As I stood in a ballroom of managers while I delivered a presentation about proactively setting your organization’s public messaging, I speculated that too many members of the audience, despite my warnings, would still not prepare for a crisis until a crisis actually crept up to their company’s virtual front doors. If those managers were football coaches, they might successfully script a few plays at the beginning of the game, but they would ultimately lose for their inability to employ adjustments when the game took unexpected turns.
Numerous news organizations reported a company named Shadow delivered the mobile app linked to the delay in reporting results of the Iowa caucuses. Beyond the political maneuvering of the candidates, the story’s most meaningful lesson for the business community is the one that companies repeatedly hear but delay doing: Create a crisis communications plan now not later.
- Say Something. A manager recently told me his board of directors insists no one on staff talks with the news media unless they plan on working for them. I heard another business leader proclaim the success he achieved by not communicating with the media during a crisis. We disagree with those approaches. Don’t stand by while news stories and the public beat up your reputation as it sways helplessly in the wind. According to the Des Moines Register, Shadow tweeted a series of messages expressing regret and explaining the company “will apply the lessons learned in the future, and have already corrected the underlying technology issue.”
- Share your story. It didn’t take long for the Des Moines Register and other news organizations to link the company to Democrats associated with Hillary Clinton’s 2016 presidential campaign. We also read about fees the company collected last year. Don’t allow the news media and today’s peanut gallery in comment sections to solely set the tone and define your company without your side of the story. On Twitter and its website, Shadow explained it “is an independent, for-profit technology company that contracted with the Iowa Democratic Party to build a caucus reporting mobile app, which was optional for local officials to use. The goal of the app was to ensure accuracy in a complex reporting process.” While Shadow shared some of its story and attempted to help establish the facts, we recommend companies send out something more in-depth about its origins, goals, values and how they hope to change the world. Personalize your business to help prevent everyone else from demonizing your company as something you are not. Be sincere.
- Select a spokesperson. It’s not reasonable to assume you can conduct effective crisis communications only via posts and carefully-crafted statements. Unless you relish an unrelenting reporter chasing you through the company parking lot with a camera capturing each step, choose a charismatic personality with a firm grasp of key messages to talk with the media. The boss isn’t always the best choice. Who won’t lose their cool? Who uses simple language? Who knows how to handle challenging questions without spewing out incorrect information that will only further inflame the Twitterverse?
- Swiftly talk with employees and key clients. The news media reported the Nevada Democratic Party announced it would not use the same app in its upcoming caucuses. Your clients also are hearing the news. Ensure they also hear from you. Set the record straight if necessary. Share your action plan. Reassure them. Make them your allies. And don’t forget your employees, who are fielding questions about the crisis from their virtual friends on Facebook. Instead of allowing employees to potentially fill-in the blanks with misinformation, arm them with facts to fight off the online pitchforks.
- Stop counting on people to forget. Few companies actually follow up at a later date to display how they’ve solved problems. The organizations fear reminding people of what happened, but people remember even if they can’t recall all the facts. Most people accept a comeback story that involves correcting the course. What people won’t forgive are the companies which lack empathy, downplay what happened, pretend no one remembers and are too afraid to acknowledge the lessons learned along with the solutions discovered.
It’s the fourth quarter and you’re winning by 10 points. You feel comfortable even confident. But are your prepared for a sudden shift in momentum when the fans start to boo, you’re back on your heels and your team can’t seem to make a positive play? The time to figure out how to adjust and respond isn’t when the clock is ticking. The time to plan is long before the game ever starts.
