by Stacey Ford Osborne

No wants to be in a crisis, but if you do find yourself having to navigate a crisis situation you have to be able to communicate quickly and clearly. Following are five tips to keep in mind if you happen to be in that situation. And if you need someone to manage the crisis for you, reach out to us and we’ll be happy to help!

Get the facts.

Have a clear understanding of what you do know, what you don’t know, and what information is still to be determined. You may have to hold people off from an update so you can make sure you understand the situation. Your stakeholders may be anxious for answers, but they will appreciate you having the full story—or as much of it as you are able to share—rather than providing unchecked, incorrect, or unverified information.

Establish your chain of command.

Make sure everyone understands who is in charge of what, and who the subject matter experts are. If you’re preparing a briefing, announcement, or update, make sure you understand who will be reviewing and/or approving the information before you start crafting the message. If you have the final say, make sure that is communicated to the people who are preparing the message and get back to them quickly with an approval and/or corrections.

Know Your Stakeholders

Take some time to identify who your stakeholders are, what they care about, and the best way to communicate with them. You will likely need to communicate a message multiple times in different ways—for instance, the media will expect a press release with the basic facts and perhaps a video or interview with the head of your organization. The general public will probably expect an announcement on your website and/or social media platforms. Your key leaders will need a briefing, and an explanation of where you have communicated information. Your employees will need an explanation from or on behalf of your leadership so they will understand what is happening.

Be Predictable

In a crisis, people need reliability and predictability. When you share information, do it the same way in the same format on the same channels each time you give an update. If your first update had a date and time, continue that practice. If you provide contact information in your update, make sure that contact information is either in a prominent location at the top of your feed or that you include it in all of your updates. If you are giving live updates, make sure the time and location are consistent. If you have to change the format or deliver information on a different platform, be sure to explain that to your audience in the original place you posted so they know where to go and what to expect moving forward.

Be Honest

Sometimes in a crisis you don’t know all of the answers, and no one expects that you will. If you don’t know the answer to something, say so. If you aren’t able to share information because you’re still gathering the facts, say that, and share what you do know. If the situation is still unfolding, communicate that fact and give whatever timeline you have available.

Again, we hope you don’t ever have to use these tips, but if you do find yourself in a crisis, remember to get the facts, establish your chain of command, know your stakeholders, be predictable and be honest.