Crises can range; one extreme example is COVID-19. The global pandemic caught businesses unprepared with no plan or strategy to navigate the changes. Organizations should be more equipped for internal crises though, in the event their servers get hacked, there’s an office fire, or private customer information is leaked.

Crisis management and communication aims to minimize the negative risk impacts and maximize the potential opportunities that times of difficulty often present.

In order to become a successful public relations manager, you need to include risk prevention and preparation in your crisis management strategy. Without this, threats will escalate to crises, and brands and businesses will potentially fail to save their reputations from becoming tarnished.

Want to become a valuable public relations manager?

The Public Relations (PR) online short course from the University of Cape Town (UCT) equips you with the latest PR management best practices for the digital age. Over the course of eight weeks, you’ll learn how to manage a brand, business, or individual, build influential relationships, and plan for crisis management.

University of Cape Town (UCT)
Public Relations (PR) online short course

Below are five key steps to setting up a crisis management plan:

1. Start your crisis management plan by identifying potential risks

• Identify potential crises for your brand
• Conduct an internal vulnerability audit
• List best-case/worst-case scenarios
• Develop holding statements and responses
• Practice social listening actively
• Locate customer dissatisfaction

2. Define your communication guidelines

Communication is key within a crisis. The future of work is changing to be more technology-heavy and that includes digital communication. As a PR professional you’ll need to navigate various platforms, channels, and audiences. Generally, be sure all messaging addresses:

By having these planned out ahead of time, you’ll be able to act swiftly in a crisis.

3. Have a set of key actions for implementing your crisis management plan

“It’s important that the organization is able to react fast and speak with one voice, which is difficult to achieve when multiple people begin to speak on its behalf,” says Evan Nierman, founder of Red Banyan, which specializes in strategic communications and crisis PR.²

In times of crisis, key actions include an ability to:

– Address perceptions. The gravity of a crisis is directly proportional to the public’s perception of it, rather than to what has actually happened.

– Listen to the people who are complaining. It’s very important to try to understand what is making people concerned before you address the issue. 

– Tune in emotionally. You need to know how to interpret the public’s mood. Communication should not be treated as an impersonal means for spreading ideas.

– Reason from your client’s point of view. Make it clear that the company is defending the interests of the people it serves.

– Distinguish between law and public opinion. It’s best to have both legal advisers and communication experts on hand to determine what is right and what is legal.

4. Establish notification and monitoring systems

Be aware of conversations taking place online and in the media to understand what topics are being discussed and how they relate to your brand. Consistent monitoring allows you to see the crisis coming by always being on the lookout for it.

Figure out where the conversations are happening and address it there. If someone speaks up on a different platform, redirect them to where you’re talking about the crisis.

5. Identify and know your stakeholders

Campaigns and communication strategies depend on how involved stakeholders are in the process.

“Whatever the strategy is, the company must relay protocol to any and all persons who could be approached to speak on their behalf,” says Sabrina Gault, CEO of Konnect Public Relations. “This means informing all employees, stakeholders, board members, etc., of who is to be speaking with [the] media and how they are to direct any inquiries. This will save the company from having to explain comments from any unofficial company representatives later.” ³

As stakeholders will be discussing the matter with others, you want to ensure that they are well-prepared with a cohesive message to share.

6. Test, execute, and review your crisis management plan

Publicist Josh Wilson, former communications director in the U.S. House of Representatives, stresses the importance of having a plan and reviewing the details.⁴

Constantly test your plan to ensure you have every potential crisis covered. Understand that your risk management strategy is a living, breathing document that you need to constantly adapt and rework. Start building a crisis strategy for your brand or business today.

Download this PR communication crisis template to prepare for a crisis.

The post The Ultimate PR Crisis Management Plan appeared first on GetSmarter Blog.

With such a large number of events taking place each year, and the hundreds of hours need to produce each one, the event planning industry presents many events management opportunities for those aspiring to enter the field.

If you’re someone who is creative, organised and loves people, events management could be a great career path for you.

Want the skills to stand out as an events planner?

Find out how the UCT Events Management online short course will give you the ultimate events planning advantage.

GET AHEAD

The post Why event planning and management is a good career | FAQs appeared first on GetSmarter Blog.

Event planning and management is a very competitive field, and prospective events managers require a unique combination of skills and qualities in order to succeed.

Some of these skills come naturally, but others are acquired by formal training. These skills include financial management, project management and effective people management and are essential to plan and execute an event successfully.

In this short video, Mandy Mulder, Head Tutor on the UCT Events Management online short course and experienced events manager, gives insight into the key skills needed to begin a successful career as a wedding planner.

Transcription

A wedding planner needs to love working with people, they need to be bubbly and friendly, but also professional. Strong organisational and time management skills are a prerequisite as is the ability to think on your feet and multitask. Wedding planners should have a creative side to them and be interested in design and décor trends and stay abreast of these at all times. They should be innovative and be able to think outside the box because being different is what will set you apart from the competition, especially in a competitive industry. Building relationships is also a vital skill to learn, be it with suppliers, venues or clients. Having good relationships will get you over the line very time. I think the key word is commitment – if you’re committed to the job at hand you’ll make it work.

The post The skills needed to become a wedding planner | FAQs appeared first on GetSmarter Blog.

[bctt tweet=”Ask any Wedding Planner how they started in the industry – each will have a different answer. ” username=”getsmarter”]

The skills you’ll learn on an event management course to help you become a Wedding Planner:

1. Successful Wedding Planners are able to manage resources
Skills you’ll learn with an event management course includes financial management and people management. This is because proper budgeting and good staff motivation always contribute to the smooth running of the event.

2. Professional Wedding Planners are always team players
This is vital, as a successful event depends on the effective use of team skills. An Events Manager must ensure that each member of their team is performing the task that makes the best use of their skills. Project management skills are important when keeping the team on track towards the overall event goal.

3. Wedding Planners need to be good communicators and inspirational leaders
An Events Manager must be able to share their vision and ideas with their team. They must be approachable and receptive to new ideas and criticism. With the development of good communication, Event Managers can also improve their leadership abilities, and inspire their team members to work together.

4. You need to be a networker to become a well-known Wedding Planner
A successful Events Manager is personable and has the ability to connect with and understand people from different backgrounds. This helps them to build relationships with future clients and sponsors. These relationships could become a valuable resource for planning future events.

5. Make sure you’re able to stay calm under pressure as a Wedding Planner
The manager must be able to react quickly if things do not run as planned on the day of the event. This requires considerable resourcefulness and creativity, but is also linked to proper planning. Planning and process will allow you to have the foresight to put alternative plans in place in case things don’t run smoothly on the day of the event.

In this short video Mandy Mulder, Head Tutor on the UCT Events Management online short course gives insight into how you can begin your Wedding Planner career and how an event management course could give you the edge you need.

Transcription

If you asked 10 different Wedding Planners how they got started in the industry, you’ll more than likely get 10 different answers, and that’s because there isn’t really a clear cut path to becoming a Wedding Planner. There’s no specific certification required or course to study. Obviously, my advice to those wanting to get started in the industry, is to get some form of undergraduate degree or diploma if possible under your belt in a field like PR, marketing, business management, etc. Then to complete a course in event management or wedding planning. These courses will give you the practical tools and the confidence you need to go out and actually start planning weddings. Like everything in life, the more hands-on experience you get, the more successful and better you’ll become at what you do. When starting out, get stuck into volunteering at a wedding company or working for a catering company at weddings, etc. This will give you a foot in the door and the on-site experience you need.

The post How to become a wedding planner with an event management course | FAQs appeared first on GetSmarter Blog.