A crisis rarely gives warning. Organisations that respond well are usually the ones that prepared before anything went wrong.
Map your likely risks
List the scenarios most likely to affect you — a service outage, a viral customer complaint, a data breach, a leadership issue — and agree who owns each.
Set up an escalation protocol
Define who monitors channels, who must be told, who approves statements and who speaks publicly. Keep contact details current and share the protocol with the team.
Prepare holding statements
Draft short, adaptable statements in advance that acknowledge the issue, show you are acting and promise an update. They buy you time to get the facts right.
Monitor and listen
Track mentions across social media and news so you spot issues early. Pay attention to sentiment, not just volume.
Communicate early, honestly and consistently
Silence fills with speculation. Share what you know, admit what you do not yet know, and update regularly through the same channels.
Review afterwards
Once things settle, review what worked and update your protocol. Talk to us about crisis communications.
Related: our PR & communications consultancy sets up crisis protocols, and our social media management team handles monitoring and community response.