Public Relations Prospects: Crisis Management

By Erica Wenham, Wednesday 15 May 2013.

Public Relations Practice & Skillset (Week 27)

Crisis management requires more than an apologetic press release or a CEO’s disingenuous appearance on the BBC. News flash goes viral in a matter of seconds. Any business in “crisis” must be ready to respond to their issues swiftly and decisively, using all media platforms to communicate effectively with the UK public. According to Business Insider (2011), “most importantly, companies that make mistakes must sincerely accept responsibility for their actions – not distance themselves from them.”

News is travelling faster than ever in the 21^st century and crisis management is essential; businesses most important asset is at stake, their public reputation. When crisis strikes, it is common natural instinct to stonewall the situation, toughing it out or pretending the crisis will pass and ignore the issue(s) at hand. If poorly managed, regular business operations can ruin hard-work, decline revenue figures and even in some cases, destroy companies.

Many businesses in the market today have an “increasing responsibility to their customers, the media, and shareholders to demonstrate their corporate values and success through their ability to assure business operational integrity regardless of the external pressures being applied” (IntraPoint, 2010). Crisis management is one of the most critical aspects of modern communications in Public Relations. If conducted effectively, it can essentially protect a brand, their reputation and even salvage their very existence in a given sector or market (Tench & Yeomans, 2009, p.386).

However, it is how the business communicates about their negative issues in the public eye that makes a real difference. According to Tench & Yeomans (2009, p.388), there has been evidence that good communication with the media can support or increase a company’s reputation. The potential financial consequences can often be high but at the same time, it can communicate across to all stakeholders – shareholders, employees, regulators, press and consumers; exactly what the business is doing, what went wrong and why, how the business is dealing with the crises at the moment and how they plan to prevent it from happening again in the future.

The way in which the company communicates to the media is crucial. Journalists, reporters and other influential media correspondents are in essence able to conduct a news story in any way shape or form they wish to. As a result, it is fundamental for both the agency and the client to conduct effective management of what content is released to the media. Tench & Yeomans (2009, p.396) clarifies that this can be based upon “The 5C C’s Effective Communications Model” as outlined below.

Concern The first stage of The 5 C’s Model is not to be confused with legal liability as concern is regarded as a simple emotion. When key member(s) (the head of division, for example) are allocated to handle a business crisis, communication with the media is extremely important. They need to show true concern about the problem(s) at hand, concern about what has happened and concern for the people affected now and in the future – including potential customers.

Clarity The second stage of the concept lies with how organisations need to talk with clarity. Starting from the early hours of the crisis (e.g. when the issue was first arisen), they need to have very clear messages. Again, whatever the head of division says at the outset, will be repeated throughout the duration of the crises.

Control Next, when communicating with the UK media at events or on a one-to-one, spokespeople must take control of the messages, the situation, the environment and the venue.

Confidence The fourth stage of the 5 C’s relates closely to ‘Clarity’ and ‘Control’. The spokesperson for the brand must get the key messages across with confidence, but without appearing complacent or arrogant.

Competence Finally, the fifth and final stage of the model is ‘Competence’. The spokesperson must also demonstrate the ability and reflect how, as the representative of the brand will effectively handle the crisis.

The character of ‘Don Draper’ from the popular advertising sitcom ‘Mad Men’ once said “If you don’t like what’s being said, change the conversation” and this quote could not be more true in the case of common crisis management issues which may arise. By publicly changing your conduct, you can project a strong brand image of a more advanced organisation that before the negative narrative occurred.

An effective campaign designed to a high standard and corporate social responsibility will demonstrate strategic growth of the business and help to restore public and media trust. Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) is a conventional concept in the PR industry and is very popular amongst marketing and advertising communications agencies. “While thinking strategically, you want to ensure your efforts are still regarded as authentic and sincere without appearing forged – leading to further damage of the brand reputation and insulting your publics and other stakeholders”.

