60 Minutes is at the door, are you ready to defend your brand?

The business world is uncertain, risky and forever changing, it’s no surprise that your brand will probably face some rocky roads throughout its lifetime, along with a little uninvited media attention. Whether due to a natural disaster, a product recall, a competitor’s maneuver, bad judgment, a customer complaint or some other factor, your brand strength could be put to the test when you least expect it.

Brand shakeups happen every day and then the spotlight is on the brand and the surrounding events and players. The media, your stakeholders, your employees and customers will be demanding answers and assurance that you are handling things in the right way.

No brand is immune. An entrepreneurial start-up, an individual brand or big organization can get beat up without warning.

So when brands go bad, what separates the survivors from the big losers, the sustainable ones, from the forever broken ones?

It’s not what hits a brand upside the head but rather how they get back in the game that matters. I’ve watched and researched brands from around the world, big and small when they are tested. And I’ve seen common actions that I call brand turnaround game changers. These actions can bring brands-even in the worst place-back to glory.

Should your number be called and you find your brand on the hot seat, take responsibility and follow these actions. Your road to recovery will be smoother and you can prevent long-term damage.

To illustrate a brand-shaking situation, let’s pretend your employees or a vendor did something crazy, broke the law, dismissed ethical practices or made a big mistake, and the word is out. It’s on the news and being talked about in social media. What should a smart brand do?

During this trying time, you must own up and take control of the situation. This doesn’t mean to admit guilt or make excuses, but it means that you should take timely responsibility and demonstrate sound actions toward finding solutions to the situation.

As much as you might want to go into hiding and reply with, “No comment,” you must stay present, with confident communications and poise, so the public and your stakeholders do not lose their trust in you or your brand and further negative consequences are contained.

Bad things happen to good brands. You can let an unfortunate event kill your brand or you can recover quickly from the event by taking these steps.

o Take an inventory of the situation, before you speak.

o Acknowledge the facts, and that you and your team is actively seeking solutions.

o Build a clear narrative that reflects your brand essence and is relevant to the situation.

o Decide what venues are best to tell your story.

o Apologize, when appropriate.

o Select the most effective voice for your brand.

o Leverage the best impression.

o Keep the message positive and honest.

o Manage the media; don’t let the media manage you.

Avoiding the situation will further the suspicion and possibly result in more negative publicity for your brand. Also, remember the more high profile the brand is, the higher expectations will be on all fronts.

To start, stay present. This means taking ownership. Do this in a diplomatic way, demonstrating empathy and concern for all stakeholders, including employees, the community, your customers and those involved in the situation.

Remember the media can be your friend and is a powerful tool that can heavily influence public opinion. Leverage journalists, news sources and technology from the get-go. First impressions depicted by the media are key here, so think carefully before you answer any questions or attempt to explain anything. And because of the Internet, remember that anything you say or do can be kept on record and visible to the public for many years to come.

Choose an outlet that best represents your brand and how to address the problem. Is it a press conference, written and/or verbal statements, social media or other Web resources, radio, TV or some other outlet? Your venue of choice should be based on the event and the magnitude of the initial brand shakeup. But you should also be sensitive to current market conditions and other news, and how your story fits in with those.

Be sure that your website and social media channels have current information regarding the shakeup and the steps you’re taking to fix what has gone wrong. You can even create a microsite dedicated solely to this purpose.

The communications voice should match your brand and reflect the tone for your plan of attack and recovery. Know your audience, build your starting narrative, craft a compelling story and speak the truth. Be sure not to make false promises or have an unrealistic positive outlook if you do not have supporting facts.

Most importantly, show that you’re committed to doing whatever it takes to tackle the situation. As I said before, any kind of avoidance, delayed response or blame game could potentially raise doubts and questions in regards to the values and credibility of your brand.

At the same time, know when to fold. There may come a point when you have done everything you can and now need to remove your brand’s presence from the public radar screen and get back to your business.

This article is based on content from Karen Post’s latest book Brand Turnaround (McGraw-Hill 2011).

