A crisis communication memo is a document that informs and guides your internal and external stakeholders on how to respond to a crisis situation. It is essential to write a memo that is concise, clear, and consistent to avoid confusion, misinformation, and further damage to your reputation. Here are some tips on how to write a concise crisis communication memo.
The first step to writing a concise memo is to identify who your audience is and what they need to know. Different audiences may have different levels of interest, involvement, and impact from the crisis. For example, your employees, customers, media, regulators, and investors may require different information and actions. Tailor your memo to each audience and prioritize the most important and relevant messages for them.
Crisis Communications memo length should be proportional to purpose - defined by relevant information to be shared with all the relevant stakeholders. In writing style, it's good to follow- - meaningful headline - inverted pyramid - starting with most important information - readability - bullets / segmentation / small paragraphs - avoid fillers of any kind - Conclusion - give sense of next steps - CTA / timelines, etc.
I prefer the direct and pragmatic approach. I just wrote a concise one this afternoon that has short Purpose and Principles sections, and then the bulk of the doc is focused on Vulnerabilities / Actions / Whom to Contact / Spokespeople / Key Messages in a grid format.
Promptness of response is essential in a Crisis, and thus, in crisis communication. Shape the memo to the audience being spoken to. Address the memo to the folk concerned, marking it to the stakeholders. And keep it direct + simple: what happened, how it is being addressed & how it will help. Highlighting crucial info, using bullet-points and sharing contact details are important. Above all, be Clear, Concise and Crisp.
Dear Team, We're addressing a [crisis type] that occurred on [date], affecting our [specific area of impact, e.g., community engagement project, environmental initiative]. Key Points: Issue: [Brief description of the crisis]. Impact: [Briefly describe how it affects your area of impact]. Actions Taken: Immediate measures to mitigate impact. Next Steps: Strategic plan for full resolution and prevention. Immediate Actions: [Team/Department]: [Specific action] by [deadline]. [Team/Department]: [Specific action] by [deadline]. Contact: [Name] at [contact information] for guidance. We're committed to swiftly resolving this issue and upholding our mission. Your cooperation is crucial. Best, [Your Name]
A concise crisis communication memo begins with identifying the audience, analysing their needs & concerns, as different audiences may have different levels of interest, involvement, & impact from the crisis. The inverted pyramid approach is crucial, starting with the most critical information, followed by important details, & then background or contextual information. Adherence to the 3 Cs - Clear, Concise, & Consistent messaging ensures the memo is easily understood & reduces the chance of misinterpretation. While bullet points & headings are typically recommended for readability, a well-structured paragraph can also achieve clarity. Finally, meticulous proofreading & editing are non-negotiable to maintain professionalism & credibility.
The inverted pyramid is a writing technique that places the most important information at the beginning of the memo, followed by less important details. This helps your audience to quickly grasp the main points and decide whether they need to read further. It also helps you to avoid unnecessary or redundant information that may distract or confuse your audience. Start your memo with a summary of the crisis, the actions taken, and the expected outcomes. Then provide more details and explanations as needed.
Lead with the essentials: the incident, actions taken, and immediate effects. When elaborating on the details and options, provide clear bullets with a logical flow. You can provide a dedicated FAQ, email address, or number to allow readers to learn more or discuss solutions. An effective, deliberate, and actionable crisis communications plan can mitigate and manage the fallout.
The brain processes information differently when under stress. Think "brain freeze." In emergent situations, breaking the information down into digestible pieces helps audiences understand the most relevant information. It's better to send regular updates than a singular long, overly detailed update that people won't read and won't be able to absorb. - What's happening? State only what's known. Use facts to dispell misinformation. - Who's affected? Share care and concern. - What are we doing about it? - What does the audience need to know/do? Insert key messages / action items - When will the next update be? - Where can the audience get more info? What's your source of truth that you can direct people to for reliable, current information?
