As Andy mentioned in his post a few weeks ago, knowing how to communicate during a crisis is important for every business to have an understanding of. Based on the Nine Steps of Crisis Communication that the Center for Disease Control included in their Crisis and Emergency Risk Communication binder, we would like to provide a brief insight into how communicators can best respond during a crisis.

Communicators should first verify the situation. It’s important for you to get the facts, clarify information through subject matter experts and attempt to understand the scope of the situation.

Second, you need to conduct notifications. You should carefully consider who should be notified throughout your organization.

Third, conduct a crisis assessment. Determine what other agencies/ organizations should be involved in solving the crisis. Determine which of your stakeholders are being affected by the crisis.

Fourth, organize assignments. Determine who has various responsibilities, if they are fulfilling them and what resources are needed. Determine which partner organizations should be involved in solving the crisis.

Then, prepare information and obtain approvals. Develop messages, keeping in mind who your audiences are, letting them know what is being done about the crisis and what they need to do.

Next, release information to media, public and partners through arranged channels. Keep in mind which questions the media will likely ask. When talking with the media, ensure that you present the facts and explain how they can obtain more information about the situation.

Next, obtain feedback and conduct crisis evaluation. Compile and analyze media coverage, present results to leadership and determine what improvements should be made to the crisis plan for the future.

Then, conduct public education. Determine what changes to public information need to be made and how they could best be delivered.

Lastly, monitor events. Continue to monitor public opinions.

TVG prefers to add a tenth step to the crisis communication response process. We think it is imperative that after a crisis you reflect on the lessons learned. Consider the lessons you and those in your organization have learned and ensure that those lessons maintain their level of importance within the organization. For example, NASA learned from the 1986 Challenger explosion that Americans expect to be spoken to openly with sufficient information and for corporations and organizations to recognize when they make mistakes. NASA was better prepared with a crisis communications plan 17 years later during the Columbia disaster and was able to respond much more effectively.