When a crisis breaks more and more people are beginning to turn to Twitter for answers than ever before. This means that Twitter is fast becoming a critical component in any company’s crisis communication strategy. Twitter is the perfect tool to use in a crisis because it enables you to communicate quickly to the public and to your target audience.
Companies can prepare for a crisis by creating a crisis communication plan. This plan will detail the steps that you should take to prepare for a crisis and how to respond and resolve a crisis effectively. All About Public Relations has provided some useful tips on how to use Twitter for crisis communication and how to include it in your crisis communication plan.
Educate your staff:
Before a crisis occurs it is essential to teach your staff about how Twitter works and how to use it appropriately. This ensures that as soon as a crisis breaks you can formulate a response and get it to your target audience via Twitter as soon as possible.
Make a plan in advance:
You should identify and plan for all the crises that you can foresee and even those that you would never expect. Some crises that may occur include natural disasters, product recalls, hazardous materials, customer complaints and many more. You should create a crisis communication plan that will detail what to do in the event of a crisis, who the spokesperson will be and what your initial response on Twitter will be.
Listen:
It is important to constantly listen and watch the conversations on Twitter. This will enable you to monitor the conversations about your brand/company and become aware of any negative issues that occur. As a result you can then pre-empt a potential crisis and formulate a better response.
Be Active:
Don’t wait for a crisis to occur before you start engaging with your audience. You should become an active part of the online community now. By creating a presence on Twitter you can develop a network of followers that you know shares an interest in you and your company.
Although Twitter is an effective tool to use in a crisis however, it should be one part of a broader crisis communication strategy.
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Sydney Public Relations Agency, CP Communications provides specialist media, traditional and online PR strategies that get amazing results. Contact us today. For more great tips visit our website www.cpcommunications.com.au.
