Communication is now a two-way street whether you like it or not
You don’t wind up leading teams at organizations like Fast Company and Inc. magazine unless you have your finger on the pulse of the modern world, and our featured quote for this first Crisis Management Quotable of 2016 comes straight from the pen (ok, keyboard) of a journalist who has done both and then some.
“Internet has turned what used to be a controlled, one-way message into a real-time dialogue with millions.” – Danielle Sacks
While Ms. Sacks was discussing the future of advertising when she made this proclamation back in 2010, it has only grown to be more applicable to not just that field, but also to our own. This idea was embraced early on by those with vision, but recent years have seen the question of whether to engage in two-way communications wrestled from the reluctant fingers of many old-school organizations by social media and the Internet at large. Now, like it or not, your messaging will be dissected by large groups of stakeholders and they will respond using email, blogs, Twitter, Facebook and a nearly unlimited list of alternative options.
The savvy will plan for this and be ready to participate in the dialogue, swatting down rumor and innuendo while keeping key messages intact. The resistant, well, they’ll be harangued by critics and often lose control of the conversation entirely, leading to the type of reputation threat that leaves us cringing. Which would you prefer?
Erik Bernstein
www.bernsteincrisismanagement.com