Communication SkillsCommunicating When A Crisis Strikes |
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By: Robert F. Abbott How would you handle communication if your business or practice got into a crisis situation? I was pleasantly surprised when my Internet service provider responded competently and quickly to a recent crisis. And, we can learn to communicate more effectively by studying its response. The crisis occurred when hackers attacked its system at the same time that the company was upgrading its systems to meet increased customer demand. And while customers experienced no dramatic shutdowns, a number of dialup customers faced delays and difficulty getting online. In response, the company quickly sent out a newsletter containing a single article, an open letter from the president. First, the president acknowledged there had been a problem. And, the company took responsibility for the problem. While it attributed at least some of the problems to malicious hackers, it nonetheless took responsibility for the system's integrity. Most of us find it refreshing when a company steps up and does those two things. It communicates self-confidence and it communicates sincere concern for customers. All too often, organizations make poor excuses or point fingers at suppliers and customers; that just makes customers more dissatisfied. Second, the company apologized. In the first sentence of the article, the president said he was sorry for disruptions that subscribers had experienced over the preceding two weeks. By doing that he allowed his readers to get through the rest of the letter with less resistance. They weren't mentally concocting rebuttals - they were reading what he had to say. That's crucial any time you want to make an important point. Third, after taking responsibility and apologizing, the president explained what the company was doing to fix the system. His description of the fixes also took the right tack. He made no attempt to describe the technical nature of the fixes, nor did he try to impress us with how hard he and his people had worked. He simply explained that backup and warning systems were being put into place, and should prevent further outages from the same sources. Fourth, he promised that all dialup customers (the people most affected by the outages) would get two weeks of free service, to compensate for their inconvenience. That's an excellent way to communicate a company's sincerity. While the apology and acknowledgement would satisfy many customers, the offer of compensation underlined a genuine interest in customer satisfaction. So, this effective communication strategy had four parts: first, it acknowledged the problem and took responsibility for it; second, it offered an apology; third, it explained what it was doing to fix the problem; and fourth, it offered compensation to those who had been affected. Of course, simply communicating in a crisis situation won the company some recognition. And having communicated well made the initiative that much effective. In summary, crisis situations make special communication demands on organizations. This company rose to the occasion by not only fixing the problem, but also by communicating effectively with the people who were affected. To read another article, click here More communication resources...Want to make your writing more lively, more interesting, and more effective? Robert Abbott shows you three quick and easy techniques for achieving those goals, and as a result, getting better results. You get the techniques, a practice document, and an example document in one concise booklet.
One of my favorite resources on public speaking is a free newsletter that arrives by email -- Tom Antion's Great Speaking. Whether you're an experienced speaker/presenter or you're just getting started, this newsletter will help you.
Effective communication begins with a strategy. A plan and a statement that ensure you put your words into the right framework. How to Craft a Communication Strategy, guides you through the four steps involved in developing a strategy and a statement for the strategy. Want to know more? http://www.effective-communication.com/booklets.htm
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What do you need to know before you begin writing or designing your newsletter? Find the answers in A Manager's Guide to Newsletters: Communicating for Results, the response-focused newsletter book. It was written by Robert F. Abbott, who wrote most of the communication articles you've seen above.