crisis management

Pandemic-Proof Communications: Communicating Through Crisis Fatigue

Pandemic-Proof Communications: Communicating Through Crisis Fatigue

A raging pandemic. Social unrest. Racial inequality. Economic uncertainty. Political strife. The list goes on.

Right now, the impact on our world is profound and permanent. The question is, what does this new normal mean for businesses and how they communicate? A lot, and it has changed, or should change, how they speak with internal and external audiences. Don’t let the fear of saying the wrong thing silence your brand. Explore best practices around how to communicate with internal and external audiences during these uncharted times.

A Kentucky Fried Apology

A Kentucky Fried Apology

Have you ever thought about how your brand would react if something went wrong? The reality is, it's not a question of if, but a matter of when. Any effective crisis communications response includes a thoughtful apology.

Well, in February, bad news hit KFC as hundreds of UK-based franchises closed their doors when they ran out of their main ingredient: chicken. The apology was an instant hit among consumers, the media, and professional marketers, and it's easy to see why.

Firing Up the PR Machine

Firing Up the PR Machine

Does public relations really work? Yes, and there’s one simple reason: people trust, and share, news content in ways that they’ll never do with advertisements.

While news consumers don’t trust all news sources, everyone has at least a few outlets that they trust. Whether they’re trade publications, national newspapers, or online news resources, we each have go-to places for information about the world around us. 

The "Final Four" Public Relations Lessons

The "Final Four" Public Relations Lessons

Like many companies, Hencove gets into “March Madness.” Our annual pool has nearly 60 entrants – if you want an invite next year let us know – and plenty of research, hand-wringing, and let’s be honest, guessing, goes into completing our brackets. All of this hard work, and agony, has taught us two things: 1) We should stick to our day jobs, and 2) There are valuable marketing lessons to be learned from college basketball.

The People vs. Pharma: Reframing a Crisis

The People vs. Pharma: Reframing a Crisis

“Less hoodies, more lab coats,” said PhRMA President and CEO, Steve Ubl as he smirked at his clever delivery to CNBC anchors. In a crisis situation, companies have the options to stay silent, deny, counterattack or reframe. But, while pharma's reframing media strategy is clear, Ubl’s execution misfired.