the media reported that Haidilao's Beijing Jinsong and Taiyanggong stores had problems such as rats running around in the kitchens, cleaning dustpans and tableware being washed in the same pool, the inside of the dishwasher being covered in grease and food residues, and hot pot colanders used by customers being used to clean sewers. One stone can cause a thousand ripples, and the Haidilao rat scandal caused heated discussion among the public.

That afternoon, Haidilao’s official Weibo account, Haidilao Hotpot, responded by apologizing and promising to make corrections. During this period, Kanfa News exposed the relevant video. After the Beijing Food and Drug Administration interviewed Haidilao’s executives twice, Haidilao issued another statement on the 27th. So far, the media has been following up on the report and netizens have also been paying close attention to the incident.

(2) Public relations highlights:

In its first response, Haidilao admitted at the outset that the problem was true, promised to the public to make rectifications in all its stores, and was willing to bear all relevant economic and legal responsibilities, demonstrating its attitude of taking responsibility. First, Haidilao did not limit its responsibility to the problematic stores and took the initiative to take responsibility. Second, Haidilao attributed the incident to problems with its management system and protected its employees in the face of public opinion. This attitude of taking responsibility, admitting mistakes and correcting them, and protecting its employees won the public's favor.

2. Be proactive, transparent, and accountable

In today’s real-time world of social media, with commentary everywhere, reputation management is more important than ever, and it can be lost in an instant. The principles of any crisis communication are to be proactive, transparent and accountable. A process that looks like this when implemented: Acknowledge the incident, take responsibility, and apologize.

Case Study: Starbucks "Racial Discrimination" Incident

(1) Event restoration:

On April 12, two African-American men entered a Starbucks coffee shop in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, to wait for their friend. They wanted to use the restroom, but were refused by the clerk on the grounds that they did not make any purchases in the store. The store manager called the police after they sat down. The police arrested the two for trespassing but later released them due to insufficient evidence. Another customer in the store at the time took a video of the incident and uploaded it to social media, causing an uproar.

Afterwards, Starbucks CEO Kevin Johnson issued a statement saying that they firmly oppose racial discrimination, will conduct a detailed investigation into the incident, and personally apologize to the black man affected by the incident. In addition, Starbucks also announced that it will close approximately 8,000 Starbucks stores across the United States on May 29 and provide "anti-racial discrimination" training to all employees. On May 2, Starbucks announced that it had reached a settlement with two black people who were arrested by the police without reason, and would sponsor their college education.

(2) Public relations highlights

Starbucks was able to safely overcome the huge crisis of "racial discrimination", which truly demonstrates Starbucks' public relations capabilities. At the beginning of the incident, the company's top leader, the CEO, took the initiative to investigate, apologize, and close the store for "anti-racial discrimination" training. Some media estimated that the store closures may result in a direct reduction of Starbucks' sales by US$16.7 million, demonstrating Starbucks' determination to "fight racial discrimination." Afterwards, Starbucks reached a settlement with the two black people and the incident was resolved perfectly.

3. Stay ahead of the story

If I were the CEO of United Airlines, I would have taken to social media the minute I heard about the passenger being kicked off a flight. I don’t wait until I have a strategy. Strategy is about getting ahead of the story. And the best response strategy you can do on the weekend, but start communicating now, apologize, refund or whatever!

Case analysis: Didi driver beating incident

(1) Event restoration

On April 29, Zhang Huan, who claimed to be an investor of Didi, posted a message saying that he was beaten by a Didi driver. He accused Didi of poor management of drivers on the travel platform, slow handling of problems, and trying to cover up the matter. He demanded a public apology on Weibo and threatened to uninstall Didi and sell Didi shares at a low price.

At 10:27 am on April 29, Didi responded to the incident for the first time through its official Weibo account, apologizing to Zhang Huan and expressing its willingness to advance the medical expenses. It also stated that the driver’s account had been frozen and that he had been notified to go to the police station.

