Keeping the viral bug at bay: managing media to minimize a crisis.

• Author: Kerlow, Eleanor

According to CareerCast's 2013 list of most stressful jobs, public relations executive ranks fifth, after military personnel and generals, firefighters and airline pilots. It's no wonder. When crisis strikes and our phones ring, we usually have little time to prepare and much at stake. In today's viral world, failure to take action in a crisis can leave a company or law firm's reputation tarnished in nanoseconds. Internal communication is external, comments and stories live online forever, and news spreads globally instantly. So how can you prepare for the worst and minimize the impact?

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The most important step is one you that you can take right now--prepare a plan of action. At any moment, you could receive a call from a reporter asking about a leaked email from a partner, impending layoffs, bad financial news, group departures and so on. And you need to be able to immediately implement your plan because there will only be a small window of time before a story runs--with or without your input. Your plan should identify the key members of your communications team, including spokespeople, key management, general counsel and HR as needed, a timeline of events, key messages and talking points and someone specifically responsible for monitoring online and social media.

Gaining Research and Knowledge

Once you become aware of a crisis situation (defined as any situation that is negative or that you wish would not become public), you must become an expert on the issue. The firm must tell you all of the details and history surrounding the issue. If you don't know the most potentially damaging details, you can never advise on how to address them.

You should also research the issue online--know everything about it, what has been written about it, who is Hogging and tweeting about it, and what comments have been written following articles and posts about it. How have other firms handled similar situations? Did they issue a statement, do interviews, and what was the media coverage like? Once you have gathered as much information as is available, then you can decide on the firm's various options and play out the scenarios, weighing all the risks. Designate one (or two at the most) spokespeople on the topic and develop a timeline for the communications.

Developing Messaging

Once the plan has been approved, the important messaging phase begins. Well-researched, consistent messages are the key to successful communications. It is...