Is Transparency Enough to Mitigate a Crisis?

Recently TikTok has announced that it will be investing $1.5 billion in a reorganization that will result in making the video sharing app more transparent. This opens the door for a discussion about transparency and the role it plays in mitigating a crisis.

A PR crisis is a common occurrence for any business these days. The best way to go about mitigating a PR crisis is for companies to prepare for them ahead of time by having a solid crisis management strategy. If and when a crisis does occur, transparency helps to mitigate the negative impact by building trust. It also allows everyone impacted to respond in the most effective way by giving them all of the relevant facts. Is it enough though?

Preparation Saves Perspiration

While transparency is vital in response to a PR crisis, it is not as effective at mitigating damage as preparation. Thinking ahead, knowing a company’s weaknesses, and assessing risks allows a risk management team to head off a crisis before it happens. This works hand in hand with transparency in two ways. When a company knows what the risks are, transparency allows them to prepare ahead of time by being open and communicative. This way, a PR crisis is not as much of a shock if it does occur.  Preparation ahead of time also allows a company to carefully plan a response to a PR crisis rather than hastily throwing one together in the midst of a developing situation.

Being Authentic

Transparency is important, but it does little good if the company’s response comes off as not authentic. Honest, authentic communication is vital if the public is going to be able to accept a company’s response to a crisis. Any crisis management plan has to include a communication strategy that the public can trust.

Humility

Any company facing a PR crisis has to deliver a response that is not only transparent and honest, but humble as well. The public will respond more positively if they feel that the company is on the same level as they are. Engaging with the customer and stakeholders with humility builds trust, encourages emotional investment, and strengthens the relationship moving forward.

The Aftermath

Companies have to continue to be transparent and authentic with the rest of the world once the crisis is over, and they’ve managed to repair the damage to their reputations. Transparency and authenticity allow companies to establish a higher level of trust with all interested parties, which will help businesses repair their reputation at a faster rate.

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