Known by many as the Brand Diva®, Karen Post is an international branding/marketing expert, professional speaker and author. She helps individuals; businesses and nonprofits around world succeed with powerful, distinct brands.
renet
biznetnetworks
kredits-life-me
austrac
cyberblvd
undispatch
ltv
smm-borabora
piedmont
kozminski
vitkovice
ipi
kedem
simpsonswiki
eiga-manga
changan
sands
aspheute
spotad
hottwf
bestereviews
beoplay
uihealthcare
cutleryandmore
inextapi
parkvia
togetherasfamily
unidosus
satko
bankersonline
clearygottlieb
theicegarden
heartland
xisto
ceresource
blago-host
goutsa
aibang
wickliffegdc
esajournals
fri3d
centure
trustexporter
burmistr
livelarq
astra-uk
nacpharmpalata
plugpower
worldofbooks
vanlanschot
tensorcharts
golance
flot2017
brainfm
ufx
skatewarehouse
evolvingtable
probiteblog
makingtheworld
turkvideos
gonines
logisticshealth
canadianpharmacyhopemeds
gravis
moore
puplense
flashbackrecorder
picz
zyxware
aenor
universidadeuropea
saasoptics
nosi
equalexchange
ottawa-future
infarmed
provider
1245inc
dubai-online
komatsu
ms
defensedaily
kunstmuseumbasel
cloudns
buyanafranil
mega
finedictionary
eveningtribune
hinditracks
theconversioncloud
jmnet
gaming-curacao
droemer-knaur
penlighten
gruffcombat
thoibaotaichinhvietnam
popunderstar
sekainojump
subhosting
znanija
xfreehosting
smarthr
me
tron80
gonimble
hbe
rozup
dakoang
couchmonkeymedia
airport
pushkinmuseum
awardsworldwide
padovanet
cialisst
avanpad
letscast
cinema4up
fukuokabank
cloudonestats
bcbsri
tads
corian
bazel
ski
britishecologicalsociety
ukladkaplitki45
tct-supportcenter
byhealthmeans
baikal-ttk
hwcloudtest
hokkaido-c
elsevar
euro-net
commondataplatform
snowfl
palaciospictures
shuxiangjia
chouftv
bitterwinter
mymeditravel
gamesight
hotbot
makarem
altnet
xvapp02
destinytrialsreport
celebros
lithia
babbledabbledo
save-on-crafts
uber
sterkinekor
vetmedstat
amway
ldp
listotic
tuffsocial
darntough
startupitalia
goloskarpat
sonicfoundry
aptsolutions
miriam
suknia
photoworkout
ocsny
foratelecom
fnu
goodr
rebellion
9871
zierer
regtld
circuitbasics
audiophilestyle
nytech
dltk-holidays
mybest-sarl
blaze
orange-new-black
spring-tns
priamovverh
bf-easy-webhosting
ezeizai5104
free-software
minimafia
baumer
ihsdnsx45
supportpoint
brokerage-review
cdnawm
masiro
flyzipline
gtm-i1d3
epragathi
durs
ihp-services
365vips
kzac51-resources
nextdoorstudios
mitec
hellofresh
fantasyfootballscout
wirtschaftsblatt
webpagesthatsuck
vgolos
iaf
rexel
dl-raw
russkoeo
goldenglobes
public-safety-cloud
inotel
mkardses
12manage
goco
taiwantaxi
americasuits
rethinkrobotics
yx12345
centit
ariananews
paulsmith
retelit
revv
srbiau
bdragoztnl
kresge
linuxcool
filmi7
eterna
4efibra
patriotmemory
land
spcinternet
pro-mt-server
nickmason2020
idsbangladesh
puh3
fourwheeler
new-tube-
linesdrawn
datayi
gatevidyalay
diplomn-rf
celebritynews
grandchallenges
tutorperini
superstarfacts
joma-sport
rogervivier
maximtoaster
dosgamesarchive
avca
thedesigninspiration
walthers
grupo
fed
mini-tennis
avinode
gabb3r
skat-palast
appnee
dzdxu
dns7949
sarahsoriano
aveleyman
lordfilmtv
topgunmovie
