For any marketing or PR person who has had to deal with a major crisis situation, the horrific events that have happened in Japan will bring back memories.
The scale of death and destruction caused by the earthquakes and tsunami in Japan is beyond comprehension.
Even so, there are countless lessons to be learned, and actions to be taken in advance of the next disaster. The Japanese experience reinforces the fact that accurate information is an essential tool for dealing with such a crisis.
It’s easy to look at the aerial photos on the evening news and think, “That’s terrible. Fortunately it can’t happen to us.”
That line of thinking assumes that only large and vulnerable entities are at risk.
But it is not a matter of scale. The failure of a small company’s $5,000 server can impact the small number of people who work with it. And if it shuts down or fails, the impact can affect hundreds or thousands of customers who rely on it.
For catastrophes large and small, the key is planning. Working with our clients we ask, what are the most likely crisis occurrences? What actions should you be prepared to take? What communication tools should you have in place? Who is authorized to speak to the press? Are the spokespeople trained in dealing with reporters?
When the plan is complete, train everyone in its use. Then hope you never have to use it.
Thanks to Placemaking Group Senior VP Irv Hamilton for this analysis. He’s our issues management/crisis communications expert. Read his white paper “When Things Go Wrong”
Tags: crisis situation, earthquakes, tsunami
I found this article very well written, especially for a website that provides a service. Not only does this blog give readers a sense of what a catastrophic event could do to a company and the links which they have. I found it to also be a good marketing tool because no one wants their business to fall apart because of a single event and this blog hints to readers “hey, get on this crisis/issue management plan”. I don’t think anyone should have the idea that something cannot happen to them unless they have worked to execute a solid crisis management plan.
I found this article very eye opening. It is so easy for people to look at disaster and feel bad but then not take one second to think it could happen to them. I think everyone needs to realize that a Plan B is a must. I would reccomend any small or especially big business to have a back up strategy for when something unexpected hits. We cant control our future but we can definitely prepare for it and I think a good PR strategy is a really smart method to the madness of tragedy.
This article really forces you think that disaster can happen at any second. It is easy for people to look at natural disasters in countries such as Japan and think, “oh that will never happen in California.” But being located in the bay area, earth quakes are highly likely to happen. Emergency Crisis plans are very useful in cases of evacuation for office buildings, apartment complexes, and big schools. PR is a good way to get the message out there in helping people prepare of emergencies.
I completely agree that if a company thinks they are safe from disasters, then they have a rude awakening ahead of them. Preparation is absolutely important because, when chaos swallows up everything around them, they should have the necessary tools to start clearing it away instead of adding to it.
When we discussed crisis planning in class and then to have this disaster occur, it really instilled how important crisis planning to any company is. The wrong information cannot be leaked out into the public because it could pull a company into a slow, painful death. Having a strategy to handle any crisis will make dealing with a crisis that much easier.
I totally agree with this article. I think that a lot of the times, whether you are in a company or in everyday real life, many people think, “That can’t happen to me.” or that the chances of lifechanging events are slim to none. Often times, when something DOES strike, it’s either too late, or people are left clueless as to what to do. This article really shows that having a crisis communication plan is key because when something big does happen, those who were prepared know how to handle it and not to panic as much. This was great that you used Japan as an example because it’s clear, and it gets the point across right away that you shouldn’t HAVE to wait for something to happen in order to take action. I work in a firm where crisis communication is key for hospitals and catastrophic events, it’s better to be safe than sorry.
After attending the Cherry Blossom Festival this weekend in SF/Japan Town, this article really connected to what i know, learned, and acted upon helping, about the catastrophe that happened in Japan. Being half Japanese, and actually having relatives in Japan that are impacted by this event, PR is really the only thing we can rely on to help them recover. I agree on planning being the key element to this problem because you never know what nature is up to. Being that Hawaii is so close and prone to more likely something happening than in California, i also have to worry about Tsunamis or earthquakes that will damage what i call home. All we really can do now is help them in whatever need of funding, care, shelter they need, and more importantly have a plan for ourselves. My thoughts and prayers are with Japan everyday.
I completely agree with this post, everyone needs some kind of crisis management plan to fully help and serve the company in which they are working for. Also one needs to know about crisis management in terms with their own PR and how to handle crisis’s of their own. Managing one’s PR is a full time job, and crisis management is definately important for a company and a person to take control of. You never know what will happen, my prayers reach out to those affected by the tsunami.
