Crisis Communication Tips

Adapted from the Center for Disease Control (CDC)'s Crisis and Emergency Risk Communication Guide and Peter Sandman by the U.S. Army Center for Health Promotion and Preventive Medicine (USACHPPM), and provided to support those communicating with the public, this brief point-by-point summary gives 15 tips for formulating one's own behaviour and communication in a crisis. In an abbreviated form, they are:

1. Participate in a crisis and/or risk communication course before you find yourself in a crisis situation. 
2. Don’t over-reassure. The objective is not to placate but to elicit accurate, calm concern about the situation.
3. Tell people what to expect. If you are aware of future negative outcomes, let people know.
4. Acknowledge uncertainty. Offer only what you know. Show your distress and acknowledge your audience’s distress.
5. Emphasise that a process is in place to learn more. Describe the process in simple terms.
6. Be regretful, not defensive. Say, “We are sorry …” or “We feel terrible that …” when acknowledging misdeeds or failures from the organisation. Don’t use “regret,” which sounds like you’re preparing for a lawsuit.
7. Acknowledge people’s fears.
8. Acknowledge the shared misery.
9. Express wishes. Say, “I wish we knew more,” or “I wish our answers were more definitive.”
10. Adopt a policy of full disclosure about what is and not known.
11. Panic doesn’t come from bad news, but from mixed messages. Candour protects your credibility and reduces the possibility of panic, because your messages will ring true.
12. Understand and be sensitive to the culture of the audience.
13. Be willing to address the “what if” questions.
14. Give people things to do. Give people a choice of actions matched to their level of concern.
15. Ask more of people. Ask people to bear the risk and work toward solutions with you.