Respond with Sincerity and Strategy
If you do enter a PR crisis, remember to be human; insincerity is both highly detectable and detestable. Take responsibility for your mistake(s). “We apologize for our mistakes,” is a lot better than “we are not responsible,” even if that is the truth. Avoid emotional or delayed responses and act professionally. You must clear anything that can relate back to your business. Inform those at stake by the results of your mistakes like investors or customers. Hold yourself accountable and communicate that you are finding ways to avoid these mistakes in the future. Stick to the plan you created with your PR team and focus on getting through the fire.