We all lie – little white lies, half-truths, ones we make to keep the peace, etc. We get it. But when talking to your Crisis & Reputation Management team, it’s imperative not to lie.
Some people think that hiding the truth makes it easier for us to sell their story to the media and the public. And that’s not true. Lying will catch up to you–hurting your credibility as a result.
That’s why a good Crisis & Reputation Management person never takes anything at face value and always tries to get to the truth.
The worst situation is for anyone on your team to step in front of the media armed with half-truths and lies. You’ll lose your credibility in an instant.
My firm has more than half a century of experience. We guarantee you that lying and hiding info from your Crisis & Reputation Management firm is the worst thing you can do if you want to protect your credibility.
Why you should never hide the truth while working with a Crisis PR communications agency
Because we’re fixers. We can’t fix something without knowing WHY it’s broken. We need to know the truth so that we can mitigate your messy PR situation.
To give you an example, a reporter was putting together a hit report on a company. The company asked us to help and assured us that we’d been told all the info we needed. Then when we were in a meeting with the management, the reporter sent an email inquiring about a new allegation.
Turns out, they were hiding things from us. They explained by saying, “We were afraid if you knew the truth, it would make it harder to defend us.”
After putting all the pieces together and getting to the truth, we successfully mitigated the story’s impact somewhat, but not as much as if we had known the truth earlier.
How to help your PR expert protect your credibility
The moral is, if you need someone to defend your reputation, you’ve got to:
- Provide them with all the info you have.
- Answer all their questions honestly with complete transparency. Lying to your PR or legal team will hurt your case.
Only then can an effective crisis defense be built.
But why wait until a reporter digs up some dirt? Learn how to prepare and protect your credibility in A Board Member’s Guide to Crisis PR: Protecting You & Your Organization’s Reputation.
If you’re currently facing a PR crisis and need urgent help, call us at (310) 396-8696 for a 15-minute consultation with a member of our crisis control group.
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Gillott Communications
is a Los Angeles-based public relations firm that specializes in high-stakes Crisis & Reputation Management with more than 50 years of expertise in strategic communications, corporate public relations, and working with the media.
Follow us on Instagram and LinkedIn where we share amazing tips & best practices on how to prepare for crises, craft your message, and protect your hard-built reputation.