What if it were possible for your company not just to survive a PR crisis, but to emerge stronger afterwards? With Otter PR’s top-notch approach to crisis PR and reputation repair, brands can take control of their media relations and ensure the most effective crisis response, even when hope seems dim.
“The truth is that you can recover and rebuild trust, even if things seem bad at the moment,” says Scott Bartnick, co-founder and CEO of Otter PR. “Effective crisis management strategies can get you there.”
Here’s how Otter PR’s experts forge a path to recovery and even long-term success after a crisis hits.
What is crisis management?
In the course of doing business, bad days will inevitably happen. Sometimes these days will be so bad that they become worthy of the name “crisis.”
Should such a crisis occur at your organization, it’s crucial to act fast to preserve your brand’s reputation. Otherwise, public sentiment can turn on your company all too quickly. Stakeholder engagement can also suffer negative consequences.
Since public relations professionals think deeply about businesses’ reputations and know how to manage public perception, perhaps it should come as no surprise that they have refined and perfected crisis communication strategies. In particular, Otter PR, which is based in Florida but serves clients worldwide, has established itself as a leading PR agency that offers successful crisis public relations.
Otter PR’s approach to crisis communication
When a crisis strikes and you don’t know where to turn, consider Otter PR. This award-winning agency’s dedicated crisis PR and reputation repair response team has mastered the art of combating misinformation or disinformation, mitigating the fallout from unauthorized disclosures and other potential risks.
“In the context of a business emergency, and especially a corporate crisis, it’s important to issue an immediate response to keep public confidence,” Bartnick explains. “Most people find it difficult to think fast when they’re facing a crisis, however. That’s just normal. Unfortunately, it’s easy to say the wrong thing. Our expert crisis management team knows what to say and what not to say. They can help you represent yourself and your business best, providing wise counsel that will help you shake off crisis situations as fast as possible.”
Several PR crises have occurred in the past few years, many of which were handled reactively rather than proactively. One of the most prominent examples was OpenAI’s sudden firing of CEO Sam Altman on Friday, November 17th, 2023. Not only was the news announced right before a weekend, but also the Friday before the Thanksgiving holiday, and with no new replacement CEO lined up. While the company eventually recovered, it suffered intense backlash from multiple key clients and stakeholders.
Otter PR protects your company’s reputation by taking a proactive approach and helping develop the best crisis management plan to fit your needs. Get help with your brand reputation today by reaching out to Otter PR to book a free strategy session.
The elements of an effective crisis communication plan
To create a bespoke crisis plan for an organization, the professionals at Otter PR first conduct an inventory of its public presence and consider any apparent vulnerabilities or potential issues. They also listen closely to leadership and other key personnel to understand their core brand values and survey the media landscape to gauge public opinion of the company’s reputation.
Next, they develop effective PR strategies to address any weaknesses and prepare the business to respond quickly and effectively if a crisis should arise. These often involve media training for designated spokespeople or readying customized press releases for distribution.
Sometimes this stage of the process also includes conducting crisis simulations in which key team members practice implementing crisis strategies and master their own critical roles. That way, if the company faces troubled waters in the future, everyone will already know how to row.
“Having this kind of plan in place not only enables businesses to defend themselves across all channels should the need arise, but also gives leadership peace of mind, enabling them to focus on growing their businesses,” Bartnick says. “At the same time, we continually monitor the media on their behalf.”
Proactive public relations and reputation management
As part of a comprehensive crisis PR and reputation repair management plan, the PR experts at Otter PR also typically recommend a multi-pronged media relations campaign to promote your business’s long-term reputation. As part of this effort, they pitch your business and brand ambassadors to journalists and editors, convincing the media to cover your brand’s mission, values, and contributions to the community.
“When you have a track record of positive coverage to draw on, it acts as a solid foundation,” Bartnick explains. “If someone or something creates a crisis, you can draw upon that reservoir of demonstrable goodwill.”
Your PR team may also create opportunities for your organization’s principals to do thought leadership. In other words, they position official representatives as sources in the news, helping educate the public about issues they care about and demonstrating transparency. This not only raises your business’s profile but also burnishes your brand image.
To help leaders understand why different strategies work, Otter PR’s specialists can also provide real-world examples that illustrate the role of PR in rebuilding your reputation. For instance, they can explain how transparent communication promotes public trust or how cultivating close relationships with news outlets helps get your message out.
“Those are just a few PR management examples,” Bartnick says. “There’s no one way to address every crisis. It’s important to bring the full toolkit to bear on these difficult situations. That’s why our communications professionals always personalize our reputation management services to fit the specific client.”
Rebuild from PR crises and protect your brand reputation
No one knows when a corporate crisis will happen or to whom. Don’t let times of crisis catch you off guard. To stay standing after the dust settles, get the best crisis PR and reputation repair management agency. Contact Otter PR today!
