Our Crisis Communications expert Nigel Hoggart looks at why relying on a backup IT solution, and a PR company to support your crisis communications is only half of the solution.

Oh, how we laughed - or did we cringe? It’s difficult to say. But one thing is certain: at many events, the presentation that consistently sparks conversation during the coffee break is the one on “Crisis Communications”. More specifically, the dreadful faux pas major organisations make when communicating during a crisis, often resulting in significant reputational damage.

There is no shortage of examples highlighting how poor communication and bad business practices have led to PR disasters. These presentations often serve as a stark reminder of the risks of getting the message wrong during a crisis. The key takeaway? Organisations must have the necessary skills and systems in place to avoid fundamental mistakes in their crisis messaging.

This call to action is effective. When contacting PR teams about crisis communications, the stock response is often, “We use a PR company for that.” While this may address the immediate skill gap, it’s worth probing deeper. Experience shows that crises evolve rapidly, and relying solely on an external agency can leave organisations vulnerable. Time waits for no one, and neither does a crisis.

The Comfort Blanket Analogy

In the 1990s, I worked for an IT disaster recovery company. When meeting with prospective clients, many had not considered the need for an IT recovery plan. Business continuity was a foreign concept to them. Their comfort blanket? “We have a back-up of our systems!”

These businesses felt reassured, yet their plans were often woefully incomplete. They hadn’t tested whether their back-ups worked, had no spare hardware to restore them, and lacked the necessary skills to perform a restoration. It felt good to have a plan, even if it wasn’t viable.

If you’ve ever tried to take a comfort blanket from a baby, you’ll understand the resistance. Similarly, convincing adults that their back-up plan wasn’t the full picture was a challenge - unless there was a compelling reason to change. The millennium bug (aka the Year 2000 or  Y2K problem) became that reason, prompting many organisations to implement a comprehensive IT continuity plan, ahead of the year 2000.

Today, the comfort blanket for crisis communications is, “We use a PR company for that.” However, the nature of risk has shifted. The challenge is no longer just about crafting the right message but ensuring the medium for delivering that message is secure and functional.

Evolving Risks in Crisis Communications

Modern threats are more insidious than the threat of the millennium bug. Cyber-attacks, ransomware incidents, or third-party supply chain failures regularly incapacitate IT systems, websites, and communication channels. These events happen so frequently that they often fail to make headlines, but their impact can be devastating. Customers, stakeholders, and partners expect organisations to handle interruptions with competence and transparency. Failure to meet these expectations can erode trust - even if the crisis itself isn’t headline news.

The comfort blanket of, “We use a PR company for that,” falls apart when organisations lose control of the channels needed to communicate with stakeholders. Relying solely on external PR agencies without owning and controlling a crisis communication platform is akin to having a back-up you’ve never tested - comforting, but insufficient when it matters most.

The Consequences of Not Controlling the Channel

Consider this scenario: a cyber-attack or a friendly-fire outage such as the CrowdStrike event in 2024 takes down your IT infrastructure, including your website, email servers, and a little-known device called the authentication server which kills access to both your desktops and laptops. How do you reach your audience? Without a dedicated, reliable communication channel, your carefully crafted crisis messaging remains undelivered, leaving stakeholders in the dark. The result? Confusion, frustration, and damage to your reputation that could take years to rebuild.

In today’s fast-paced digital landscape, organisations cannot afford to gamble with their communication capabilities during a crisis. Controlling your communication channels is as essential as the message itself. It’s not just part of the picture - it’s the canvas on which the masterpiece is painted.

Time to Rip Away the Comfort Blanket

The time to rip away the comfort blanket and take ownership of your crisis communication channels is now. Reputations take years to build but only minutes to destroy. Ensuring you have a dedicated, reliable platform to disseminate critical information during a crisis is no longer optional - it’s a necessity.

PressArea offers a cost-effective, online Media and Press Centre cloud service with dark site capabilities. This solution not only improves the productivity of your PR and media teams but also ensures you maintain control of a communication channel that remains operational during times of crisis or IT failure. By investing in such a platform, you’re not just preparing for a crisis; you’re safeguarding your organisation’s reputation for the long term.

If you fear your plan is a comfort blanket, contact our team at crisiscomms@pressarea.com and we'll be happy to discuss some simple steps to resolve the challenge.