How to Manage Public Relations during Coronavirus Crisis

As cases after cases of Coronavirus are getting reported in the country and worldwide, many areas of life have been significantly impacted. And while this novel virus does present significant health risks, it also has many businesses worried about the impending downturn. 

Businesses are most likely to feel the impact on their bottom line as it becomes crucial for employees to self-isolate or put themselves under quarantine. Moreover, multiple cities and districts have already gone under complete lockdown, which means no one can step out of their homes anyway. 

During a crisis like this, communications strategies become more important than ever. As a PR agency in Delhi or any other part of the country, you have to maintain your calm, and keep open all channels of communication with stakeholders across the board. 

Here are some of the key steps that you can undertake to manage your public relations during the time of the Corona crisis. 

Also Read: How Mobile Phones can help to improve your Financial Condition

Have an up-to-date crisis communication plan 

Since most of us are now working from home, this is a great time to dust off that plan you had, and sit and review it with your entire team. When a crisis as big as this hit you, you will need all hands-on deck, and have a clear chain of command, along with backup plans, in case your co-workers or other stakeholders fall sick. Keep a note of things like PoC for decision-making related queries, media inquiries, phone numbers of key stakeholders, WFH policies, press releases, etc. Also, try and include a plan for how your PR agency is planning to continue with work amidst lockdown. This will help reduce any confusion later. And have all kinds of statements prepared beforehand. 

If you are a brand and don’t have a crisis communications plan in place, reach out to us for the best PR agency service in Delhi. 

Train your key spokespersons

Once you are done with your crisis plan, make sure it has been thoroughly communicated to all your employees and other key stakeholders. All your team members need to know the parts they are going to play once a crisis comes knocking. In addition to this, cross-train all your employees so that in case a member becomes suddenly unavailable, your plan doesn’t fall through the cracks. Create a bank of spokespeople, and train them well to field any sort of questions. And finally, to ensure there is no misinformation about your organization, clarify your media policy with your entire team.

Create a Dedicated Content Resource Bank for Coronavirus Updates

It pays to have a centralized page where you can put in all your coronavirus related updates. Considering creating a dedicated webpage or social media campaign where you can put out every update and development related to your brand or your PR agency during these times. Creating a landing page dedicated to providing information about the coronavirus and your mitigation efforts could be useful. Some of the information you can put out includes whether or not your employees or locations have been exposed, your contingency plans, your active efforts at reducing the spread, etc. 

The purpose of doing all these things is to reassure your clients and your employees that you are aware of the severity of the crisis and have plans to tackle it. Doing so will not only keep you on your toes but also help salvage your brand reputation in case a crisis was to hit during these times. Do not underestimate the power of effective crisis management and public relations. 

Moreover, at a time when PR agencies in Delhi, the rest of the country, and marketing professionals have been forced to work from home, there is a ripe opportunity waiting for all of us. The need of the hour is to utilize it and prepare for a world after Corona. How about asking your staff to double down on their efforts and approach every task with an innovative bent of mind? Maybe now is the time to push for that digital PR strategy you always wanted to implement. Or even train your staff to become more digitally-adaptable. 

As a PR agency, your job is to now streamline all your processes and get the maximum out of your team’s productive time. Get on calls every morning, allocate resources across departments, and don’t put a stop on your speed. Hit the ground running every day. Instead of de-boarding current clients, maybe figure out a way to work with them at reduced budgets, and also simultaneously chalk out innovative strategies to get better ROI during these times. That is key to surviving in the long run as well.

And remember, right now, there is much less competition, which means it is easier and faster to get results if you remain in the game. This will help you gain more control over your messaging in the future, and help you stand way ahead of your competitors later. The worst will soon be over, and the economy will eventually get back on its feet. All you need to do is be prepared, keep working hard towards coming out of this pandemic, and ensure your communication never stops.