Being the TalkTalk of the town… for all the wrong reasons

The old mantra of “all publicity is good publicity” has been proven to be wrong on countless occasions – bad publicity can sometimes be just that: bad. Yet what can make bad news even worse is if it’s handled poorly after the fact. While customers can often be forgiving of mistakes, they aren’t so generous when they are then left in the dark without a clear understanding of the problem or what steps are being taken to fix them.

You would need to be living under a rock to have missed the fact TalkTalk was recently forced to ‘fess up to its four million customers that their details were at risk of being hacked following a data breach.  Aside from the breach itself (and the fact it is the third they have had), it is the way TalkTalk has approached the issue that has got a lot of people’s backs-up. It seemed like TalkTalk panicked, which is not reassuring for customers, or the markets for that matter: the company’s share price dropped 10% on opening trading following the breach.

One of the biggest balls ups was the fact TalkTalk’s CEO, Dido Harding, claimed in not one but five interviews that she’d received ransom emails talking of a prolonged and sustained attack. This not only added more fuel to the fire, prolonging the run of stories, but it also lent weight to the idea that this was some sort of ISIS-inspired rampage making it even more tantalising for the press. It was also an embarrassment when we found out the ‘sustained and prolonged’ attack was likely to be carried out by teenagers. The other issue is the lack of clear communication around what the actual risks are. It would seem that the actual risk to customer data was very small, which could have been explained clearly and calmly; instead, TalkTalk customers have been largely left in the dark while speculation runs rife.

I’m prone to sympathise with TalkTalk; when something like this breaks all hell breaks loose alongside it. People rush to respond and process – and good sense in some instances – can go out the window.  Also, technology problems and security risks are often hard to put into layman terms as they can be very complex. Yet it is at this time more than any other than calmness and clarity must reign. Here are my top three tips for dealing with a crisis:

• Stay calm and project an image of control: It is a stressful time, with journalist badgering for comment and other companies wading in to have their say. It can, therefore, be very tempting to react and say things off the cuff or get dragged into refuting every piece of coverage that you think is wrong. Yet doing so will only discredit you. The public face must be one of control and order. You have this in hand. You are fixing it. You know exactly what you are doing. Jumping in before you have a clear handle on the situation will help no one.
• Avoid inflammatory comments and stick to the facts: When there is a crisis happening, you want to keep it as dull as possible, so that hopefully people get bored and move on. While it’s important to keep people informed, particularly where customer information is concerned, offering up new angles or bits of information will only serve to sustain interest. Speculation in crisis situations can often run rife, with different theories popping up from a range of different sources – often unconnected to the actual events. Therefore, any updates should be based on facts and only shared when they can be presented clearly.
• Have a clear and consistent message: A common problem in these situations is that people can get caught off guard and asked a question, which they answer without thinking. It is important, therefore, that everyone in the organisation knows what they should do if they are asked anything – have a party line and stick to it, even if that is just not to answer. Even saying ‘no comment' is quotable in some situations, so ensuring that everyone has a clear picture of what they can and can’t say can help to avoid slip up situations.

Nobody wants to deal with a crisis, they are thrust upon us, but they can be turned into a positive in some ways if dealt with correctly. Failure to do so, on the other hand, can create a mess that some companies may never recover from. If you stay calm, have a clear message and stick to facts you will prevail, and could even gain respect for the positive way you have handled it all!