diparring-proundle
jbs
linuxforce
zofranondansetron
1cak
cell-net
ocast
holiday
askmpp
myvoyo
keter
knifejournal
sleepyti
fiscaltiger
pscb
animedrawn
okchatroom
upantool
as3
rajbhasha
europeanreview
tsc
forbesargentina
velikorodnov
paperwritingessayservice100
xfgroup
eleximg
fred
barenakedislam
rusagrotrans
net-scans
thri
tssouthernpower
escada
sfydns
2b2t
wphost
mobiroller
tcb-premium-access
po
proxsee
pitviper
frrb-chel
kobis
social
ruihengautomation
pso2walmart
jetcoms
fmovies
harleytherapy
sparkletts
comryukyushimpo
bitske
misskyra
dns-au
laura-br
webcitz
k82022
pagetutor
netoff
rekhtadictionary
jamiegeller
atmos-tokyo
naturismv
guhai
sgsonline
xiantengda
clickastro
airsoftni
templately
vawnet
oei
findingfarm
bronevik
pearsonschool
gomitra
shortearn
pr-clanek
hotel-wiki
epilepsysociety
comconnect
whoswholegal
volstate
netce
fixrunner
eugeneweekly
hydac
codeyad
coso
ilyf4amifh
qrfy
gwcca
quickstopsmokeshops
currentbody
essaywriteris
dictall
appliancefactoryparts
shhailong
durr
linximpulse
naspa
thi
retargeter
rb24
arrestfacts
comanimeanime
tsinger
newton
admtobolsk
huma-num
engvideo
overnightprints
gov
tcl-move
centralpropertiesaustin
hilnn
rujizz
getwisp
technologykeep
lighttube
chaskor
pm
bsimvastatin
abcname
weather25
whtc
bcheights
daohangtx
114best
fundamental-life
ubncloud
webjunction
crownandcaliber
ifdef
ohoh
manga1st
inhermajestyservice
corporatefilingsllc
sony
academicimpact
glockstore
bridesformarriage
nesbittburns
everythingarcades
gematrinator
hostjill
kekkon-souken
ktstelecom
webhosting1st
kartoo
dayjob
freehookupssites
cagbc
triple-tree
anacrolix
alabamapower
1rnd
ctaplan
phdns25
coldfilm7
52pcfree
putian
leggioggi
mybankhq
betano
diversalertnetwork
lowfruitsolutions
mieterbund
fisheries
uap
bramus
tayniymir
greenskycredit
headstrong
britishlistedbuildings
bjzetai
neswblogs
santore
unikoingold
runwaygirlnetwork
ergotamine
dmvflorida
kumapon
mimorelia
zf-world
tokyocreative
fastw3b
u-pem
selectacast
mangbaobao
clarecomputer
worldwidewatch
president
dndnha
gogoup
home
mypos
searchingpart
fnovasystems
1001spiele
calorietech
zhonganjianli
tradeup
ucoz
edgars
wpanet
doctoratesolutions
mechanicnet
palmeiras
intel
landia-print
wahl-o-mat
doithouses
taiwanembassy
thelinuxfix
thetot
hostingly
brlive
city
1stsource
youbeauty
cswe
ebcbrakes
booknet
virascience
marshruty
kylie
sccs
onlinetaxiuzbekistan
skin
hartcom
obi-italia
azhumane
buzzyusa
ac-cloud
brighter
hoosierhomemade
nucleuslife
sgdns
hibridosyelectricos
propranololinderal
triviadaily
littlerock
hostcontrol
graphis
billaamstern
sfai
tatatelebusiness
yps
hamptons
zdescargas
cadena100
gtp-tabs
monetra
marliness
emotivci
adamlewisschroeder
heals
admozartxml
seastrom
peachyforum
thecttl
deonlinedrogist
hunkemoller
maxcld
kckb
tapplastics
nbc24
baltimorefishbowl
sydneynewstoday
docuware
fa-software
panteracapital
search-armor
cleanorigin
hotyogasupply
sportshub
basf
246
creativeitem
rgbnameserver
nexiumesomeprazole
revolutiontt
malemjumat
0554jc
open-torg
animefox
ursmu
food24
protectedcloudhosting
trollnet
artedominio
webomg
newroztelecom
whatisany
nerdordie
druggenius