Having a Crisis Management Plan is KEY! You can never be too prepared! There is no downfall in having a plan and being prepared, but just like you said, hope a company never has to use one! Have a crisis plan is important no matter if the incident is small or large-at least you are prepared! I also agree with you and think it is very important that everyone who works at a company is aware and knowledge about the plan and is trained on the information and crises. Every company big or small should definitely have a crisis management plan because it is a great tool and guide for anything that may occur within a business!
Hope for the best but plan for the worst-
People are quick to form relief groups and programs to help others who have gone through catastrophe, but few jump at the opportunity to form prevention groups or plans.
It’s interesting how PR can teach real life lessons. We often assume that Public Relations only applies to businesses and media, but this article demonstrates how actually, the best PR is the kind used in the outside world on human interactions.
After reading this article, I began to think more about how big natural disasters can affect small businesses and their PR crisis plan. When I think of a crisis plan I would have previously connected it with something more directly connected to the inner workings of the company. Such as a scandal with an employee or customer.
Japan and its large nuclear power plant needed some good PR and crisis management the first few hours and days of the tragedy to reassure people and not create widespread panic.
I definitely think majority of people look at what happened to Japan and the first thing they think of is wow that is absolutely awful but it takes a while for someone to really realize that it could happen to their country just as fast as it happened to Japan. Once crisis hits its too late for people to try and pick up the pieces unless of course they already prepared a crisis plan. Why wouldn’t a company, organization, business, etc. have a crisis plan? No one loses anything or gets hurt from a crisis but if you do not have one then you are very likely to lose something or get hurt once an accident or natural disaster hits.
Better safe than sorry.
This is an excellent reminder that it is important to expect the unexpected. It most certainly is uncomfortable to imagine some worst-case scenarios, but doing so is the only way to be prepared for any sort of disaster. By being prepared for an uncomfortable situation, we will make the situation a whole lot easier to go through if and when it does occur. It is always better to be over-prepared than it is to be under-prepared.
I think its interesting that although the terrible events in Japan were incredibly devastating, and a crisis management plan would have come in handy, the tornados that have absolutely devastated Alabama have received almost no media coverage. What does that say about how american mainstream media prioritizes PR?
After reading this article, I kept thinking back to the crisis management plan assignment we did for Dennis’ PR course. I remember thinking that I sort of understood how this could be important, but the crises we considered didn’t seem like that big of deal. Reading this article, you see how a real natural disaster can be a true crisis for any business. This article also forces you to think even bigger and see how a PR crisis can impact an entire country, as it did Japan. A good crisis management plan assists in making the public feel more secure and informed. This article gave me a new perspective on what it means to have a crisis management plan and how important these plans really are.
I agree that a crisis plan is very IMPORTANT within any company small or large! There are so many things that could go wrong at any given moment and without short notice. Having a crisis plan and being prepared for anything would really help any company out! This article opened my eyes to another part of PR and what goes into it!
The crisis in Japan has been an eye opener across the world of things that we need to prepare for or may not have been prepared for beforehand. A crisis plan should be a step that is covered in every situation for a business, country, family.
i definitely agree with this article. when starting a company one’s first few thoughts are about the cash flow, the physical appearance, and the possible partners that can make your company quickly grow. a disaster or crisis is in the shadows. this blog is a good reality check. a crisis to a business, company, or even country can produce a huge amount of destruction is just blink of an eye, if a company doesn’t have a quick plan of action the results can be devastating. a crisis management plan is vital to a business and should be thought about carefully in the beginning.
I completely understand and agree with all that is written in this post! Japan’s earthquakes were a horrific and catastrophic event that nobody saw coming. Any individual, any country, any company, big or small, is unfortunately at risk for a disaster. Be it something like machines breaking down in an office building or natural disasters that impact millions of lives, these events are unplanned and unfortunate. The way to alleviate the aftermath of these events is to be prepared before they occur… Prepare for the worst and hope for the best! Being prepared, proactive and ready for anything is what matters!
i completely agree. the disaster in japan could have been much worse if the country did not have a crisis management plan in place. it is a lesson to everyone else that anything can happen. especially in california where we also have earthquakes (the big one will happen any moment now!), a crisis management plan for “disasters” and more specifically earthquakes is a necessity.
A crisis management plan is like the car insurance that we have. It something that we pay a lot for, but hope we never have to use it.
It’s so important to put effort on the front end of things so that way if hard times come, one will already be prepared. The crazy part is that we as humans can’t always think of everything. Yet, there has to be a way to address crisis in a manner that could help a multitude of situations. That is why initial planning is SO important.
Crisis management was by far my favorite section in the course.