How PR professionals help organisations protect their reputations

Authored by Smita Khanna Kithania, Chief Operating Officer, Newton Consulting India

In the realm of compelling narratives, there’s a particular fascination when the plot revolves around an individual facing accusations of exhibiting a ‘god-like syndrome’. It’s a story that elicits strong emotions, leading people to either embrace or condemn the central character, but certainly not to disregard them. In the annals of 2022, Ashneer Grover, the Co-founder and Managing Director of BharatPe, found himself in the spotlight for all the wrong reasons. He made the startling claim that the company’s board was attempting to exert undue pressure on him to accept a reduced valuation for his shares. As a consequence, both Grover and BharatPe were thrust into a complex financial imbroglio, significantly impacting their reputations. In their bid to navigate this precarious situation, both parties embarked on a journey of damage control, employing strategic PR crisis management tactics.

Unlike Philip Kotler’s 4 Ps of Marketing, specialised public relations agency world over have used another acronym called 4 Ps of crisis management. The abbreviation 4 Ps stand for Prevent | Plan | Practice | Perform and this defined 4 Ps should form part of an internal marketing system that reminds companies to proactively minimise threats, develop crisis plans, practice the set plans, and execute them effectively whenever the need arises.

Crisis Management – The Saving Grace

Crisis management ideally should form an essential aspect of any organisation’s marketing operations. It involves anticipating, preparing for, and responding to potential crisis that can negatively impact an organisation’s reputation, operations, or financial stability. In today’s fast-paced connected digital era, where information travels quickly and reaches a broad audience, it is crucial for organisations to have a comprehensive crisis management plan that includes the role of proficient PR professionals.

The role of PR in crisis management is vital, as it can help an organisation to damage-control and manage the flow of information to protect its reputation. PR professionals are responsible for communicating with the public, media, and other stakeholders during a crisis. The PR consultants become catalyst and mediators for the organisation for providing relevant information, that can mitigate the impact of the crisis on the organisation’s reputation.

Let’s delve into the 7 Key Essential Elements of Crisis Management:

Proactively make crisis preparedness a continuous process
Gather sufficient and accurate facts and data about the crisis
Communicate with clarity and control any knee-jerk response
Appoint one credible spokesperson and keep comms consistent
Ensure the crisis team has all the support and resources needed
Don’t lose touch with your humanity and avoid resorting to non-facts
Learn from the crisis at hand and fix any underlying problems revealed

To elaborate, the first step in effective crisis management is to identify potential crises that can impact the organisation. This requires an analysis of internal and external factors that can or has led to the crisis. These factors could be financial mismanagement or inappropriate behaviours or natural disasters, product failures, etc.

Once potential crises have been identified by the management, it is essential to develop a crisis management plan that outlines how the organisation will respond to a crisis situation. The plan should include the role of PR professionals/ consultants, who can assist in ensuring that the organisation’s response is appropriate and effective.

During a crisis, PR professionals play a critical role in managing the flow of information, which becomes the most vital part of communication. They can provide regular updates to the public and media, respond to inquiries, and manage the organisation’s social media accounts. By keeping the public informed proactively, PR professionals can help to reduce the impact of the crisis on the organisation’s reputation.

PR professionals can also help an organisation to communicate its message effectively during a crisis. They can help to develop key messaging that highlights the organisation’s values, mission, and commitment to resolving the crisis. These messages should be consistent and delivered through multiple channels, such as press releases, social media, and interviews.

In addition to communicating with the public and media, PR professionals can also help an organisation to communicate with internal stakeholders, such as employees and shareholders. By providing regular updates and addressing concerns, PR professionals can help to maintain employee morale and confidence in the organisation.

One facet of PR that has been gaining momentum is where PR professionals play a role in preparing an organisation for a crisis. This can include developing media training programs for key executives and spokespersons, creating crisis communication templates, and conducting crisis simulation exercises. By preparing for potential crises, an organisation can respond more effectively when a crisis occurs.

Two years ago, when Dabur unveiled an advertisement for its Fem Bleach product featuring a lesbian couple joyfully observing Karva Chauth, it sparked significant controversy. The brand faced criticism from various Hindu factions, who perceived the ad as a disrespect to Indian culture. In response, Dabur decided to withdraw the ad and issued a press release along with statements on their social media platforms, offering an unequivocal apology. Personally, I hold the belief that this crisis could have been managed more effectively, a discussion worth exploring at another time. It underscores the vital importance of crisis management within an organisation, with the role of PR professionals assuming paramount significance.