mcdowellnews
zillertal
icmm
dream-net
appsflyer
studentsreview
uz
keprtv
lullabot
pfron
petkt
wesbos
splashscore
piagroup
bluecyberstudios
fullcircleinsights
rccaraction
braintb
uncams
zxjcct
topessayssites
inessential
lenkmio
agc-tech
statdm
intermune
blogs4funny
sondermind
typeset
fluconazolediflucan
greenakku
gotoassist
noc33
hogash
hackingand
wuqianld
gaminatorapp
florist
dieese
atlasandboots
mmnoc
cnetchannel
interhost
xn--72c8cbsnij0edm1he5h
lovefarmacy
as8401
rbbinvest
wirelesspowerconsortium
samsung
coretecfloors
domainname
9696
thepinetree
abtdns
mobilecashier
afreesms
99signals
opentopomap
freepaper
nngj
lordfilm
oldje
vxuebao
unisync
waynold
springahead
walkersands
nomeatathlete
asuntoslegales
idealimage
d-in
andersonadvisors
hmtacaizmmzpxv
unitedwater
joingotomeeting
ienearth
art-is-fun
zavod9
cupcakejones
brandviagra
super-samples
neosoft
lpg
lot-art
aptigurus
acea
scnet
fisher-1
civilserviceindia
domashka
featuredbiography
dciu
chuanghengda
niopdc
top-modelz
dsb
mediatab
cialisltab
cordial
newspassid
figment
cm-tv
ivermectinhl
dox
canadadrs
amorenlinea
tunestotube
viagrartabs
goldindian
decathlon
oiu
qkamura
esbt
reliaquest
printax27
transportintra
afpnet
hearstapps
myknobs
tsukanovartcollection
themecentury
castedduonline
exploader
myidtravel
newxnxn
willux
wnsgroup
wakingthered
lapsang
xmovies-
blaster
tekstil-vsem
arenasport
cosmid
hb56
atmmarketplace
patchstack
ace
furuke
join-tsinghua
topclearbag
seattlecca
gotland
thepaydaystore
dcsmanage
abinitio
marketoonist
altenergymag
mags
camptocamp
eventbrite
mastodon
tentacle
pwm-service
lovethework
g6hm
gpshome
faithit
cwgsv
apkmodking
leoni
greenbay
wishion
ekranka
leadtek
spinningbabies
go
kanald
foodbanknyc
sagamelive
bither
manga33
believedns
reason8
viagragtabs
naijacontacts
showroomlogic
technokad
hellojob
fishc
esata
echonest
entirelyhealth
guangming
visitbruges
wrs
theconsumersreview
multiplesclerosisnewstoday
teachbesideme
marfeelcdn
jerseycitynj
webdesign-inspiration
almamedia
omfif
intuitiis
kuntent
jxqx88
amex
nai
cbb
star-ton
tpc
outerbanksvoice
konfio
urbansitter
unilink
icteam
rdrctgoweb
mno
showcasecinemas
learnbonds
search-results
azerionconnect
pdfmyurl
nudeyoung
lh360
openphoto
fxshield
kelkoo
hentaizone
mobilieroccasion
serialru
wisetaillms
digitalpromise
creativedestructionmedia
5ivestarlondon
dondeir
booksrun
cz-usa
notesmatic
gstent
mobtelecom
top-colo
inschool
favro
fetisch
fluvius
geeknative
nkrpg
rjr-services
zappstore
dcinside
lviagra
ukuleleunderground
revisionisthistory
kappahl
cagw
disulfiram
simplebites
myhorse
psxbrasil
kwtc
webarq
bbwmovies
netzpionier
opinionoutpost
ndnic
qurastad
augmentinamoxicillin
intercolor
szlynx
coincited
zg-ap-apps
accesstrade
azrieli
hqvideos
cirurgicabrasil
fotobabble
onlinehost
name-servis
cleverence
3kserver5
communico
disneyclips
telecombis
enlyft
alexarankcheck
health-and-parenting
wienmuseum
ajansbulut
frogsowar
n1b2
sgmjournals
hypercontext
s2-log
projectcake
mapa
pimodules
netaffinity
senseforth
prodeb
backlinkcontroller
vizagsteel
nanog
holike
onlinevpnsoftware
shockya
index
fatfreecartpro
