Handling a communications crisis: Advice from an unflappable PR and former lawyer

Identify what is happening

Such an obvious thing to say, but when a crisis unfolds, make sure you understand exactly what has happened and what is continuing to happen. Speak to the source or get as close as you can. Speak to several sources if you can and maintain the lines of communication. Be a conduit for information as well as a sponge.

Find your crisis plan / crisis communication plan

And then check that it still works for the current situation. Ideally the plan will outline many of the things I discuss here and later on such as target audiences, crisis roles and contact details, responsibilities, messaging and potential scenarios.

Even if the plan feels outdated, there should still be practical information such as roles, contact details and media lists, so consider using it as a working document. Strip out the useless bits.

Try to think about what could happen next

If a situation is unfolding, try and identify what else could happen and what the potential outcomes could look like.

Also remember though that you may need to act quickly to manage or contain a situation.

Think about who you need to think about… or your target audiences

Whenever a crisis arises, one my first steps is always to stop and think about the parties that are going to be affected by the unravelling situation.

They may include staff, clients, referrers and influencers in the regional or immediate market. They may, however, also include those not immediately within our circle of influence or immediate awareness, such as the family members of staff.  Journalists may also be important as may regulators, insurers or others with an interest or role in the law firm.

Remember your internal and external comms are likely to be very different

Another seemingly (to me at least) obvious point but a necessary one nonetheless. The reason for thinking about your audiences is to craft messages that are relevant and which do the trick.

Once you’ve identified the audiences, plan which channels you need to use to engage them (and don’t forget about traditional routes such as face-to-face meeting or the phone), and work out what you need to say to them.

Remember that it may be necessary to update them to ensure they have the most up to date information available at key points during the crisis.

Understand how quickly (or otherwise) the crisis is moving

Do you need to do anything? Or can you wait a little bit to see what happens next. Sometimes you can avoid jumping on a bomb by giving things a little time.

I almost feel like I need to type the above sentence twice because it can honestly make the difference between a well-executed crisis response and a terrible one.

Clearly, some crises are so urgent that you need to act without delay. Others burn more slowly, and in those cases, stopping to watch and think and plan can be the best course of action.

Make a plan

Depending on how quickly the crisis is developing, you may have time only to decide what exactly you are going to do in the next 30 minutes, along with who is going to do it and your immediate next steps.

Zoom out… if you can.

If you have a little more time, just stop and revisit the advice around what could happen next and your target audiences.

Think about the reputational issues that are arising, and the potential knock-on effects of doing something now versus doing nothing or doing nothing right now but planning to do something later.

Consider the bigger picture, such as the firm’s strategy (if it has one), positioning, clients and current reputation. Try to think strategically by working out the likely outcomes of each potential next step (including the doing nothing one).

Try to place each potential next step into a mental framework of the ‘bigger picture’ as it will help you to make decisions that align with the firm’s strategy.

Why is it important to zoom out?

Because if you can still think strategically, even in the midst of a disaster, you can already start to think ahead as to how you can start to repair or enhance any reputational damage cause by the immediate crisis, once things have calmed down.

If you can do this, and stay calm, your advice and actions are likely to have positive longer-term effects, and hopefully avoid you having to dig yourself and the firm out of a deeper hole in the future.

If in doubt, bring an expert in.

Because I’m a marketer, I obviously need to include a call to action. So here it is… if you ever find yourself facing a crisis situation and you need advice and support quickly, do get in touch.

Alternatively, if you don’t have a crisis communications plan in place, and you want one that’s specific to your law firm, built by a PR and former lawyer, do get in touch for a chat.