All businesses need a crisis communications plan

Recently, Abbie posted about crisis issues in the social media age.
In the post, she provided some great advice on what to do in crisis situations of the viral type.
It reminded me of the importance of crisis planning for all levels of business.

In business, of course no one wants something bad to happen. But if and when it does, smart companies are prepared with a plan. Most often called a crisis communications or issues management plan, it should:

• Provide general guidelines for decision-making prior to and following a crisis situation.
• Detail responsibilities of all parties during various crisis situations.
• Provide general guidelines on internal communications needs.
• Have in writing approved, constituent, authentic messaging for use in various crisis situations.

Once developed, a good plan should be practiced using real-life scenarios, ideally with a professional third party who can provide feedback and potential revisions as needed.
When done right, the plan can help minimize down time or business disruption; lessen confusion and rumors; and assist the brand in maintaining credible relationships with community, industry and the media.
Each of these is key to helping support, if needed, rebuilding efforts of the brand post crisis.
For assistance with your crisis communications planning needs, drop us a line at info@hmapr.com.