hoteliermiddleeast
intexso
aventri
craftegg
webtogo
shtheme
dc-uoit
via-backend
boldsmtrk
evidus
yekbot
kubabus
koolbusiness
ahwanbao
sondaativas
rutuz
radiichina
andamul
chenxi120
twofactorauth
volkswagen
cellercanroca
g6
net
friends
iava
theweathersiren
planetzoogame
daticum
laticrete
mdvip
proteccion
coloring
writingpaper
cartoonnetworkeurope
mrunal
nfa
schoolnutritionandfitness
food
zmanda
photography-orlando
formstack
concierto
gexperiments4
permaculture
bakucitycircuit
atat
ddtc
digitalsignage
unternehmensregister
daralsharq
spacecore
dyntux
oversight
telekom
verticalhealth
lcw
healthcare-informatics
technetium
netsign
suffolknewsherald
aixindashi
fussballfieber
myfunpinpin
hangarhosting
poxo
emoney
riffreporter
iam
tudiscovery
pdnews
mweweb
hebban
mommyish
chimpreports
vse-sdal
killeenisd
shop411
gedns
lenovoid
theclassyhome
whatruns
bushiroad
electriciantalk
minipressprazosin
goanywhere
sanya
shuajizhijia
bologna-airport
tsogosun
fanrecap
gearuncensored
qiib
articlepedia
wotblitz
beehentai
ku
albuterolcombivent
classificadosx
epictv
chezgregoire
wilmingtonbiz
gatewayarch
ivsm
livelyhelp
c6bank
swissallfx
modine
as55789
homeonetechnologies
aiutofiscale
hostingpowers
wetternet
teckinhome
suhuf
mjoy1
avocent
186k
apartamenty
akacdn
proektasis
translatesubtitles
tynmagazine
artnet
saint-petersburg
babeland
rainierarms
bcbsnd
wspc
stalker2
fullsuitcase
welovebudapest
crossbrowsertesting
jecontacte
eslforums
seattlecoffeegear
gitapp
leadgenic
formtitan
1blu-dns
shopify
bosruiters
estonianworld
cherkizovsky
comsumaho-arekore
mortgageeducators
kam-pod
lankahotnews
wethepeopleholsters
planet-service
home-school
www-xnxx-com
tenyek
appdirect
artlimited
wickedthemusical
addurl
liftopia
sochicgermany
searchbooster
520meiju
cafeblog
adpia
llyjmp
manhwaindo
zainview
fundoohairstyles
elle
bestdigitalupdates
foe
hyperoi
viewstripo
kocaeli
viagractabs
kaminsoft
neu
chengtu
gourmetads
tv2ostjylland
fengchedm
familyloves
apsolutamente
xpertsoft
futbolsites
bonusverenadam30
hnavigate-on
pharmduck
cialist
egybest
dnetdns
acidacorn
intelcom
alphabetschool
scuffedentertainment
ssi1
santa-ana
bixbox
brighthubpm
agjeans
silentpcreview
tenniswarehouse-europe
cyberbasement
sponsor
mx-check
h4hosting
bosszhipin
tourhq
proxy-seller
bravosupermarket
smartblog
myinstashot
trinipickupsforsale
veer
olivenet
ikrakow
zoo
infosysco
recomaticapp
jianweidata
funtime
talkuapi
jansamarth
kino
belvilla
nic
ncr
inrrp
1911encyclopedia
a-mazing
rollingstoneindia
nestiolistings
kbscable
visitreykjavik
jysk
viewlost
firecams
megaessays
zenleafdispensaries
dynamicgms
ppdai
zerobin
vyadd
wasfaty
onthatass
kilometimes
ampme
gurunavi
warren-wilson
icc
valgardena
g2prof
fast-vpn
inbound
atronicalarms
berekenhet
blueair
royalarmouries
allcoins
vareni
theindianalawyer
ifscswiftcodes
ultralibrarian
aim2me
cableamos
taskus
imwerden
igni
beerconnoisseur
slt
jubii
datacommons
nevonprojects
deagostini
engagement
wmag
woundsource
axxonsoft
sinobiological
itambe
sitevalley
runrun
meibu
winningmediallc
778421
bugsee
sosedki
brightidea
homesteadandchill
ewbgy
torrent-fast

