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JOHNA BURKE: Hello, this is Johna Burke with BurrellesLuce, and I’m here at the PR News Media Relations Summit. I’m joined by John.
John, will you please introduce yourself?
JOHN DEVENEY: Absolutely. Hi, Johna. John Deveney with Deveney Communications, based in New Orleans.
BURKE: John, you know, you talked about spokespersons in a crisis. Can you please share those top tips for people in a media relations position when they might find themself in that position?
DEVENEY: Absolutely. You know, there’s a lot of elements to your response in a crisis situation, and media is always so crucial to your public image and communicating with the publics that are important to you. But in a crisis, it’s even more important. Some of the things that are important is how an organization responds. And one of the things I shared with the group here is what I call the four hard C’s of your media response. First one is Quick. You need to make sure that you respond quickly, that you’re one of the first people out, even if you don’t know all the answers. Tell the publics that are important to you what you do know and what you’re doing to find out more. Let them know when they’re going to hear back from you. So the first one is Quick.
The second one is Candid. The ability for humanity to forgive mistakes and errors is tremendous, but they expect to be dealt with honestly. The best thing an organization can do is to be candid in their response. Certainly there’s sensitive, private or proprietary information that can’t be shared. But especially in a crisis, be candid. Make sure that you’re giving the information that you’re able to give and, again, give it as quickly as possible.
The third hard C is Context. Let people know how the situation fits into a bigger picture. Who is your organization? What’s its role within the community?
And the fourth hard C is–there’s Quick, Candid, Context, and the fourth hard C is Consistent. Make sure that you’re consistent in your information. If you tell people you’re going to have a briefing every day at 4:00, make sure you’re there every day at 4:00. Frequently when people don’t have new information to share, they cancel it. But go out and tell people, “This is what we know. No new information. These are the organizations or the authorities we’re working with.”
BURKE: John, and you are definitely a consistent PR and communications leader, and we appreciate your efforts in that area. Where can people find you online and in social media?
DEVENEY: Sure. Thanks, Johna. They can find me at www.deveney.com. That’s D-E-V-E-N-E-Y-dot-C-O-M.
BURKE: Thanks so much, John.
To summarize: Just because there was an upswing in the first two quarters of the year, does not mean the industry has truly emerged from the downturn.
