Brands are the public face of businesses, a social entity that expresses the values and commitments of that business while raising awareness of, and engagement with, the products and services it represents.
In the age of social media, brands are more ubiquitous than ever, and all the more crucial to business success.
But brands are a weak point for businesses, making them much more susceptible to measurable damage from knocks to reputation. In the event that a business suffers reputational damage, what are the steps to rehabilitation?
Assess the Damage
Before you begin to create any form of damage control programme, you should endeavour to establish the extent of the reputational damage suffered by your business. This will have to occur on a number of fronts, including both qualitative and quantitative analysis.
Reputational crises can harm a business in multiple ways. Customers may vote with their feet, resulting in an uncharacteristic fall in sales or customers on account; simultaneously, public backlash may be evident on social media platforms. How widespread are negative criticisms of the event or revelation in question?
Take Responsibility
In knowing the extent to which the business’ reputation has been harmed, you are better placed as a business leader to understand public, customer and stakeholder expectations of your business. On all fronts, there will be strong calls for ownership and responsibility; if your brand is directly responsible for the reputational damage, it is your responsibility to take responsibility ? and to make assurances that the situation is at hand.
This isn’t to say that you should ‘go public’ immediately. Indeed, the shrewd move is to remain quiet until a proper strategy has been drawn up ? more on which later. But here and now is a powerful place to understand the importance of addressing the crisis correctly.
Show Leadership
Managing a brand-damaging incident is not an easy thing, and even the most forthright of leaders will have considered distancing themselves from fault at one point or another. But ownership and leadership are precisely the qualities that can steer a brand out of controversy.
In navigating the response to the crisis, you should do your best to lead your teams with conviction. This will inspire confidence and trust internally, ensuring you get the best results from your workforce as you work to rectify the damage done.
Plan a Media Communication Strategy
While the behind-the-scenes work is underway to right the wrong ? whether through communication with an affected party, or procedural overhaul to close a loophole or illuminate oversights ? a public response is necessary to control public brand image. Liaise with a PR agency to chart the best course for this, and ensure that quantifiable commitments to change are included in your statement.
Deliver
Lastly, it is crucial that you deliver on any promises made, both internally and externally. Many reputational crises relate to management of equality, diversity and inclusion (EDI); securing the assistance of EDI support services ensure that legal precedents are followed, and robust procedures drawn up. In terms of crises relating to sustainability, discussion with ESG specialists will create avenues for proactive change.
