Managing Your Eventual Public Relations Crisis

You may not know it, but your first glamping public relations crisis could be just around the corner.

Innumerable times during my 40-plus years as a newspaper writer, editor, and public relations professional I’ve seen business owners befuddled by their first major crisis. It might be a crisis not of your own making – such as floods or wildfires. But it’s more likely to be a “guest problem,” that got out of hand. Worst case, the crisis was caused by you or your staff.

Regardless how careful and conscientious you are, rest assured that there is a disaster out there lurking in the weeds with your name on it. When “stuff” does hit the fan, count on it to spread far and wide.

Long ago when I was a cub reporter, a business crisis had a relatively short life span. It usually didn’t last for more than a daily news cycle or two before we reporters grabbed our skinny notebooks and scampered (some would say slithered) to the next debacle down the road. It was easy for a business owner to “go ostrich” and ignore the media completely, or at least be able to get away with a swift “no comment.”

Today, the popularity of social media has completely shifted the dynamic. An aggrieved glamping guest no longer has to plead their case to the media, hoping to create enough interest from a very busy reporter to cover their story. Now, they simply fire up their laptop, head for Facebook or Instagram (AKA Meta) or Twitter (I think that is “X” now) and start typing. The guest will often “enhance” their tale of woe with a few photos or videos.

The hope is that by telling their side of the story directly to your current or potential guests, they can quickly bring you to your knees and cause serious damage to your business. It isn’t difficult to have their story go viral in an instant, with little chance of stopping it.

You can say that a crisis that directly impacts your business is unlikely. You’d be very, very wrong. Public relations crises are serious business. They disrupt your life and can cause serious damage to your bottom line.

What’s a glamping owner to do? Don’t panic. You aren’t alone. According to PR News, only about 60% of businesses bother to create a crisis management plan. And those that do often don’t train their staff to the plan or bother to keep it updated.

That doesn’t mean you want to be in the company of that non-planning 40%. Like everything else in your glamping business, crisis planning and management must be part of your overall management plan.

NOT IF, BUT WHEN

It could start with something as simple as a negative online review. The review itself may not trigger a full-blown crisis, but how you or your staff react to the review just might. Or it could be a national-news-story-in-themaking about a staff member’s misstep with a minority guest.

I’ve had to manage the fallout of park managers waving pistols at guests, domestic disputes that led to murders, and far too many drownings. Whatever form your crisis takes, rest assured it will come in hard and fast.

Here’s a few simple steps to take to get ready for your coming crisis:

• Identify what you as a glamping owner would consider as a crisis for your business. If the issue has the potential for wrecking your bottom line or interrupting operations, It’s likely a true crisis. The same goes if your park’s brand reputation can potentially be damaged. You’ve invested too much to just let that happen.

• Identify the members of your crisis management team and keep their contact info handy. Know who will be your spokesperson and be confident they have the training needed to deal with any crisis. Make sure your crisis team knows their roles and understands who has the final say in messaging both to the media and on social channels that deals with the issue.

• Create a few “holding statements.” These statements are your first response to any social posts or media inquiries. They by definition don’t say much. They are intended to acknowledge that you are aware of the problem and are designed to buy you some time. The statements can be as simple as “We are aware that XX occurred recently at our facility. The safety and security of our guests and staff is always our top priority. We are looking into the matter and will be posting an update on our website as soon as possible.”

• Have a social media policy. Ensure all staff members know how you expect them to talk about your business on social media. It’s OK to completely ban them from commenting on your facility but be sure to clearly communicate the rules.

• Have a few “raving fan” customers who are willing to come to your defense. Their comments often are enough to self-correct a social media problem.

MINIMIZING A CRISIS

So now that you have a crisis management plan, is there anything you can do to avoid having any crisis-level problems in the first place? Probably not. There are just too many daily factors you can’t personally control. Crises will come. But you can be ready to minimize their effects.

