As the world grapples with crisis after crisis, future-proofing your brand has never been more important
Welcome to 2026: The only certainty is uncertainty.
Now is not the time to roll the dice.
Impromptu wars, trade disputes, economic shocks, AI takeover, global warming: our world is more uncertain than ever. Earlier this year, at Davos, the World Economic Forum warned that global risks were at a 20-year high – worse than COVID and the 2009 financial crash.
And that was even before the Iran war. Now, the risk count is off the charts.
Don’t gamble with your brand.
A full-blown crisis can happen in the blink of an eye and take many forms. A cyber incident. A social media post backfires. A data breach. An executive behaving badly. A flurry of negative media headlines.
A story on social can go viral in seconds, and a hard-earned reputation can be lost in minutes.
My first gig was at Bloomberg as a fresh-faced rookie reporter covering breaking news. There, in a frantically busy newsroom, I learnt everything. I then moved on to Sky News. In TV, I worked through some of the most traumatic moments of modern times, none of us could ever prepare for 9/11, the 7/7 London Bombings, and the Boxing Day Tsunami.
On the PR side of the fence, I’ve handled every kind of crisis, both here and abroad, from hurricanes to riots to animal disease outbreaks to pandemics.
This post offers expert tips on crisis communications, contingency planning, risk management, and protecting your brand from long-lasting reputational damage.
Crisis Communication Management in the Age of Risk
In this age of global risk, crisis is now the norm.
Future-proofing your business is a necessity, not a luxury.
Every organisation, big and small, should have a comprehensive crisis comms plan.
Yet so many don’t. According to a CIPR survey, UK businesses rank reputational risk as a top concern, but over a third lack in-house PR expertise to manage it.
Effective crisis communication starts well before the crisis hits. Having a clear plan and mechanisms in place will help you navigate a crisis when you’re in the eye of the storm.
The stakes are high and the pressure intense under the media glare. Believe me, your PR team will be thankful for having well-drilled plans in place. The more prepared you are, the better the chances that your brand will avoid long-term reputational harm.
Prepare the Ground
Firstly, map out your risk: News travels fast – bad news even faster. So, you need to get a crisis plan. Don’t bury your head in the sand and think it’ll never happen to me. Hopefully it won’t. But it might. So now’s the time to act.
Think of real-life worst-case scenarios your brand is likely to face, and detail process and response mechanisms to prevent a crisis or mitigate its impact.
Maybe it’s a massive data hack, serious accounting fraud, or a fire has ripped through your main warehouse, taking out your supply chain.
Now, think about the actions you can take to mitigate the impact. List the potential crises and their mitigations.
See your crisis comms plan as your centre of gravity. At a time when everyone is losing their head and everything is in a state of total chaos, that plan will keep you focused.
Having worked in more than my fair share of ‘crisis’ situations in the furnace of government comms, sometimes multiple crises all at once, a plan will help you weather the storm.
Protocol must be followed. Just knowing where your key people are and how to reach them at a moment’s notice can be critical. Have an open and transparent line of communication to the top of your organisation. Most big stories ‘break’ late at night or on a weekend, and you may only have an hour to issue a statement, so be prepared whenever the time comes.
Damage Limitation: Set Out the Facts Fast
When the crisis hits, establish the facts as quickly as possible. Remember, you are in the eye of the storm – the full picture may still be unclear as initial information can be scant or based on hearsay evidence as the situation unfolds.
Your customers will rightly expect you to act quickly and address their concerns.
First of all, you’ll need to show grip and sure-footedness in the face of media scrutiny.
It’s essential to accept what has happened, acknowledge the uncertainty, outline the steps needed to fix the problem, and learn the lessons to move forward.
To control the narrative, provide answers to these five key questions as quickly as possible:
- What happened? If you don’t know all the facts, what do you know?
- Why did it happen?
- How are you going to get out of it?
- Are there any future potential disclosures that could inflict further damage on your brand?
- How can you ensure it doesn’t happen again?
Time is the Enemy
In the breakneck speed of social media, you won’t have long. Stories can gain traction online in minutes, and a one-hour turnaround crisis time on social is pushing it, and not much longer for mainstream media, so it’s key to get a statement out faster than the news cycle.
Frontline Messaging
Ensure your topline messaging is watertight, that your spokespeople are well-briefed, and that you keep your employees informed. Internal communication is important in a crisis. Staff should know the company’s official line and direct any journalists who may approach them for comment straight to your PR team.
