Regardless of your organisational size, the fact that you accidentally or deliberately concealed the cure for HIV or eradicated an entire species of chameleons with a chemical by product of your R&D efforts, is not going to do your market share or your pocket any good. The sad truth is that once news of your little indiscretion or error has leaked, either on or offline, it is only a matter of time before it becomes common knowledge. There is almost no way that you can prevent this spread of information. You can however mitigate the long term damage that this crisis will cause your business.

The sooner you accept this and move on, the better. If you’re looking for a hand, these tips will provide you with some help in the moving on department, which really, is the important part.  

1. You Need a Plan

Ideally, this plan is something that you put together before you need it, based on the idea that at some stage, you might screw something up and threaten your good name. In the event that this isn’t the case and you are already in the throes of brand chaos, make sure that you at least learn from the crisis you are experiencing. Decide on an immediate plan of action, and once the hubbub has died down, take a long, hard, critical look at the way in which you managed your crisis.

From this, you can put in place a process and a plan that will help you better manage your reputation the next time something like this happens. This plan should include some thought on how you will handle your clients, the press, your competitors and any other stakeholders in your company. It should also highlight the relevant parties involved in crisis management, delineating their roles. This will ensure that if something unfortunate happens again, you will be adequately prepared.

2. Have Eyes in the Back of your Head

In order to adequately respond to a crisis and ultimately ensure that not too much damage is done, it is necessary to be aware of every single potentially damaging conversation that is happening surrounding your brand both on and offline. If, prior to your brand meltdown, you weren’t already monitoring this, you’re something of a moron (no offence). In the midst of a crisis however, it is even more necessary than usual to know what’s cutting. Buy or subscribe to an Online Reputation Management product and if you’re a cheap skate, sign up for Google Alerts, while getting an intern to scour major newspapers and publications that focus on your industry. This will prevent microcosmic flare ups of negative conversation and while it might cost you a bit of cash, you won’t regret it.

3. Participation and Response Should Not be Underestimated

The best way to respond to negativity around your brand is to make like an ostrich  and stick your head into a large mound of sand. Not. This is, in fact, possibly the worst thing that a company could do. Just like an opportunistic predator will relish this type of behaviour from an ostrich, so too will those people with a bone to pick about your brand.

Whether you are guilty of the crime you are accused of, or not, you need to respond one way or another in order to regain some control of the conversation. This response should be carefully considered, it should not appear defensive and it should not lash out at those who have caused your crisis, nor should it prescribe blame.

4. Honesty and Transparency are Key

Insincerity and dishonesty are the lifeblood of reputation crises. Those who are looking to harm you will feed off them and ensure that your crisis not only fails to go away, but that it actually escalates. It is crucial that you make everyone aware of what really happened, however negative it may be - then work towards a fair and reasonable solution that will enable you to repair the damage done. If the allegations about your brand are false, or have been misconstrued or miscommunicated, you need to be honest about that too – there is no value in taking the blame if the fault lies elsewhere. There is, however more to this honesty thing. It might be tempting to counter your reputation crisis with a flurry of positive conversation originating from seemingly unaffiliated parties who appear genuinely fond of your brand. Beware – you will be caught out if you attempt a cheap ploy such as this, and the backlash will only plunge you further into trouble.

5. Be Aware of Your Legal Standing

Depending on the nature of your reputation crisis, this may or may not be necessary. Regardless, it is better to be on the safe side. Obviously the advice you will seek will be wholly dependent on the nature of the crisis you are experiencing. Either way, it is good know where you stand in the eyes of the law and to make sure you stay on the right side of it.

6. Focus on SEO

Undoubtedly, if your brand is the focus of an attack of one sort or another, you will be associated with it in the search results. If you aren’t very careful, this negative content will supersede your own website and all of the positive sentiment around your brand that may feature on pages 1 and 2 of the Google SERPs. This is dangerous because once it’s there, it’s going to be very hard to get rid of. The solution is to use this crisis as an opportunity to get your SEO in order. You need to make sure that even if negative pages do feature in the SERPs, that at the very least, your own website maintains the first position.

7. Set Up a Task Team

Knowing who’s doing what and who is ultimately responsible for the various elements of your response is important in successful crisis management. Ideally, these roles should be outlined in the fantastic plan that you have already put together. That way, when it comes to crunch time, your solutions based approach will roll out smoothly.

8. Consider Hiring a Professional

No matter how professional or how prepared you are, it is always worth considering consulting or hiring a professional if you find yourself in deep water. They will have insight that you lack and experience from which you can learn. They will also offer objectivity – something that will be difficult for you to add because of your proximity to and personal relationship with your brand. The money you spend now on a service like this might well save you in the months to come from irrevocable damage.

Also check out:

• Online Reputation Management
• BrandsEye Reputation Monitoring - Now Available for 1$ a Month
• Critical Customers Should be Your Best Friend