By Josh Wilson
No one anticipates encountering a crisis when crafting the plan for a startup business. However, statistics show that between 2014 and 2019, 69% of business leaders experienced at least one corporate crisis. Many experienced more than one within that time. Also, heightened scrutiny and tense situations came with the COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent mandates and shutdown orders. As a result, crisis numbers increased. Throughout the past two years, we read constantly about many types of crisis.
A crisis communication plan plays an integral part to any overall business strategy. As a result, crafting one takes a team effort to accomplish successfully. The following seven ways craft a successful crisis communication plan:
1. Identify Potential Crisis and Outline Goals
Startup leaders ask, “What exactly is a crisis?” The answers include:
– Product recalls;
– Accusations of misconduct by employees; and
– Environmental issues (oil spills or pollution).
Nobody expects a crisis, and it happens suddenly. A solid crisis communication plan starts with a written outline of the goals of the plan. Goals include:
– Providing accurate and time-sensitive responses and information;
– Safeguarding assets or the business structure; and
– Maintaining a positive image or reputation.
2. Build a Strong Crisis Communication Team and Consider Stakeholders
Building one’s team defines the first step in creating a crisis communication plan. Leaders consider which employees best contribute to a crisis team. A startup infancy requires construction of a full-fledged crisis team. Also, it determines the employees best suited to effectively handle a crisis. Good leaders draw the best out of people. Leaders dig deep to find well-equipped people on their team. They also bring the organization through a crisis.
The team members fully understand the goals of the crisis communication plan. The team includes people with expertise in public relations, social media, administration, and operations. In addition, the crisis communication team acquires a legal counsel. Daily access to a lawyer is probable, but important to ultimately get. Lawyers are expensive, but they are cost-effective. In addition, they prevent a crisis from leading to a costly lawsuit.
A strong crisis communication team needs a team leader, and it requires a clear understanding of the chain of command and stakeholders involved with the strategy. Internal and external stakeholders include employees, board members, customers, suppliers, and vendors — all persons affected by a crisis.
3. Identify Potential Crisis Situations
The well-known platitude states that if you “fail to plan, you plan to fail.” Once a crisis communication team forms, it creates potential crisis situation mock-ups and maps out the business’s response. The crisis communication plan outlines every step in the strategy. Also, every employee affiliated with the business knows the plan.
Examples of potential crisis situations include:
– Natural disasters;
– Workplace accidents or violence;
– Accusations of harassment; and
– Problems with products.
Proactive behavior helps a startup when a crisis occurs. Although impossible to plan for every crisis, brainstorming with a well-formed crisis communications team makes preparation possible. In addition, leaders find that these planning sessions are fantastic for team building.
4. Create Fact Sheets and Lists
An excellent crisis plan contains fact sheets and lists. Fact sheets include all facts pertaining to a particular crisis. Also, they lay out everything known and proven about the crisis at hand. In addition, fact sheets require easy accessibility and referencing by the team and selected stakeholders. Lists include easily referenced company information, the company’s mission statement, employee information, and product/service information. When crisis hits, stress causes confusion. Fact sheets and lists keep crisis communication organized.
5. Create Clear Guidelines and a Hierarchy
Clear guidelines outline a crisis communication plan. Furthermore, they define the who, what, when, where, and why. Guidelines include:
– Who is allowed to speak with the press;
– What is allowed to be said; and
– What publications your business is going to speak with.
A written hierarchy includes leaders at the top, followed by team managers, and a base of laterally positioned HR experts, media specialists, IT specialists, and legal team. The bottom of the hierarchy, especially within large organizations, includes managers at other sites or offices. Each site has its own hierarchy.
Controlling messages is vital in a crisis, and these messages include identifying the crisis, a timeline for future plans or changes, and not ignoring anyone hurt by the crisis situation — whether internally or within the customer base. Showing empathy during a crisis is key. Everyone in an organization needs to understand what the message is, who is communicating that message, and what is the communication method being used?
6. Implement Risk Management
A crisis is sometimes unavoidable. A solid crisis communication plan also identifies possible risks involved with carrying out the plan. Yes, no backlash is preferred, but likely not realistic. Preparing for any crisis-related backlash, bad press, or social media fallout is better than being caught off-guard and vulnerable. The crisis management team discusses possible outcomes of different strategies, analyzing each strategy’s risk. A risk management expert is a part of any crisis communication team.
In any crisis, a business’s customer base is bound to be affected. Risk management needs to include the risks related to customers or clients. Much like when you begin a business, you need to analyze your target market and who your message is “for” when you create a crisis management plan. Who is affected by the crisis? What do they need to hear from you, and where do they get that message?
7. Commit to Regular Updates and Revisions
As a startup scales, it regularly revisits its crisis communication plan. Any plan is up-to-date and ready for any new crises emerging. For example, it is not likely many startups that began in 2018 or 2019 had “pandemic” on their potential crisis lists. Once it became evident that COVID-19 was a real issue with global implications, many crisis communication plans require updating to include plans for pandemic responses.
Startups have many considerations as they grow their businesses. A crisis hits at any time, so crafting a comprehensive crisis communication plan happens early on in a startup’s inception. If a startup focuses on building a solid crisis communication team and proactively prepares, it feels security in its readiness for whatever may occur.