 “The once limited media market has become global and highly sophisticated. The impact the Internet has on crisis management today is enormous. The speed with which communications can be delivered is phenomenal and available to nearly 90% of the UK population alone” (Tench & Yeomans, 2009, p.398). Although it is essential to target key media “opinion-leaders” for wider coverage and key contacts in the specific industry (B2B), the brand also need to ensure their key messages are received well by other stakeholders such as previous and potential consumers, shareholders, community groups etc (B2C). By opening up various communication channels with these groups, long-term success can be accomplished and crises can be reduced.

Managing the right platforms to target the right type of people can help drive traffic, awareness and sales for the brand and its product(s)/service(s). Employing new content for different media channels is essential for businesses if they wish to generate as much news coverage as possible. Due to the current negative narrative and public image of the brand in the UK at the moment, it is recommended to incorporate both traditional print media channels (e.g. newspapers, magazines) and the Internet. Both local and national print publications have high readership value whereas the Internet is available to almost everyone and strategic messages are likely to be perceived in a positive manner by audiences if managed efficiently. Effective media content can then help a business and/or agency to achieve set goals and objectives in relation to recent crises.

Although there a few disadvantages of using the internet and social media as part of a crisis campaign activity; it can sometimes be difficult to track the strategy’s success and censor audience figures. However, it is argued that internet is the most valuable approach to employ as it is a very effective vehicle at getting a message out in a fast manner to millions of people and for the “dissemination of information and opinion that may masquerade information” (Tench & Yeomans, 2009, p.398).

Overall, Tucker and Broom (1993) explain that “issues management is the crises process whose goal is to help preserve markets, reduce risk, create opportunities and manage image (corporate reputation) as an organisational asset for the benefit of both and organisation and its primary stakeholders. (Regester & Larkin, 2008 p.44)

Key Goals & Objectives in Crisis Communications Management

Alter the public’s negative perception of the brand and its negative activities (if any); manage the flow of information and communications between the business and key media correspondents or “opinion leaders” from strategic UK publications (national newspapers, trade magazines, industry magazines, consumer reads etc.) This will potentially generate high coverage for the brand; thus taking away some of the negative narrative of the recent crises and employing a positive public image amongst all audiences.

Keep all stakeholders (including employees and suppliers/UK retailers) of 1) what happened (what was the crisis?), 2) what the business are doing to help minimise/cut the crisis, 3) what the brand hopes to achieve to improve and 4) what they plan to do in the future to minimise further risks, 4) minimise the risk of any financial loss for the organisation (e.g. ensure an effective budget and breakdown is put into place).

Protect the brand’s reputation in the UK market (or worldwide, depending on the enormity of the issue/business) by handling any potential or actual negative publicity and conduct efficient internal and external communications as part of crisis management.

Key Target Audiences in Crisis Communications Management

According to Sproule (1988), modern communication in crisis management is an “ideological form, one that supplies prepackaged conclusions and emphasizes identification and likeability rather than ethos. Rather than appealing to a generalized audience, it instead seeks to narrowly segment audiences in order to pull the levers of persuasion. As a result, this managerial style of persuasion has affected individual, corporate, as well as institutional discourse.” (Hearit, 2006, p.122).

It is essential for the business to know exactly (or as exact as they can possibly make it) who their key stakeholders are when identifying the target audience of a crisis management concept. “It’s called demographics. It’s part of the research you need to do before going into a new business plan. It may not go well if you have no idea who you are going to be talking to about your service or product” (entrepreneur.com, 2009). As a result, the brand will then be able to identify who it is to target and with what message. The organisation should then begin to design a plan around how to market them so they can be aware of them, generate a positive opinion of them and ultimately buy the brand’s products.

If the organisation try to blanket everyone with the same one marketing message, over half of the overall audience will be lost because some specific issues simply don’t apply to them. For example, retailers care about the selling and cost price whereas consumers want to know the benefits the product/services on offer and media correspondents are interested in an effective news story that will generate readers/viewers.

