There is one threat that sends shivers down the spine of business owners: a litigation. Also called a lawsuit; it can instantly ruin your business in the most horrible way.
Most business owners deal with legal matters first before handling their brand and market. When it comes to business litigation, you must ensure the interest of the public. Why? Because contrary to common belief, bad publicity is not good publicity.
The following are 4 ways how to market your business effectively and better after a litigation:
- Manage your reputation
Your business’ reputation is crucial, and you can easily lose it in an instant. In the world of social media, critics are everywhere. The principle of handling a litigation and crisis is to manage your situation efficiently. This involves understanding the situation, taking responsibility, and apologizing. The key here is acting fast before your market loses interest in your brand.
- Understand the situation: Before anything else, you must understand the lawsuit against you, how it happened, and what to do about it. When you are asked to comment about the issue, never say “no comment,” even if you haven’t evaluated the situation fully. Having no voice about the issue may make you look guilty, or people may make their own assumptions.
- Take Responsibility: Some business owners make the mistake of covering up a PR crisis. It actually makes the damage worse. Take responsibility, react immediately, and give feedback. Arguing in public is the opposite of taking responsibility.
- Apologize: This does not mean apologizing to the person/s who filed the lawsuit against you. What’s crucial here is apologizing to your market. Acknowledge their concerns, questions, and respond calmly. It is essential to tell them that you are deeply sorry about what happened and will work on making the situation better. Also, tell them that improved policies will be established to avoid this kind of situation from happening again.
- Customer Service
Make sure that you have a plan on how to reduce bad press. Your employees are the ambassadors for your business. All personnel, regardless of their position, must understand the importance of customer service and manifest your business’ brand values.
- Social Media response
After a litigation, make sure to have your marketing team on high alert. If negative backlash begin to arise, your team must be able to execute a well-versed crisis plan which proactively responds on feedback using prepared materials. Business owners must never go rogue and add fire to the flame. Have your marketing or PR officer apologize to your audience with effective, predetermined key messages/responses.
- Develop a strong PR
After a litigation and getting bad publicity, your business must have a strong, positive PR. Have your marketing officer emphasize positive stories or statements such as improved business operations, and community involvement. Encourage your personnel to be involved in the society such as volunteering or supporting a charity. Most importantly, ensure your clients/customers that your business is doing honorable operations and keeping them satisfied.
Conclusion
Despite all of the accusations and risks involved, you should be able to show self-control amidst a business litigation. How you market your business better after a litigation can save your company. You must guarantee to give the media and audience what they need to hear. Meanwhile, make sure to hire a reliable, experienced lawyer who can help you with your case.
Ashley Thompson
Ashley Thompson strives to ensure her passion for reading about the law are reflected through the various pieces that she’s writing. She hopes to apply her years of study into helping explain legal issues to the public. Ashley loves cooking and often cooks for her family during weekends.