Maintain Discipline
Stay on message and quickly correct any inaccuracies reported in the news or on social media. Ensure clear lines of communication are in place with stakeholders, too, as they will also be contacted for media comment. Update them on new lines as appropriate.
Sorry Isn’t Always the Hardest Word
Don’t let the story own you. Take ownership early. The organisational tone of voice needs to be calm, authentic and authoritative. Be compassionate and show you care.
Only impart information to the public that is accurate and credible. Be upfront, transparent, and honest about your shortcomings and don’t be afraid to apologise.
We’re all human, and mistakes can happen. People understand that.
If an apology is required, it’s better to do it out of the gate than have it foisted on you by a media backlash, which so often incurs longer-lasting brand damage.
Stick to your Brand’s Core Values
No matter what, stick to your core values. They will be truly tested in a crisis. This is when they really count.
Always be authentic. Your brand depends on it. People are loyal to brands they can trust. The best brands have an emotional connection with their audience, so be sure your brand identity isn’t compromised by a sudden change in messaging that betrays your principles.
Don’t take customer loyalty for granted.
Let’s look at the American retailer, Target. Diversity, equity and inclusion had long been central to the company’s brand identity. So when the company scrapped its DEI policies shortly after President Trump took office, consumer boycotts sprang up across the country.
The policy U-turn was widely viewed as a betrayal of Black Americans who had propped up the retail giant’s fortunes. The ‘brand backlash’ led to a tanking share price and to its CEO stepping down.
It wasn’t the first time Target had come under fire for ‘betraying’ its core values. The company faced huge criticism for its 2024 decision to pull some Pride Month merchandise from its shelves amid growing pressure from right-wing critics.
In many ways, it’s a classic example of how not to manage a crisis situation. There was significant reputational damage, and it provides a very important lesson in damage limitation: never go back on your brand’s core values.
Trust Matters
A trusted brand is a strong brand.
Establish a trusted presence early. Whether you’re a business, a government department, a local emergency service, or a state entity, using a single trusted channel for comms is essential. This is particularly true if the story is breaking news and the public needs to stay informed as a potentially dangerous situation unfolds.
Social media is STILL king: it’s timely, unfiltered, and most importantly, it allows you to control the story. X or Facebook or Substack enable your company to disseminate direct messages to your audience more frequently and widely. Keep it constantly updated, and journalists will know to check your chosen channel for updates.
Transparency is key in effective public relations. Only deal in facts. Keeping the public and news outlets informed is critical in the first few moments after a major incident, and local police will often issue real-time social media updates on a developing situation that poses an urgent threat to people’s safety.
When details are scant, the situation is fast-moving, and misinformation is rampant, it’s imperative as a direct means of public communication. Crisis management is about moving fast and being nimble.
Take the Metropolitan Police. In the immediate aftermath of the London Bridge attack, they took to social media to provide rapid, factual updates on the incident and urge restraint in circulating images from the scene. This helped broadcasters report the facts in real time rather than rely on online speculation.
As the story breaks, be sure to monitor the comments to your posts, influencer blogs or journalists’ posts. Track everything and measure public sentiment. React quickly to threads that may indicate problems on the ground or that your message isn’t landing well.
Don’t Overpromise and Underdeliver
Manage expectations and ensure the public is informed of the situation. Do not be tempted to underestimate the scale of the challenge, as people will soon start to question why the resolution is taking longer than first thought.
….Silver Linings
I wanted to end my post on an optimistic note.
It’s not all doom and gloom. Not every crisis ends badly. Indeed, some can bring unexpected opportunities. And if you’re very lucky, your brand image can emerge stronger!
Think of KFC. A supply-side issue left many of their restaurants without their most basic ingredient: chicken. Forced to close outlets suddenly, the fast-food chain went straight to social media to get its message out quickly and reassure customers. Using humour to great effect with the ‘FCK’ campaign, which featured an empty KFC bucket, their sassy media team’s quick thinking turned an embarrassing PR crisis into a big win.
Get a Solid Crisis Plan
It’s not a game.
Your reputation depends on getting the basics right when things go wrong – not doing so will devalue your brand’s most precious currency.
Things can escalate quickly in a crisis, so covering the necessary groundwork beforehand will make your organisation much more resilient to such threats when they arise.
Don’t take a chance with your company’s future by being unprepared. Get a crisis comms plan – pronto!
We can help you plan your crisis communications. Get in touch for expert advice!
You can read our previous post on how to effectively manage a crisis communication situation here and our post on how humour can turn a crisis into a win here.