“Target who you are after and you will know how to reach them easier and find that you won't have to invest so much into your marketing to get the results you want. You'll be more focused, more effective in your marketing strategies and be able to get a greater return on your marketing investment” (entrepreneur.com, 2009).

The UK Media and PR Effect on Crisis Communications Today

According to Media UK (January 2010), the media industry in the United Kingdom alone consists of 837 radio stations, 528 television channels, 1601 newspapers, 1957 magazines and 267 independent media owners. As a result, this can be an advantageous as there not just more or different opportunities available but far more active coverage can be acquired. The media are essentially free and able to report on any aspects in any industry at any time. The variety of UK publications reflects the full spectrum of the media sector. However, in recent years, printed newspaper circulations have been sliding while online readership has surged.

Matthew Freud (Chairman, Freud Communications) commented “the PR industry is growing whilst those around it are largely in decline. The basic economic model for media and marketing is broken. The consumer or client is no longer willing to consistently pay for content and media owners are no longer able to guarantee the attention of their audience to advertisers”. Take “The Daily Mail” for example, two million copies are sold every day at the price of 50p but 100 million visitors use The Daily Mail online website. These 100 million do not pay directly for the product and “the advertising yield for audience is 50 times greater than the print equivalent. That’s why PR is so important” (prweek.com, 2012).

According to Corporate Watch (2003), the relationship between the UK news media and the PR industry is a “complex and increasingly symbiotic one”. “The media is the central vehicle for much of the PR industry's messages. PR practitioners want to place their stories in the news or other publications and programmes. Without being able to do this, PR would lose one of its main avenues for communication with the public.

The media in turn has become more dependent on PR to supply content to fill air time or column inches. Whilst newspapers have been in a gradual decline over recent years (e.g. shedding journalism staff over the last couple of decades), they have simultaneously managed to produce numerous publications brimming with news stories. As a result, “the ever growing ranks of PR are more than happy to fill the pages.”

However, the power of big agencies and spin doctors can go much further beyond this. “As the primary point of contact between businesses and the media, PR practitioners can control access to information which journalists want. This gives them tremendous leverage in negotiating with journalists, as they are in a position to refuse information” (Corporate Watch, 2003).

According to Ogilvy PR, “gone are the days when brands needed to purchase advertising or secure media placements alone. At a time when it is becoming increasing difficult to differentiate between the role of marketer and publisher, a new world order for brands today has been established. What this presents is an opportunity for corporations to become the content curators - creating their own material on their own websites for their own brands and thereby their own companies.”

The UK media industry in relation to PR has greatly changed in comparison to what it was like decades ago. The need for digital, interactive and even mobile content in this “always on” media age is crucial for businesses to take into consideration. In the ever-changing environment of the UK media, the rapport between agency/client professionals and media correspondents is a great opportunity for a company and its agency to influence, shape and drive the content of the brand and its recent issues with crisis management.

As explained previously, over 100 million users visit The Mail Online website every day in comparison to the only 2 million which purchase a physical copy and according to the BBC, there were approximately 52.7 million internet users in the UK in December 2011 – nearly 85% of the UK population (internetworldstats). Research by Google the previous year also found that the internet alone accounts for 7.2% of the UK’s overall gross domestic product (GDP).