At 20:46 on May 2, Didi once again responded to the incident through its official Weibo account, saying that the driver and the passenger had reached a settlement, and once again sincerely apologized to the passenger. It will invest more technology and teams to minimize the occurrence of these problems.

At 8:12 am on May 3, Zhang Huan published a post titled "Reconciling with others is also reconciling with oneself", confirming that he had reached a reconciliation with the driver and Didi.

(2) Public relations highlights

Didi’s first statement was released through its official Weibo account on the morning of the day of the incident. It responded before public opinion spread further, which was quite fast. The second statement was issued on the evening of May 2, announcing that a settlement had been reached with Zhang Huan. The incident was quickly resolved during the May Day holiday , and Zhang Huan's attitude in his next post took a 180-degree turn, which showed his high efficiency. Speed ​​and efficiency are the most prominent highlights of Didi in this public relations event.

4. Be prepared for the social media onslaught

The worst thing a company can do is ignore a potential social media firestorm. Smaller companies may take this less seriously, especially those that are not active on social media. Just because a company isn’t actively marketing on social media doesn’t mean their customers aren’t searching for relevant content on social media when they have a problem with the company, so you definitely need a plan to manage your social media presence.

5. Remember to speak human language

If you say, “I’ll keep an eye on this,” it doesn’t make anyone feel better. Showing that you're truly sorry for what happened and that you're working to make it better will make your sincerity felt. Then, immediately share how you will implement the policy so it doesn’t happen again. You have to act fast before people lose confidence in your brand.

6. Apologies first, actions later

A sincere apology is the key to moving forward. Otherwise it will only keep the anger burning and delay your ability to change the course of events. After a public apology, the company must offer a call to action. Something substantial has to be done to demonstrate that they are working towards change moving forward.

7. Monitor, plan and communicate

Keep your social team on high alert and on the front lines of monitoring at all times. Once they notice a spike in negativity or increased activity, they activate their well-developed crisis plan and respond proactively to the community with prepared materials. Never allow the executive to make a mistake and make the situation worse, but encourage them to apologize immediately with predetermined content.

8. Get to know the situation first

Get all the relevant details from the key stakeholders in the incident. When you are asked for a review, don't respond with "no comment." Even if you’re still evaluating the current situation, just speak up. If you don’t have a say in the matter, people will immediately assume culpability or make their own assumptions. Additionally, recognize when operational improvements are needed and be transparent about how the situation will be addressed.

9. Listen to your PR team first

It’s easy to be on the defensive, especially when your company’s brand and reputation are at stake. After you discuss your response with your PR team, if you have a good team (you should!), they will write a response statement that you can use immediately.

10. Develop a strong organizational brand culture

Prevent crises. It’s easy to blame frontline employees for always having problems, but they’re not to blame for a poor brand culture. An organizational brand culture that treats customers poorly is likely to treat its employees poorly as well. Dive deeper into organizational culture and service delivery and you’ll find that the bottom line of brand experience always starts at the top.

11. Calm your fans down

When you know something has angered your fans, the first rule of crisis management is to calm them down and not add fuel to the fire. Take a step back, put yourself in the consumer's shoes, and ask, "How would I feel if this happened to me?" Putting yourself in the consumer's shoes is the best PR advice when dealing with a crisis situation. It ensures we are doing the right things, and at the right pace.

12. Avoid knee-jerk reactions

It’s inevitable that companies, brand representatives or influencers will offer emotional and a little crazy responses. When you detect a crisis, it's not a bad thing to remain silent to society. Freeze all external communications until you can assess what is happening. Make sure your first external communication after a crisis is a well-thought-out response that resonates with consumers.

13. Be prepared

No one wants to be at the center of a scandal, but if you're not prepared to deal with it, things can get worse. Anticipate potential crisis scenarios and build internal protocols to handle them. Before a crisis strikes, make a list of who needs to be notified, your crisis plan and your press spokesperson.

The author of this article @ is compiled and published by (Qinggua Media). Please indicate the author information and source when reprinting!

Product promotion services: APP promotion services, advertising platform, Longyou Games