Be prepared to expect the unexpected

Cliff 2AND THERE’S MOORE…

 

by Cliff Moore, Account Director, Deep South Media

 

A friend of mine is standing for Parliament in the forthcoming General Election.

I won’t mention his name or constituency for being associated with me may well harm his chances of being elected.

Suffice to say he has lived in his area for a number of years, is a respectable family man with children and holds down a solid career.

He has built up his reputation carefully and has taken on various political party roles as well as being immersed in the world of volunteering.

It’s unlikely he has a closet, never mind any skeletons contained therein.

In short, he’s a good egg who seems ideally placed to do well.

And that set me thinking – what if he actually topped the poll?

What if he actually became a Member of Parliament?

What if he suddenly found himself with a host of new responsibilities overnight?

His world would be turned completely upside down.

This is, of course, something that happens to a great many people and, indeed, companies.

For individuals the great change may be caused by, among other things, bereavement, a loss of work or a house move.

With regard to businesses, it is more likely to be some sort of out-of-the-blue incident that knocks everything off kilter.

And that could quite easily turn into a fast-moving, full-blown crisis that threatens reputations and livelihoods.

Would you know how to respond if your business became involved in a serious situation?

One would hope so, but what about dealing with the media? Are you prepared for a press pack relentlessly haranguing you for answers or social media rumours spiralling out of control?

This is where Deep South Media steps in.

Our 24/7, 365 one-stop shop crisis response team is there to provide media expertise when the proverbial hits the fan, leaving you more time to deal with everything else.

DSM’s experts can be there to professionally advise and reassure – and take over media communications immediately.

So, if urgent help is needed it is always at hand.

But it is always better to prepare for the worst and have an embedded plan of action for when the unthinkable – be it an incident, accident or even a crime – happens unexpectedly.

At Deep South Media we work with clients to focus on that awful worst case scenario and provide emergency response protocols (ERPs, yes, an acronym) to prevent a crisis from becoming a disaster.

These detailed processes for communication with the media, the public, staff and other interested parties give your senior managers a place to turn when disaster strikes.

Good media communications will not, of course, make your crisis go away, but when a microphone is being pressed under your nose or Twitter and Facebook are going bananas, good ERPs will stop it becoming deeper.

And as for my prospective MP friend, well, help could be at the end of the phone for him, but I guess he may be a little preoccupied for a little while yet…