En las crisis que he tenido que afrontar siempre he dado un peso fundamental a la información y documentación técnica o científica avalada por el comité o el órgano colegiado correspondiente. Referir los datos de manera concisa y clara, así como las acciones que hay que desarrollar y la implicación que se espera de los grupos de interés. Fundamental la claridad y transparencia en la información.
To craft a concise crisis communication memo, begin by assessing the situation and tailoring the content to the audience's needs. Prioritize clear and direct communication, ensuring that the memo includes essential details about the crisis and actions being taken. Additionally, provide guidance on the next steps or protocols to follow. Remember to maintain a tone of transparency and reassurance throughout the memo, acknowledging the seriousness of the situation while instilling confidence in the organization's response.
The inverted pyramid is one of the writing methods that is heavily used in the news field, and I personally used this technique in different news agencies to write news, interviews and reports. If a friend is interested in learning news writing techniques, I'd be happy to connect.
The 3 Cs of crisis communication are clarity, consistency, and credibility. To write a concise memo, you need to use clear and simple language that avoids jargon, acronyms, or technical terms. You also need to be consistent in your tone, style, and message across all your communication channels and audiences. Finally, you need to be credible and honest in your statements and actions. Do not make false or exaggerated claims, hide or deny facts, or blame others for the crisis.
Before you put pen to paper, make sure you are absolutely clear on 1) the 2-3 most important messages that you MUST convey; 2) the target audience(s); and 3) the appropriate tone for the situation (factual? empathetic? apologetic?). And since no crisis can be managed with one memo, identify what other assets are needed so that you can keep the main communication/memo itself very focused.
The C triplet doesn’t just communicate but connects, comforts, and leads with a human touch, proving that even in the darkest moments, thoughtful communication can be a powerful force for unity and resilience.
In crisis communication, clarity and brevity are paramount. Start by acknowledging the crisis and its impact, then briefly outline key details such as what happened, when, and potential consequences. Describe the response plan succinctly, detailing actions being taken to address and mitigate the crisis. Explain the communication strategy, including how information will be shared internally and externally. Reassuring stakeholders involved that the situation is being managed and support is available consistently is often an overlooked but an important consideration.
Re: tone. It's critical to be very conscious of the emotional mindset of the audience. Upset? Surprised? Disappointed? Scared? Glib? The best messages will come across as tone deaf if not dialed into the audience state of mind.
The precise and concise approach is mandatory in the realm of crisis communication, hence the 3 Cs - Clarity, Consistency, and Credibility: are very essential, utmost crucial, and paramount for effective results. A concise memo must be clear, leaving no room for ambiguity or misinterpretation. It should straightforwardly convey the essential information, avoiding jargon and complex language. Consistency is key to avoiding confusion; the message should align with previous communications and the organization’s values. Lastly, credibility is crucial. The information provided must be accurate and reliable, as trust, once lost, is hard to regain. By adhering to these principles, one can craft a concise and effective crisis communication memo.
Bullet points and headings are useful tools to organize and highlight your key messages and information. They help your audience to scan and read your memo more easily and quickly. They also help you to break down complex or lengthy paragraphs into shorter and simpler sentences. Use bullet points and headings to list your main points, actions, recommendations, or steps. Make sure each bullet point and heading is concise and specific.
Using subheads and bullets is a great technique to make content stand out and be more easily digested and absorbed by your audience. Avoid complex sentence structure. Use bold and/or a color to highlight the absolutely most critical points and to highlight the specific action items or next steps you need your team, legal and other key stakeholders to do to expedite approvals and execution.
Getting really clear on your bullets and headings is not only great for a quick read, but helps to clarify the main areas to expand on without sacrificing the integrity of your message. So important to avoid cluttered language when you want to ensure a consistent take away and reduce confusion for your audience.
Subheadings make your audience read the entire section of your text, as well as help organize your content on paper and in your mind. If you are used to writing subtitles, you can easily collect your writing and mind before writing.
Public Information Officer/South Dakota Department of Public Safety (S.D. Wildland Fire )
#1 Takeaway at top *Sets narrative: if only one point can be made: this is it. Make it count! Then: Bolded Headings-followed by only key bullet point phrases This memo becomes universal base cheat sheet for unified messaging.
