Praveen Singh

PR's main objective is to create a positive narrative among the target audience. For that, a brand has to continuously engage with people. In the earliest dispensation where conventional media ruled the roost, the connection was one-way. The brand could convey its key messages but couldn't hear back from the audience. Social media enables a two-way conversation between the brand and its people. While social media is an enabler, it can also be a destroyer if the brand is not cautious. Social media crises are quick and ruthless. Therefore, every brand has to focus on sharing meaningful information, without undermining the intelligence of the audience or the people at large. Every brand should also keep a crisis management module handy.

If there is one service industry that's juggling with client demands for quick results every day, it is public relations. How do the best in the industry do it? Here's a lowdown: 1. Setting the right expectations from the start of the PR engagement. Educating the clients about what PR can achieve for them and what it can't is a good starting point. 2. Following trends is a good tactic for quick visibility. However, one should consider the long-term PR strategy to avert any digressions. Choose the trends that align with the long-term narrative. 3. Communicating the efforts being made to achieve the results for the client goes a long way in building trust. 4. Periodic assessment keeps the ball rolling in the right direction.

A responsive brand is respected in the market. So, if a social media post is causing a stir, you must help the client respond. The following steps would help: 1. Study the impact of the post. Collect the data on the social media post's impact and note negative comments and reposts. 2. Choose the platform/s to share a response. The platform should have the widest possible reach to the target audience. Ensure you include the platform where the highest impact has been registered. 3. The draft response should accept the fault, if any, and offer a resolution. Apologising for a genuine mistake will only enhance the reputation. The draft should also call out any misunderstanding that might have caused the stir in the first place.

A trustworthy brand has the following traits: 1. It is honest. 2. It is transparent. 3. It is proactive. 4. It is empathetic. As a PR partner handling a crisis, you have to project these traits to the target audience. This requires constant analysis and quick action based on the emerging situation. You have to guide the client into accepting the fault if they have made a mistake. There is no point in trying to shift the blame to somebody else. Own the problem, take necessary actions and share that with the affected people. That will uplift your reputation in the eyes of the target audience.

PR can get really unorganised at times. Working on multiple clients and managing their varying requirements can make any organised person miss deadlines. Be as it may, one has to make efforts to keep things aligned and manage most deadlines, if not all. In my experience, the following steps help: 1. Avoid multitasking. 2. Keep a calendar of daily activities you have to perform. 3. Plan each activity. Break it down into small but meaningful activities. 4. Communicate clearly and set realistic deadlines. 5. Learn to say 'no' when necessary.

Social media platforms are fast and the audience there is ruthless. Therefore, one has to take timely action to contain the crisis. Advance preparation is helpful. In this, the organisation should have a crisis module ready in advance, including the names of people who would handle a particular crisis. Things like who would speak, who would draft key messages, etc. have to clear. This would keep the uncertainty at bay when it's time for quick action. During the crisis, the team should collect all the facts on the ongoing crisis and delve upon possible actions the organisation can take on the ground. Faking it won't help. Being honest and taking the ownership of anything wrong would only raise the brand's reputation in the long run.