Turning “Bad” Press into Brand Strength for More Media Relations Wins
Contrary to the popular saying, not all press is good press, so it is up to PR professionals to have reactive media relations and issues management plans in place well before anything goes awry. Effective crisis communications is paramount in a hyperconnected world where information spreads rapidly and stakeholder sentiment can quickly change. In corporate leadership, the right external messaging strategy amplifies actions and intents behind the scenes, ultimately shaping public perception and behavior. But it cannot happen in a vacuum.
A positive media presence comes from years of building up relationships and crafting a brand narrative that extends beyond publications into owned and paid content. Collecting that goodwill and consistency is imperative when announcements do not land well. Effective damage control requires careful planning, but when faced with a crisis, there are also steps that can be taken in the moment if a process is not already in place.
Below are strategies for turning “bad” press into a positive media relations moment before, during, and after an issue arises.
Proactively Prepare for Both Good and Bad Press
Create an Issues Management Plan
There is a distinct difference between crisis communications and issues management. Crisis communications address a current threat to the foundation of a company through reactive media relations and messaging. Issues management is on ongoing activity built into the culture of a company that mitigates future risk and always protects the bottom line. Developing and implementing this kind of approach requires five key steps.
- Establish an issues management team (IMT). Your IMT should consist of a designated project manager as well as decisionmakers charged with reviewing and approving materials, subject matter experts, a communications lead to manage PR, and a media relations or crisis communications agency to facilitate the development of messaging.
- Develop core messaging. Assess potential future issues and draft core messaging for each. This should involve creating versions for each audience. When and if a situation arises, your company will already be prepared to update the appropriate messaging and respond accordingly.
- Establish weekly or monthly meetings. In the absence of an active issue response effort, the IMT should align on a weekly or monthly basis to ensure every stakeholder is on the same page and emerging risks can be discussed.
- Train your teams. By the time an issue crops up, it is too late to train employees on how to best respond if they are approached for a comment. Instead, the IMT should coordinate regular staff-wide trainings, so all employees are aware of how they should talk about particular situations.
- Build in adaptability mechanisms. Issues management is not “one-size-fits-all.” Depending on the situation at hand, the IMT should convene to decide which levers to pull. An effective response could involve any combination of media relations, social media, staff meetings, town halls, and public statements.
Issues management is not just something for times of crisis. By creating an environment where risk assessment and preparedness is woven into the fabric of your company, you will be better prepared to address bad press or any other challenging situation.
Get Ahead of Potentially Polarizing News
While preparing to make any announcements that have a higher-than-normal risk of negative or lukewarm reception, make sure your marketing communications team is thinking one step ahead. Take the time to walk through these questions well in advance:
- Who will care about your news? What messages do they need to hear? When does the news need to be communicated? Where will the news be shared? Why will your audience care? The answers could uncover any holes in your messages and prevent bad press or even a leak before it happens.
- Will a request to keep breaking news confidential be honored? In most cases, the answer is no. Human nature is to share big news with our communities, so never assume confidences will be kept.
- Is this news big enough to cause an external stir if leaked in advance? If yes, then embargoing the story with an influential media outlet could be a good move. Doing so allows you to frame the story on your terms since a leaked or misreported story is usually more sensational than accurate.
- Do we need extra support? Too often, internal communications teams are overmatched by the magnitude of a big announcement or piece of bad press. Enlisting the help of an agency (under NDA) can help navigate anticipated criticism.
The risk of poor publicity or a crisis situation is never zero. But being prepared for the worst is half the battle when something does go wrong. Thinking through all potential scenarios and outcomes by asking the right questions in advance can put your company in a better position for positive media coverage.
Stay Calm and Communicate on During Crisis
Take Action and Accountability
When a harsh news story runs or an announcement goes off the rails, it can feel like an uphill battle to get a brand back on track. Which is why it is helpful to focus on just two things: acknowledging issues and taking accountability for them. Addressing accusations or challenges, rather than filtering them, inspires forward-looking mindsets and underscores the critical role of communication in leadership.
