Franchises, hospitals, healthcare organizations, service or consumer companies, at some point you may have a crisis for the business to deal with. Some crises are harder to manage than others, and some organizations are better prepared to deal with a crisis as it arises. For all companies, knowing your plan of attack in advance is important.
When I started my career, my first job was managing media relations for a large hospital. My boss had an orange laminated poster that said “MEDIA HERE.” That was our crisis communications plan – hook, line and sinker.
My, my, my how things have changed.
A recent Wall Street Journal article, “Entrepreneurs ‘Tweet’ Their Way Through Crises”, highlights the benefits of online communications, specifically for a crisis. From beverage companies to laundry delivery services, the article highlights communication issues that were managed effectively because of the use of online media, which enabled quick and immediate communication with their key audiences. What could have been a debacle for small businesses, ended up generating the two most important ROI measurements – good will and continued sales.
The key to their success started long before the crises. It started because the companies were already involved in an online conversation.
To quote the article:
“Entrepreneurs should bear in mind that Twitter is unlikely to be of help in dealing with a problem if it isn’t used regularly otherwise, says Shel Israel, …’If you just go to Twitter when you have a crisis, you will have no followers and no credibility’, he says. ‘The key to using Twitter effectively is to build trust with people who are relevant to your business’.”
Regardless of the type of crisis you may need to handle, get online now so you can build your communities, which will be necessary when you need to communicate the good and the bad.
If your crisis communications plan does not include a social media component, it needs to. Here are some things to consider while tweaking your plan:
- Do your online communication networks already exist? If not, what is the plan to get them in place?
- Do you know how to find your key audience segments? For example, if you are a community based-hospital, you don’t need to broadcast your information to everyone in the community, just to the appropriate new aggregates in your community.
- Do your employees know how to find you online? Do you have online portals dedicated to communicating with your employees?
- Do your customers know how to find you online, somewhere besides your Web site or e-commerce platform?
- Do you have your online spokesperson identified? Who is in charge of disseminating online communication?
What type of online vehicles are you using to help manage crisis communications programs? Tell us about them!
on Facebook
on Twitter
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