3 ways to quell bad news

When responding to a crisis, your level of preparation will make all the difference. Consider this advice on how to stay authentic from industry insiders and crisis veterans.

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Bad things happen.

Some issues are a blip on the radar. Other crises focus a powerful magnifying glass on the heart of your organization. As communicators, we strive to tell positive, empowering stories for our clients. What do you do when the news tips the scale the other way?

One recent example familiar to many is Tide laundry detergent from Procter & Gamble. Tide had the best of intentions in mind as its R&D team designed a heavily-concentrated, single-packet detergent which is dissoluble in water. What they didn’t expect was a wave of children accidentally—and some teenagers intentionally—eating the (initially) candy-colored pods.

In watching this crisis unfold, communicators and consumers alike asked: What should Tide do? A simple product design gone awry became a trending topic on Twitter and a huge driver of concerned conversation.

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