As I mentioned above, a good social media policy for your staff is essential. Know who is allowed to put up social posts about your business and know what they are allowed to say. You don’t want one of your employees posting inappropriate content on your social media accounts that runs counter to your official messaging.

One of my best former bosses said a great camping (or glamping) trip comes in three parts: anticipation of the trip (the before); the actual vacation (the during); and the memories (the after). The same three stages are true of a crisis. The “during” stage is no time to try to craft your crisis plan. If you don’t have your plan in place and your staff isn’t fully trained to execute it, you’re in trouble. Create a few disaster scenarios and role play a bit with your staff. You’ll all learn a lot, and the practice will make you faster on your feet when your crisis actually comes.

PANIC & ANGER AREN’T YOUR FRIENDS

Small business owners in the hospitality industry often think of their businesses as an extension of themselves and take criticism very personally. They are quick to jump online to defend their business (and by extension, themselves). This is usually a mistake. It’s good to be quick with your holding statement, but then take the time needed to gather all of the facts before you respond. Reach out to the affected guest and the media. Often a personal contact can cool things down and keep more “stuff” from hitting the social channel and traditional media “fan.”

This is the time to remain calm and follow the crisis plan you’ve hopefully created. Stick to the facts you have gathered and don’t speculate or blame others. Keep a cool head and be polite in all of your responses.

BE HUMAN

If the facts are clear that the crisis was obviously of your own making, be quick to acknowledge any mistakes made and accept responsibility. Consumers are quick to see a business as a faceless entity.

Be quick to put yourself in the customer’s shoes. This doesn’t mean the customer is always right, but it might widen your perspective to help understand their reactions. In the end, you want to be able to do the right thing based on the facts of the situation. This isn’t a time for “PR spin.”

By being transparent, honest, sincere, and a bit vulnerable you can often change the entire dynamic of a crisis and turn things in your favor.

AWAYS ALWAYS ALWAYS TELL THE TRUTH

The truth trumps everything else, and the truth always comes out eventually. Trying to hide your mistakes will be your biggest mistake of all. How many times have you seen a politician tripped up not by the original sin, but the coverup? This is the time to be genuine.

If you are in the wrong, decide on your next steps to mollify a disgruntled guest and communicate those steps you’ll take to close the door on it happening again. Then, do what you said you were going to do.

LEARN FROM YOUR CRISIS

After it’s all over, take the opportunity to step back and review the crisis event from start to finish. What did you do right and where can you do better?

Don’t be afraid to take a hard look at your business culture to see if there is a systemic problem that allowed the crisis to occur in the first place. You might find out that you have a service delivery problem you can fix. Every crisis situation is different, and each presents an opportunity in the end.

There likely isn’t much that could have been done to avoid the initial event, but there is plenty you can do to learn from your mistakes.

THINGS TO REMEMBER

• I mentioned earlier that social media has put the power in the hands of the disgruntled guest. That’s certainly true. Crises now blow up faster and are harder for an owner to ignore. But that doesn’t mean you have to take your eye off of running your business. It also doesn’t mean the storm won’t pass. There’s always the next crisis affecting someone else.

• While I’ve talked mostly about social channel or media problems, the same rules of preparation hold true for natural disasters. When fires, floods, or tornadoes affect your facility, have a social channel and media plan in place to cleanly communicate before, during, and after the event. Stay in front on your communications in these cases, and you’ll might actually create positive PR that shows you care about your guests and handled the crisis as well as you possibly could. This is your story to tell.

• Remember that businesses – even those that are innocent of wrongdoing – can be damaged by a PR crisis, but it’s rarely fatal. Another headline-grabbing crisis will come along, and your issue will fade from the collective conscious.

About Mike Gast

Mike Gast is a journalist and public relations professional with a career spent in media newsrooms as well as 20 years as the Vice President of Communications for Kampgrounds of America Inc. He now puts those decades of experience to work for glamping and camping operators as the President of Imi Ola Group, a public relations, marketing, and content production firm located in the heart of America in Omaha, Nebraska. You can reach him at mike.imiolagroup@gmail.com.