If you haven’t seen it yet, there’s a video floating around social media, which shows a bakkie (pick-up truck) pushing a fishing boat out to sea. Waves completely overwhelm the driver, submerge and overturn the vehicle. We couldn’t help but see the metaphor here, in the importance of crisis communication.
For us, this video represents the perfect example of a crisis, an unexpected situation, where the stakes are high, the options seem limited and immediate action is required; the result could not only threaten but be fatal to a business. Of course, the waves were not under the driver’s control, but had he assessed the situation differently, and prepared, the outcome could have been completely different!
Our Crisis Communication Workshops and Training can teach you how to anticipate the waves, helping you outline possible crisis scenarios, teach you how to mobilise for them and implement a system that ensures that no matter how rough the sea gets, you and your team are prepared.
A less metaphorical example, would be the recent storm surrounding the H&M brand, for their controversial image of a black child model wearing a hoodie which reads, “the coolest monkey in the jungle”. It caused outrage on social media, triggering international celebrities to completely denounce their support of the brand.
It even sparked protests at local stores in Durban and Johannesburg!
This is an example of how quickly things can ‘go south’ without crisis communication skills, especially in the connected age of social media and technology.
Another recent example of how a crisis can have a significant impact on the financial health of a company is the unexpected report issued by Viceroy Research on Capitec.
Regardless of which company is right or wrong, Capitec has had to deal with immense media and customer fallout, a muted share price response and loads of investment analysis nodding their heads in unison with Viceroy.
To find out more about how you can rock the world of Crisis Communication or Public Speaking and Presentations, drop us an email.
Cool quote: We’ll leave you with one last thought from Miguel de Cervantes, “To be prepared is half the victory.”
Note: We’ll be doing training in Africa in the first quarter of 2018, let us know if you need some Media Skills or Public Speaking and Presentation Skills Training.