This was never more evident than in Disney’s confrontation with activist investors in spring 2024. CEO Bob Iger’s strategic communications approach proved essential in demonstrating awareness of the company’s shortcoming and commitment to meaningful change. Under pressure from Trian Partners and founding partner Nelson Peltz, Iger endeavored to address investor concerns outright. That meant coming prepared with legitimate answers to every single alleged instance of mismanagement. Iger’s efforts were supported by a robust defensive media relations and marketing strategy that recognized the diverse stakeholders invested in Disney’s success. All of which allowed him to control the narrative, mitigate doubts, and instill confidence in shareholders. Such a triumph demonstrates that acknowledging challenges and openly addressing them is a strategic imperative for recovering brand value.
Put Out Fires with Stakeholders First
Actively engaging with stakeholders—yes, even the difficult ones—is a critical component of responding to negative press. It creates an opportunity to tell your own story and influence the cult of opinion. CMOs and CCOs should always have a seat at the table during these kinds of stakeholder conversations so they can cultivate trust and steer public discourse in a direction that reinforces the CEO’s vision and goals.
If something goes wrong and unsavory information is published, it is tempting to put out the fire with the media first. But don’t forget that the media is just a channel to reach your most importance audiences: clients and customers. They are the ones who need to hear from you right away, so focus on drafting a note for them first. Whenever possible, share the key messages from that with primary points of contact so they can pick up the phone and share the news personally.
Putting out an official statement can also be a good move if allegations against your company are severe. Holding statements that say little more than “we don’t comment on rumor or speculation” can sound disingenuous. Instead, say as much as you can to ensure your audience is drawing the right conclusions based on what they have already heard. It may be your best line of defense until you can take the news cycle back. Just keep in mind that reacting to every piece of bad press with a statement can come across as defensive and tends to be a time sap for teams. Statements should be reserved for when a major threat to your brand emerges.
Recover and Reset After a PR Crisis
Start With Your People
Humans are the heart and soul of your organization, so they should be at the center of your post-crisis plan, too. Bouncing back from bad press requires everyone to be on board and aligned with next steps internally. It also means building back trust externally. Marketing communications leaders can do this by:
- Facilitating collaboration. Co-creation is what leads to real innovation. By embracing collaboration, leaders can tap into the collective intelligence of their teams to unlock more ideas for preventing and solving big problems in the future.
- (Re)building trust. Effective long-term crisis communications are not just about conveying a more positive message about a brand. It’s about authenticity, building trust, instilling confidence, and forging connections. By acknowledging past issues rather than ignoring them, companies can inspire innovate and create value for their stakeholders.
- Analyze audience. The days and weeks after a piece of bad press or a crisis can be an ideal opportunity to reassess audience pain points and perspectives. How did they respond to the news? Has their perspective on the company changed? What is top-of-mind for them now? From there, build communications and media relations initiatives tailored to each audience. Messaging that is tailored to a particular group’s is more likely to receive engagement.
- Back action with accountability. Have a robust defense strategy in place to help maintain stakeholder confidence in times of adversity. By mapping out initiatives and demonstrating progress against them, companies can better counter criticisms and inspire confidence in their leadership moving forward. Doing this in the aftermath of a crisis helps remind everyone of how important it is to assess risk and be prepared. It also encourages your company to follow through on any promises made in the heat of the moment.
Leverage Media Relations to Build Back Better
In addition to keeping things cordial with any reporters who cover your company—they are just doing their job, after all, and often hold the keys to better coverage in the future—it is important to maintain a steady drumbeat of media relations activity. This helps to reinforce the brand as reputable and trustworthy over time. If executives or spokespeople are wary of engaging with the press after a bad interaction, it can be useful to focus on bylines, which allow you to control the narrative much more than commentary from an interview. Having a contributed article published by a respected newspaper or magazine can be seen as a reputation-boosting third-party endorsement. Positioning organization executives as thought leaders adds credibility and visibility to a company name.
Marketing communications professionals are accustomed to being at the forefront of organizational change and reputational risk situations. Which does not mean that a piece of bad press is ever something that we want to deal with. By combining proactive and reactive media relations and crisis communications strategies, companies can come out ahead with a stronger brand and better PR program than ever before.
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