All about communication policies and reputation crisis management

When you need to create a company there are fundamental legal aspects to take into account so that this functionme. An example of this can be the rules that are strengthened in the face of partners or investors. However, it is very common for companies to take care of the outside but not the inside. And by that I mean the lack of creation of internal communication policies that help prevent future problems.

Its the departments of human Resources who must ensure that this policy exists and for this reason, in this article we explain what its function is and How to manage a reputation crisis if necessary.

It may interest you: Master in Human Resources

What is communication policy?

communication policy It is a manual of functions established by the human resources department and the management, where the goals that the company wants to achievein order to define the work methodology.

In addition, also the internal and external activities carried out by the company are definedand that they should be public knowledge.

Some of the aspects that must be specified in the communication policy are:

1. Internal communication: In this section, workers are encouraged to communicate with their respective bosses, colleagues and subordinates in a constructive way that adds value to the company.
2. External communication and social networks: Establishes the treatment in communication facing the outside. This in order to prevent inadequate or inaccurate information from arriving, generating misunderstandings and possible legal causes.
3. Use of corporate devices: At this point the rules about the use of mobile phones and portable devices both in the company and outside it are established.

By last, what this is a policy seeks is to consolidate a communicative culture and behaviors that support corporate objectivesthus, in case of internal or external conflicts that directly affect the company, such as a reputational crisis.

What is a reputation crisis?

One of the most serious problems an organization can encounter is with a reputation crisis. Faced with this problem, have established a communication policy, You can help us manage it in the best way possible.

We can speak of a reputation crisis when, as a result of some error in the company, it obtains a negative image, causing its reputation to be affected.

With the appearance of social networks, reputation crises have warnedJust bad reviews about a red-checked product or organization can quickly be seen and shared by thousands of people, causing the bug to spread so fast that it can’t be rectified in time.

Reputation crises can happen because of:

• negative comments in social networks towards the organization and its services.
• Mentions that involve an attack on third parties.
• Mistakes made for the organization that go viral before they can be rectified.
• loss of transparency in addition to data and organization management.
• generate a lot UNWANTED MAIL It can tire the consumer/user/client, and it can be cause for complaint.

How to manage a reputation crisis

Front has a crisis of reputation, it is very important try to solve the problem as quickly as possible, to avoid viral infection. In the event that this is not possible and some users have begun to comment, you should reply as politely as possible, without losing your temper, and facing the problem.

• remember that the customer (consumer) is always rightand should never be treated in a bad way.
• If you already see yourself involved in the problem, do not deny the facts, or delete comments of the user. Freedom of expression is a right, and you should not go against a user’s opinion.
• you are forbiddenmake threats or mention that legal action will be taken or disqualifications for their comments.

Therefore, in the face of a reputation crisis, we must act quickly, respond to comments and try to calm the user with good manners, either by telling them that the problem has been solved, that they are right and that they are fixing it..

Examples of how to manage a reputation crisis

If we end up with a legal disaster in the face of a reputational crisis, you already have some examples of good reputational crisis management.

Case 1: Zara

Zara learned that in 2014 a reputation crisis was managed, as a result of one of these shirts (image).

This company made and brought to the market a striped t-shirt with a star of the type worn by cowboys in western movies. What they did not imagine when the shirt went on sale, is that someone compared it to one of the shirts worn by the Jews in the Nazi era in the concentration camps.

As a result of the negatives that the shirt had, Zara left the market and released a statement, alleging that at no time had the concentration camps been thought of to make the T-shirt, but rather jeans, since one or two seasons ago, cowboy-style clothing had become fashionable. In this case, Zara did well, since it abandoned the product from the market and knew how to respond to criticism.

Case 2: Donuts

The case of the Donnettes food company was very similar. It all started with the “Don’t Touch My Donnettes” campaign.

This campaign referred to the non-sharing of these buns with others, but with catchy phrases a little conflicting such as: “Sharing my body but not my Donnettes”, “sharing can severely damage our friendship”, among others.

The slogan that ended the most controversy was “Ask the subway”, which caused one of the users to react on twitter. This criticized that such sensitive issues should not appear in marketing campaigns. Instantly, the tweet had hundreds of retweets and was going viral..

Donnettes acted fast and responded to everyone’s first tweet, saying that their input was being taken into account and a solution was being sought. solution. Finally the company decided to abandon the sale of all the Donnettes with the campaign “I don’t get the Donnettes”.

Legal consequences of the crisis of reputation

We found few reputational crises that could not be easily managed and had to resort to legal means to solve them. Still, it is important to look at the volkswagen company and the biggest reputational crisis he has ever had to face.

According to this BBC news, the company confirmed that it had modified engines and that they could have sold more than 11 million vehicles worldwide that polluted 40% more than they should.

Faced with this type of reputational crisis, It is not enough to make a statement or respond to messages on social networks that the problem is resolved, but in this case, it could be considered fraud and breach of contract. Therefore, those affected could go to court to claim compensation for damages, since the check does not meet the requirements established in the contract, but could bring consequences such as:

• Lower value of the car when selling it.
• The mayor costs fuel.
• Back to ITV
• Higher costs in parking meters.

Volkswagen had a hard time regaining the trust of its customers and has been violated for years in this crisis.

The communication policy is important to provide value and trustnot only to the workers and people that make up the organization, but also to the users/customers/consumers about the products and services.

If you want to know about personal management and corporate policies, we invite you to participate Master in Human Resources En el que prenderás has adopted more innovative business communication models and is able to effectively manage individual or collective conflicts.