Public Relations: Networking in Crisis Communication
Of course, one thing that is always certain in our lives is transition. When we grow as individuals, time and place often comes to separate us from those we once knew, and the things we became familiar with. We move from neighbourhood to neighbourhood, high school to college, or occupation to occupation. When our plans and purposes change, we are naturally forced to re-adapt and build new identities within a community and acquaint ourselves with new people.
However, these new phases in life can present some very real and complex challenges. We face the challenge of “fitting-in” with a group of new people. Or we may face the challenge of connecting with a group of people who are similar to us or who we are comfortable with. Sure, it can be quite the struggle. But it is a valuable life lesson that tells us to change, adapt, and advance. It is the essential basis of learning to “network”.
What Is Public Relations?
Networking is the integral part of public relations. But to come to a better understanding, we must focus on exactly what public relations is. Sure, some consider it to be “the nurturing and creation of lasting relationships with the publics; It is a way to build a much more personal and engaging relationship with clients as opposed to traditional advertising and marketing.” At the surface, this point is correct, but when you look deeper, the true meaning of PR is much more than that. Respectively, it is made up of two parts; “publicity” and “relationships.” Your goal is a “relationship”, and “publicity” is how you obtain it.
The last time you transitioned to a new phase in your life, how did you build new relationships? How did you network? Well it is likely that you did not just present yourself to anyone. You did not just say hello and “be my friend.” It took time to develop. It may have started directly with one person who had similar interests. But the network itself was created indirectly. The network was created through those who knew this person or who they were connected with. The same scenario applies to business. Only an organization’s audience and client base is built through a network of frequent referrals.
Crisis communication is a sub-specialty of the public relations profession that is designed to protect and defend an individual, company, or organisation facing a public challenge to its reputation. Crisis communication is aimed at raising awareness of a specific type of threat, the magnitude, outcomes, and specific behaviors to adopt to reduce the threat.
The communication scholar Timothy Coombs defines crisis as “the perception of an unpredictable event that threatens important expectancies of stakeholders and can seriously impact an organisation’s performance and generate negative outcomes” and crisis communication as the collection, processing, and dissemination of information required to address a crisis situation. Meaning can be socially constructed; because of this, the way that the stakeholders of an organization perceive an event (positively, neutrally, or negatively) is a major contributing factor to whether the event will become a crisis.
Likewise, it is important to separate a true crisis situation from an incident. The term crisis should be reserved for serious events that require careful attention from management.
Crisis management has been defined as a set of factors designed to combat crises and to lessen the actual damages inflicted. Crisis management should not merely be reactionary; it should also consist of preventative measures and preparation in anticipation of potential crises. Effective crisis management has the potential to greatly reduce the amount of damage the organization receives as a result of the crisis, and may even prevent an incident from ever developing into a crisis.
Therefore, Public relations is a crisis discipline. The role of PR is to manage conflicts and protect the image of the organisation – when good policies/practices go wrong then PR will not help to protect the image of the organisation. Crisis will always come.
ASC HARUNA ISA, IS A CORRECTIONAL OFFICER FROM ZONAL HEADQUARTERS ZONE ‘C’ BAUCHI. HE CAN BE REACHED VIA [email protected]