beauty-lands
guidevallemaggia
convertap
torrentsee112
music-book
virtuesecrets
e-zigurat
afnsis
static6
ffx
digitalme
kamis
sharkquiz
vlp
everythingmom
vlast
kitchensource
midori
sheriff
birdwatchersdigest
immaku
codio
sbotop
atrify
cnin
antonline
qiaomi
tcm
electroworld
guardiansstandunited
silk
systron
verifyhub
thescarboroughnews
kitzbueheler-alpen
vologda-poisk
veluxusa
yalnet1
elcarrocolombiano
publicholidays
asinonrev
slovenijanet
daliansky
luz-medienagentur
popehat
hero3d
opet
mosnews
ttdeye
izapya
cyber
covivado
neodns
usmleworkout
blockchainds
smoothiediet
hmdns
steadyoptions
comkonkatsu-nav
dating
motoblouz
getreligion
xmovies08
apedys
wt
echoson
roadsafetraffic
pspectr
virtuworks
descomdns
tracking-board
hobbysitive
knowledge-architecture
icarol
gites-les-bardots
vicosys
unap
santa-clara
yonex
al3bkora
got2web
pggame
me
toras-systems
cjcp
digitalchalk
pardus
educa
forces
loopiagroup
beyotime
adnsu
newarkairport
isyatirim
admodito
tipsmake
xizi
issm
neverlose
rmpdns
configcenter
essentialed
delvdoor
spicy-flix
asztalosweb
editorconfig
virgintrains
terengganu
maprunner
comanshinkuruma
revention
rai
batallador
harmony-solutions
autonomiccontrols
leaksmodels
brickweb
ascentdata
gpldl
buckeyesnews
platforumedge2
info-forex
server264
blocksandfiles
tcyabang
cleverapps
tamk
scottevest
sporteasy
survivornet
desibrits
1518
gentlemansride
tudipinggu
nbsti
saizeriya
iv-cdn
grupogtd
kor-ra
uihealthcare
kfd
giva
aaroads
minacs
shiga-ec
multiversitycomics
trworkshop
evergreen
saratovenergo
scientificsonline
oreillystatic
kanyidaily
thenutstrewnroads
amen
srilankamirror
italhosting
ehelicoptere
atilim
lettscheck
ligamx
spravka-070
wylsa
panews
yourweather
despreseriale
dnscloud
alea
herotel
openfrost
sitemason
gwtproject
tvblackbox
thorofare
villagephotos
mitene
disney
hcpmo
zbiornik
marketbook
proxi
penskeautomotive
pinkwhite
realaudio
basezap
serverdiscounter
halloweenhorrornights
ccacoalition
mw
ibrain
hitrost
viva
hellowisp
1obraz
grattan
royaltonresorts
rpcdns
116117
richmondgov
resplendence
cialisatabs
metrobd
garagesalefinder
ntreis
o-mx
winner
viagraftab
languagelearningwithnetflix
mikucare
immunotec
fbmsales
zituva
sovcomins
mihanvideo
mta4
allwording
phillypolice
gamedaily
aussie-pokies
airlinespolicy
baetiy
klayer
tds
giant
castfire
phali
nettalk
stolicaonego
jclnwftc
courts
techbehemoths
chelseareservations