Any company that can ride out a public relations (PR) crisis successfully knows that there are many reputation challenges that can provide them with hidden marketing opportunities. Having the knowledge of combining confidence and humility can be the things that a company need in order to turn the PR disaster into something they can thrive on.
Just because you have a reputation crisis does not mean that you have to stand idly by and watch sales plummet and bad publicity shared all over the world. Instead, you can get into a positive mindset and view it as a turning point that will provide you new insights for an opportunity. A few things that it can do is provide you with the opportunity to change marketing strategies, introduce a new product, or attract new talent to your ranks.
Even though a reputation crisis cannot be predicted, it is paramount that you have a plan for just such an occasion. A key aspect of this would be to have a reputation management monitoring system in place. This system will track your name and deliver to you on a daily, or hourly if you choose, basis a list of mentions about your company. This will make it easier for you to act quickly in order to mitigate the damage. It will also help you to better understand your target market and tell you the things that upset them.
Acting Quickly
In today’s age, people expect instant gratification. This is not just in the cases that they have been wronged but in all aspects of life. You can see it in the way that we eat, shop, and communicate. The reason for this is the invention of the smartphone. It has allowed people to have interactions at their fingertips. If they want to have something to eat, they simply call up the place and have them deliver. More recently, they don’t even have to call the business as there is an application that they can use. When it comes to shopping, they have the ability to shop from miles away and have the items delivered in less than three days.
The same goes for your business. If they read something bad about your business, they will plaster it all over their social media channels. That is why it is more important than ever to make sure that you are in contact with your customers. Having your finger on the pulse of your customers will allow you to act quickly. Consumers hate when companies ignore them. It only fans the flames. Since you have access to the same technology they have, it would only make sense that you can react at the same speed as they can. They will not tolerate radio silence on your part.
If you are the kind of company that is not known for acting quickly, you will be viewed as not confident. As we know, Confidence is the key to business. So, make sure that you have all the tools that will allow you to get in contact with your customers.
Get Involved
Once you have realized there is a PR crisis, you need to get involved in the conversation. Let the customers know that you are aware of the incident and that you intend on fixing the problem. Handing them a copy and paste answer that they have seen from other companies will only agitate them. Therefore, if you are going to get involved, you must make certain that you are being sincere.
Likewise, you don’t want to just try to make the person go away. Many times, you will see companies take the conversation to a private channel of communication. This makes others think you have something to hide. When you are communicating with the customer, do it in full view of the public. Not only will they be able to see your response, but they will also be able to see if the other party is being unreasonable. This will go a long way with certain customers.
When you are actively in the conversation with your customers, it shows that you are human and apt to make mistakes. Owning up to it is the majority of what people want from you. Additionally, they are going to want you to reassure them that nothing like this will ever happen again. You also have tools at your disposal to make them forget about what happened and let you try again. A simple discount code will prove to them that you are acknowledging your mistake but want the opportunity to make things right in future transactions.
Emotional Crisis
When you are dealing with a product, you can simply make sure the customer is satisfied with the new product. However, when emotions come into play you have a completely different angle that you must play. When we talk about emotions, we are talking about morals and feelings. If they think that they have been morally mistreated, then you are going to have a much more difficult time reigning them in.
There are two ways that you can deal with an emotional crisis. One of them is the defensive method. If you mix confidence, understanding and possibly a little bit of humour you might find that you have nipped it in the bud. Only use this method if your target audience is mainly on your side. Either way, it is very risky. When it works, you can launch yourself into a better reputation with your clients. Otherwise, you might sink the ship completely.
The other method is acceptance. This is the method that is most preferred by companies. It is the one that we suggest. With this method, you are going to accept the blame for whatever happened. After that, you are going to want to lay out a plan that will convince your customers of how you are going to make sure this will not happen again.
Conclusion
A reputation crisis does not have to be the end of your company. You can use it to rebrand yourself, pick a new marketing direction, or clean house and hire new talent. All you have to do is make sure that you are in contact with your customers and know how to approach the crisis. Armed with this knowledge, it should not be too hard to turn your crisis into an opportunity.