Qualquer conteúdo que seja para se comunicar com o públicos diversos, ainda mais em situa??es sensíveis precisam ser claros. Marcadores e cabe?alhos que separam conteúdos e mostram a importancia de cada um deles fortalecem a hierarquia das informa??es e contribuem no interesse e entendimento do conteúdo.
The last step to writing a concise memo is to proofread and edit your document. Check for spelling, grammar, punctuation, and formatting errors that may affect your readability and credibility. Also check for accuracy, completeness, and consistency of your information and message. Eliminate any unnecessary or redundant words, phrases, or sentences that may clutter your memo. Ask someone else to review your memo and provide feedback on its clarity and conciseness.
Proofreading is an important step in editing, but it is sometimes underestimated. If the final content contains grammatical or spelling errors, the project may suffer delays or, if it is published with errors, the company's image may be harmed.
Obede?a a um alinhamento, leis e pe?a a três pessoas diferentes para ler e verificar se a informa??o está bem passada. Importante que entre essas pessoas esteja uma do target que pretende atingir
One of the many keys to good writing is good editing. This is a very underrated yet vital step. Recommend always reading through your crisis plan again and again even after you think you're done. Stepping away from it and reviewing it with fresh eyes -- obviously a major challenge in a crisis -- always yields a better, stronger output. Did we include all key stakeholdes and audiences? Ensure version control. Confirm you have not missed a key element on strategy or execution. And of course, it's always a good idea to have someone else review the document (wisely and carefully given potential confidential material) before sharing with senior leadership.
Feedback and review are important steps in any crisis communication. The 4 eye principle is crucial specifically in crisis situations where things can get hectic and chaotic. In these moments you want to portray a sense of calm and control, typos or missing parts in your memo are not helping your case.
Public Information Officer/South Dakota Department of Public Safety (S.D. Wildland Fire )
Key Takeaway: In time crunch —proofing is even more crucial than normal! Accuracy, plain language and brevity are vital. During initial narrative: damage from errors is magnified. Keep it short. Get it right. Move forward.
Consider sharing one to two sentences for each bullet point below. Here is: * What we know. * What we don't know. * What we're going to do. * How we'll keep you updated. Close with a statement of reassurance.
Try and keep things simple- people want to know what happened and what your organization is going to do about it. Holding off on messaging until you have all the answers, just allows speculation and false narratives to flow. Ending with a genuine commitment to share more, as the situation unfolds also goes a long way. Too often emerging comms are held up as the length is a novel and approvals take more time.
Timing is key. In a crisis, an immediate (or near-immediate) response is often expected or required. Transparency and speed are critical. And yet... you can't speak too soon. You don't want to fall into a trap of making assumptions, over-promising, or misstating something in a highly sensitive situation. One way to handle that is to put out interim statements. The first might simply be stating that you're informed of the situation, assessing/gathering info, and will provide an updated statement (and give an ETA for when that update will come).
La comunicación de crisis por la situación de COVID en el Gobierno de Espa?a hubiera sido más eficaz si desde el principio se hubiera explicado claramente que las personas se pusieran mascarillas elaboradas en casa al no haber existencias en las farmacias. Ocultar información y decir que no hacía falta mascarilla al principio era absurdo. Es mentir. Hay que decir la verdad a la audiencia y esto da credibilidad y fuerza al mensaje y al mensajero.
Eine Krisenkommunikation – Memo sollte aus meiner Sicht stets sehr individuell auf den Einzelfall formuliert sein. Nach meiner Erfahrung neigen viele dazu, allgemein gehaltene Tipps und Empfehlungen eins zu eins auf ihren Fall anzuwenden, obwohl das m?glicherweise mit dem konkreten Fall gar nichts zu tun hat. D.h., ein derartiges Memo würde ich nur individuell für einen einzelnen Auftraggeber erarbeiten und erstellen.