The School of Communication and Business (FKB) Tel-U, on Thursday (25/2) organized a webinar that focused on how a Public Relations person can face and manage a crisis that befalls a company. Information disclosure and the rapid dissemination of news as it today makes a company vulnerable to negative issues, but it is also a good medium for building a brand.
The webinar was attended by around 200 participants, and guided by the lecturer of the Telkom University Digital Public Relations Study Program, namely Martha Tri Lestari, S.Sos., MM. There are also three experts in their respective fields such as PR Book Writers. Crisis Firsan Nova, Founder of Nagaru Communication Dian Agustine Nuriman, and Journalist Republika M. Akbar.
In his presentation, Firsan Nova explained that the PR task is not only to build a good reputation but also a sustainable reputation. A crisis indicator is an impact caused by an event.
“There are three impacts that are generally affected during a crisis, namely Image, Reputation, and Financial Stability. One of the three impacts needs to be immediately isolated when a crisis occurs. For example, when Image and Reputation are hit by a crisis, but the financials are not, the impact is not that massive. It’s bad if all three are affected by the crisis. ” said Firsan.
As a practitioner in the field of Public Relations, Dian Gustine Nuriman explained that PR needs to be able to maintain and build a positive reputation and image through managing and monitoring information and structured communication by disseminating important information about a brand/company to the public.
Journalists who have long been involved in the media and publication sector also convey interesting material. M. Akbar warned that the media can easily manipulate the perspective of an event against those who see it. The framing can be made positive or negative, depending on the interests behind it.
“So that persuasive steps can be taken to establish good relations with the media. That’s a natural step to do. So that we can get to know media partners better and work together to build a positive image and work hand in hand in dealing with crises. ” Said, Akbar.
We cannot avoid a crisis, no matter how good a company moves, a crisis is part of the company’s journey. What we can do is preventive action, face and manage crises so that we can use them as an opportunity to build a better image.