CommCore Blog and News

United Airlines, Wells Fargo, Volkswagen and Uber are private sector examples of crisis and reputation issues that have erupted this year. Federal, state and local government agencies have had their share of troubles too – from state beach closings, to contractors being dismissed, to system breakdowns that impact tax payers.

What are the rules for preparing for a crisis in today’s fast-moving, viral social media world? What happens if an issue on your contract goes public? Are you and/or your clients prepared?

At CommCore we recommend applying our Three Fs formula should your company or client suddenly find itself in crisis:

1. Fast – The Twitter-verse and social media move in real time. CommCore CEO Andy Gilman counsels that the traditional “Golden Hour” for effective crisis response has shrunk to 15 minutes before trolls take over your messaging and go viral. Monitor, monitor, monitor.
2. Flexible – If a social media response is not in your interest, find alternative channels to build support: 3rd party endorsements by customers, investors, business partners, advocacy groups, regulators, or other stakeholders may help blunt a viral firestorm by taking up your cause.
3. Factual – The pejorative terms “alternative facts” and “fake news” have become part of our daily vocabulary. When responding to an inaccurate post or campaign, don’t gratuitously attack it as “false.” A tit-for-tat, head-on argument only inflames trolls; just state the facts as you see them.

CommCore has worked with contractors on crisis plan creation and audits, simulations, and crisis response media training.  CommCore recently spoke for the National Association of Government Communicators on the 3Fs of Crisis.