Addressing the media during a crisis or sensitive time at your company.

The public relations strategies you have in place are largely aimed at getting the media's attention, increasing visibility for your business, and getting coverage in targeted publications. But what happens if your company is going through a sensitive time or crisis? How do you address the press effectively and deflect negative publicity?

Just as you employ PR tactics to promote positive news and information, every company should also have a crisis management plan in place - one that is reviewed with employees so everyone will know what to do when and if a crisis occurs.

Following are some guidelines to consider when developing a crisis management plan for your business.

Designate one company spokesperson. This will help keep your public messages and tone consistent. This should be, if possible, the CEO. If your organization prefers to have a PR representative act as the organization's spokesperson (or in addition to the CEO), decide that beforehand.

Brief all employees. Inform them that if they are ever directly contacted or confronted by a member of the media, they should say that they are not authorized to speak on behalf of the company/organization. Employees should refer all media questions to the designated spokesperson.

Prepare an official statement for the media. The following will work in most situations: "We are aware of the situation and have a launched a thorough investigation into it. We are committed to ensuring that only the highest standards are met at our company. As soon as we have more information on the specific incident, we will share it with you."

Be honest and don't deny that something happened. If the police or an official organization has become involved, it is appropriate to relay that information and say that they are also launching an investigation. Make sure to emphasize that if wrongdoing is eventually found, appropriate measures will be taken.

Do not say, "No comment." This is almost an admission of guilt with the media, and causes them to be suspicious. Instead, steer the conversation to a subject you want to discuss. For instance, if a reporter asks about what happened, you might say, "We're trying to get to the bottom of that. But, let me explain the safeguards and/or policies we have in place."

Re-frame the question to take control of the interview and guide it in a direction that is more beneficial. Instead of answering the question, say, "You bring up a relevant point, but before I discuss that, I want to talk about...."

Use selective answering. If there is a multi-part question, tackle the easy one and go on at some length. Simply ignore the more difficult question.

Agree with and repeat interviewer's words, if they reinforce your message. For instance, if they say, "Isn't it critical to ensure the safety of _______?" You answer, "I agree with you, safety/security is the highest priority at our company. Our goal is to have a safety record that is second to none in the industry, and we work hard every day to achieve that."

Use stories to filibuster and use up time. One good way to answer a question is to tell a story. This eats up time, precludes a follow-up question, and supports your message. So, prepare one or two positive stories about your company and/or staff, or something of the like, and tell these stories to cast a positive light.

Apologize if wrongdoing is found and say what you're doing to avoid such incidents in the future. If an investigation finds that a staff member, for example, is culpable for doing something wrong, apologize on behalf of your company and state that, "We truly believe that this has been a one-time incident with one employee. We have re-committed ourselves to eliminating all possibility that this kind of situation will ever happen again. New hiring policies and staff oversight measures have been put in place that will ensure that our high standards will continue to lead the industry."

It's important to review your crisis communications plan with employees at least twice a year to ensure your staff knows what to do should an incident occur. Such regular sessions to provide information, answer questions, and brainstorm will help prevent any potential negative situation from spinning out of control - both inside and outside of your company.

Many members of the media say they don't wish to be called about press releases you've emailed them. But those of us in PR know that, often, members of the media don't read the emails they receive and will only know about a piece of news if you do make a call to them.

So, we pick up the phone because we want to make sure that the media doesn't miss out on a news opportunity. But wait! Before you dial, be prepared for what has become almost inevitable - reaching the voice mailbox rather than the real person.

You can make the most of your voice mail messages to media contacts if you follow a few easy steps. No, they will not guarantee a return call, but will hopefully get the media recipient to be aware of your client and maybe even look for the email you sent.

First, don't be one of those people who feel that more is better when it comes to leaving voice messages and try to stuff every bit of information into the message. Instead, prepare what you're going to say, and, if need be, write a script and practice it before beginning to dial. But don't actually read from the script! The idea is to become familiar with the content of the message you'll leave and to sound natural.

After the beep, clearly state your name and affiliation, one sentence about why you're calling and what action you'd like the recipient to take. It's not advisable to call to "follow up on a press release" but it is to "see if there is anything else I can provide to you, such as company or customer resources, in regard to the recent (company name) press release I sent you." End your short message by repeating your name and saying your phone number slowly enough so that the recipient has time to write it down, and also so that they can understand it.

If you're calling about a story idea, rather than a press release, boil down your pitch to one or two sentences if possible. After that, interest will start to wane.

The accepted rule of thumb is to leave no more than two voice messages for any one recipient. If they don't respond by then, they just aren't interested and leaving more will only ensure that they'll put you on their personal "Do Not Call" list in the future.

So, go ahead and make that call if you want to cover all the bases in your outreach to the media. Just be ready to talk to a mechanical gatekeeper when you do.

P.S. The above hints also apply when talking to a real person!

The first franchisee training session for Shock PR International is being planned for late summer. If you are interested in learning more about our franchise offering, why it might be right for you, and how you can join us, please contact us by August 4.

The five-day training course will cover the Shock PR proprietary process, business mechanics of setting up and operating your Shock PR franchise office, and much more.

In other franchise news, Shock PR International was recently mentioned in the Worcester Business Journal: http://www.wbjourn al.com/archives/2006/current/local_franchises.php .

Longwood Software announced the TagTeam Fulfillment Engine, an integrated marketing and selling solution for enhanced B2B eCommerce. In addition, Longwood's CEO bylined a feature story for destinationCRM.com. http://www.longwoodsw.com.

Shunra Software announced strong market demand for its Shunra VE application testing and performance solutions in the first half of 2006. http://www.shunra.com.

Sherrill House, a skilled nursing center in Boston, was featured in a front-page article in HealthCare Review on how Sherrill House is using music therapy to sooth Alzheimer's patients. http://www.sherrillhouse.org.

If clients have developed informational White Papers on their technology, you can re-purpose some of the copy for contributed articles that can be proposed to industry publications whose audiences can benefit from the information. These kinds of articles help position clients as industry experts, and create additional exposure for their products.

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