Don't Lean on Lawyers When Facing a Crisis

5 Tips for Effective Crisis Communications 
​By Tony Manolatos & Bob Nelson

A crisis can surface at any time, and lately we've been reminded of how quickly problems can snowball and turn into PR disasters because of self-inflicted wounds. 

We've seen a string of bad news from brands like Pepsi and United, and the White House is frequently in crisis mode. The running drama reminded us how challenging crisis communications is, so we're sharing five tips to help you when a crisis strikes.

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1. Protect your brand
When you find yourself in crisis your instincts – and your lawyer – will tell you to minimize your offense and risk, and then run and hide until the storm blows over. All that does is make things worse. Getting ahead of the situation as quickly as possible will help minimize damage to your reputation and your bottom line. Warren Buffet famously said: “It takes 20 years to build a reputation and 5 minutes to ruin it.”

2. Adhere to the four Cs of crisis communications
Think about what you would want to hear if you were on the receiving end of a crisis – be it a customer, the news media or the public – and then build your strategy and your messaging around the four Cs of crisis communication: 

• Compassion 
• Competence 
• Credibility
• Commitment
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3. Show up
Answer questions asked of you. If you don't know the answer, say so, and then report back as soon as you have the information. 

4. Don't lean on lawyers
Don't let lawyers edit away your compassion and your sincerity. A potential lawsuit is not as important as your brand. You absolutely should listen to your attorneys, but keep in mind their most important role is to minimize legal exposure, not maximize brand value. Your job is to balance the risks versus the rewards after quickly considering both.

5. Go beyond an apology
Have a plan and explain the steps you are going to take to ensure whatever happened never happens again, and then put that plan into action.

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“People will forgive nearly anything – if you show remorse, you own what you did, and you promise not to do it anymore. It's really very simple. It's astounding when huge companies miss this. They listen too much to the lawyers, they talk in meaningless nonsense code language – “re-accommodate” was just made for memes – to minimize their offense and reduce their risk,” says Elizabeth Fitzsimons, Vice President of Marketing for the San Diego Regional Chamber of Commerce.
 
“United's ‘apology’ is one of the worst issued by a company in crisis. You don't run from how bad it is. A true leader would own it, share the outrage, show some shame and pledge to make it right.”

United Airlines reaction to crisis,
April 10, 2017

"This is an upsetting event to all of us here at United,” CEO Oscar Munoz said. “I apologize for having to re-accommodate these customers. Our team is moving with a sense of urgency to work with the authorities and conduct our own detailed review of what happened. We are also reaching out to this passenger to talk directly to him and further address and resolve this situation.”

​Later that day Munoz sent an email to employees blaming the victim who was dragged off the plane.

American Airlines reaction to crisis,
April 21, 2017

"What we see on this video does not reflect our values or how we care for our customers," American Airlines said minutes after a video surfaced on social media of a mother sobbing following a confrontation with a flight attendant. "We are deeply sorry for the pain we have caused this passenger and her family and to any other customers affected by the incident. We are making sure all of her family's needs are being met while she is in our care. The actions of our team member captured here do not appear to reflect patience or empathy, two values necessary for customer care. In short, we are disappointed by these actions. The American team member has been removed from duty while we immediately investigate this incident.”

To review: American: 1 United: 0

Past experience tells us a crisis often can't effectively be managed internally. Our team of communications professionals has decades of experience and can provide critical support when it's needed. If you would like to learn more about dealing with a crisis or any Advertising or Public Relations topic, please feel free to call or email either of us directly:
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Tony: 619.549.0137 [email protected] 
​Bob: 619.865.0281 [email protected]

Click here to listen to MNM’s Tony Manolatos discuss United’s missteps on KOGO/AM600, and here to learn more about MNM’s approach to crisis communications.