Every PR professional/ comes across at least one crisis in their career.

The usual scenario is that the client has one negative story appear in the news and that’s it, it’s the PR agency’s fault. The spiel begins, “You’re the agency, you should’ve stopped the press! Use your contacts!”

So what should any self-respecting PR professional do?

Answer: Be calm.

Step 1: Communicate. Explain to the client how the media works. The layout, print schedule, political leaning and any other factors that would help the client understand why the story broke without the agency’s knowledge. They probably don’t realize that you are as surprised as they are so help them see things in a clearer manner.

Step 2: Research. The most useful tool of any crisis is research. What happened, why it happened, who went to the press with the story – get your facts. That’s the only way to prevent it from happening again. Set up google alerts for all news related to your client (on social and digital platforms) so you are always informed.

Step 3: Action. Plan the next set of actions that need to be taken. At id8 media solutions, we bring together our diverse and superbly talented team who are integrated marketing specialists to come up with the best solution. Don’t forget to have a back-up (PLAN B). And the back-up’s back-up just to be safe.

Step 4: Follow through.This part is perhaps the most important. Create a key messaging and precise quote. Then, follow through and communicate with key stakeholders. Stakeholders could mean anyone from the media, employees within the organisation, shareholders, the government and the common citizen, on the basis of the crisis your client is facing.

Now you are equipped with a proactive plan of action to combat a crisis!