Implementing a Recovery Plan for Crisis Communications

The Recovery Plan & Crisis Management Principles
Problem Definition	The first stage of the recovery plan (“problem definition”) is the most critical aspect of effective PR crisis management. It is essential to define both the short-term problem and the long-term problem to ensure the brand recovers in terms of both market share/revenue and reputation/public image.
Information Flow Control	This applies to items of information both coming in and going out of the organisation. For example, on one hand; press release content being released to key media opinion leaders and publications and on the other hand; the social media backlash criticism the brand is receiving online (if any; this can be very common in crises recently amongst large businesses). It essential for businesses to take both of these issues into account as, in very practical terms, will make communication within the organisation much easier, quicker and ultimately, more effective.
Worst-Case Planning Position	The appointed agency crisis team must be able to think about the worst-case scenario in terms of what could potentially happen to the brand and the organisation as a whole. “More often than not, people estimate the worst from their own perspective, or what they are able to handle, rather than a true worst case. It is, therefore, important to brainstorm and get as much input from all practitioners as possible.” This can be exceptionally important due to the extremity of any current issues in the market. For example, employing child labour methods is seen as politically and ethically incorrect and has given the brand a negative public image amongst the UK audiences. As a result, it is fundamental for the business and the agency to ensure no further negative issues arise as this can essentially make matters even worse for the business which may be unsolvable. Ensuring preparation for a worst-case scenario can be conducted via Contingency Planning or Risk Assessment. Press releases or news articles can also be created in advance for emergency and prompt release to the media if any problems are to arise.
Team Effort	As explained above, the brand and agency crisis team must work effectively together in order for successful campaign and strategy management. It is essential that the messages put out to the media to help achieve initially set goals and objectives are not subverted by the influence of one department or professional over another.
Combative Instinct	Tench & Yeomans (2009, p.402), reinforce “do not go into battle with the media, NGOs, competitors or suppliers. An organisation must demonstrate it is in control during the crisis”. Again, this is another principle in which the company’s team must take great care in. The outcome of being combative could well destroy the brand or reputation all together. Losing control of the tasks at hand can also portray the organisation as very unprofessional; thus adding to the negative narrative. In order to ensure effective control is being managed at all times during the crisis management plan, both brand and agency must guarantee all media content is effectively written (e.g. press releases must be written in professional format whilst still putting a “spin” on the story to ensure the document is published and is received well by audiences) and the correct key messages are sent to the appropriate target markets.
The Media	The media are constantly searching for good stories to include in their channels of communication. “They need focus, a ‘cause and effect’ – something their audience will relate to. A firm can assert the facts as it sees them and thus defuse an ‘on-the-face-of-it’ story.” When the business at hand communicate with the key media opinion leaders, “Spin” or “Corporate Communication” helps to communicate this message in a clear and direct way while instantaneously putting a positive slant on the story.  Grunig et al. (2002) sees spin as “a mechanism for negotiating” with customers to attain a situation which benefits both parties, consequently creating a “win-win zone”. It can also be used to support a company’s “position and increasing its influence/power/profitability” (Tench and Yeomans, 2009, p.544).
Stake-Holders	On continuation from the point above, it is not just the media that need fast and relevant responses during a crisis. Crisis management must also take all stakeholders/constituents into great consideration and the organisation’s main target audience/past and potential consumers particularly as they are essentially the individuals that purchase from the brand. For example, a successful press release or news article aiming to generate coverage for the brand and alter audience’s opinion of the brand or its product(s)/service(s) to a positive one should “get the news angle, to the point of the story, in the first couple of paragraphs” (Foster, 2012, p.113). It is essential that the initial two paragraphs of the release clearly outline what message the company is trying to put across; if it is not striking enough, the audience will not read on. In addition to this, according to Bivins (2005), if a carefully-crafted news release follows this concept, it can “maximise exposure for the company, grab attention of potential consumers, shape perception and achieve retention”. This tactic is particularly useful “to gain as much publicity as possible in order to put the product at the front of the consumer’s mind and differentiate from its competitors” (Franklin et. al, 2009, p.54).
Problem Evaluation	And finally, the overall recovery plan for crisis management and campaign activity should effectively reduce the initial problems. Tench & Yeomans (2009, p.403) explain this as “reduce the problem to as small a geographical area as possible to prevent it becoming an even bigger problem – from local to national or national to international. In these days of international media and the Internet, localising an issue is a major challenge. However, it should be SMART objectified (specific, measurable, achievable, realistic and timed).