Crisis Communications: The Definitive Guide to Managing the Message

YOUR CRISIS IS UNIQUE

I always tell my clients that they can learn a lot by watching and analyzing other companies that are in crisis, especially competitors. (As that great philosopher Yogi Berra once said, “You can observe a lot by just watching.”) For one thing, if a company in your industry group suffers a crisis, could you be next? Figure it out and govern yourself accordingly.

But, make no mistake, even if what happened to your competitor happens to you, the two crises will not be identical. Every crisis is unique, and every crisis response must be unique. You will never succeed at managing your crisis by doing exactly what your competitor did. Each crisis must be managed on its own merits.

I run into this issue from time to time when I ...