#WhatIsPR: Social Media & Crisis Management

It’s a wild world out there, and that old Boy Scout motto of being prepared is more relevant than ever before. There is this light veneer of social nicety that keeps our society going, but under that surface is a pack of howling wolves. You must be prepared by monitoring your company on all fronts. I don’t say this out of paranoia, I say it out of experience.

Keep in mind you are communicating with and not to your customers, prospects, and the media. You cannot sit on your response; remember, this is a conversation, and you must respond accordingly and in a timely fashion.

When engaging with social media, you cannot just walk away – you have to stay part of the conversation and create loyalty with your presence and honesty. This is much different than dancing with old-school media, as you do not have control over the communication. With social media, you are not waiting for your message to be distilled by journalists and passed on to your public. Social media is direct, and you can almost instantly measure the results of your endeavor. You can tell how many folks clicked on your links or retweeted your message and determine how effective you are.

Social media can help you manage your reputation and build awareness for your organization while communicating directly with your public and responding accordingly. In this way you can potentially fend off an impending crisis before it snowballs.

1. Monitor the Internet and social media, examining what is being said about your company. Don’t wait for negative statements to snowball. Head them off with direct honest communication and get things under control.
2. Create an actual crisis management plan that can be rapidly implemented should it be necessary. You need to determine who gets contacted should a crisis appear to be developing or already happening. This is your first line of response, including marketing, PR, customer relations, legal, HR, etc. Have a communications approval line in place so there is immediate action. You don’t want to be running around looking for your CEO when the stuff is hitting the fan. Rapid execution of your plan is imperative, so who is running the show?
3. Don’t wait for the crisis before building your audience base and team. Get engaged now. Build your following on Facebook, Twitter, etc. Don’t wait for something to happen!

By monitoring and engaging you should be able take care of business and not let things get out of control. Don’t wait for the crisis to go into action!

Until next time,

Karla Jo Helms, Chief Evangelist and Anti-PR Strategist  

JOTO PR Disruptors, Work: (888) 202-4614