Stories by Michelle Olson

If you don’t have a crisis communication plan with designated strategies, roles, actions and follow-up, you will be hopelessly behind before the trouble starts. What follows are tips to serve as guides to best practices, and, depending on your level of acquaintance with crisis management, I hope they are helpful as new ideas, refreshers, jumping-off points, a checklist or a combination.

We’re living in a time of company callouts. Companies are speaking more frequently on social and political issues because some customers want to purchase from, and partner with, businesses that take stands. Yet one wrong move and social media will blast a company for statements perceived as clueless or hypocritical.

Bosses are like dogs in the best ways, our writer argues. Like a dog filled with energy and curiosity, a CEO who is an interested and engaged communicator is more likely to try things outside traditional parameters and grow the company.

The coronavirus vaccines were supposed to bring an end to the pandemic. Yet vaccine resistance continues to claim a significant portion of the population. Former Porter Novelli president Bill Novelli says communication can work, but it must overcome politics, distrust and misinformation.

The author argues that post-pandemic communication should feature empathy, compelling digital experiences and positive messaging to induce behavior change.

We often forget what the letter R in PR entails. ‘PR is a relationship business’ flows off the tongue so smoothly we sometimes fail to think about the phrase’s meaning. In this post timed for Pride Month, UNC assistant professor Joseph Czabovsky discusses how the importance of relationships was cemented in his memory.

Some companies might have kept quiet about an early-morning internet outage. Instead, Fastly communicated consistently and clearly, offering updates on social. The result was that its version of things became the narrative. With the plethora of cyber attacks and data breaches, companies, especially service providers, should heed Fastly’s example of prompt, clear communication.

A healthy media-PR relationship is existential to the communication sector. Given that some publishers accept payment for placing thought-leadership articles, the business case for journalists is decreasing. As a result, PR pros should follow media relations best practices, assisting journalists as much as they can.

PRNEWS and sister brand, The Social Shake-Up, announced the winners and honorable mentions for the PRNEWS Digital & Social Media Awards, which honor the year’s most outstanding digital and social media communicators and their campaigns.

In some cases, companies remain ignorant about how to mark Pride Month. Thing is, there is no one correct way to do it. Take a stand, be authentic and engage queer members in your community and staff. No queer staffers? Begin there.