Sticking to your plot can be difficult. There’s so much information coming at us at every minute, and as communicators, we want to be first out with new ideas, cool content, and engaging audiences.
I just read that Instagram now lets you recover deleted posts. As if we didn’t already know that once it’s on social media it’s there forever. Now, you can go back in and recover your recently deleted posts.
You know, the one you wish you hadn’t made in the first place and tried to get rid of. Yeah, that one. It’ll just sit there and stress you out for a while until you no longer see it, but you’ll know it’s there.
We’ve all fallen into the trap of posting content we shouldn’t have, or didn’t think through. If you’ve been in communications long enough, you can think of an “oops” moment that you hoped wouldn’t come back to haunt you.
That begs the question, how do we avoid those instances?
Simply put, everything we do as communicators needs to be done with purpose and intention. We’re storytellers, and every story has a purpose and plot.
When we deviate from that plot, we leave ourselves open to risks, like bad social media posts. When our work is not done with intention, it can backfire in spectacular ways, and then you have a crisis on your hands.
So, here are 5 tips for not straying off your plotline:
1. Know your core values as a company. Print them out, keep them on your desk, set reminders…do whatever you have to do to keep them top of mind when creating content so you can ensure everything you create aligns with your values.
2. Think about your target audiences – what do they expect to hear and how can you engage them in a meaningful way.
3. Avoid knee-jerk reactions. As much as we rely on “instincts” as communicators, very rarely is the “first draft” of something the one that gets put out to the public.
4. Talk to your team – making sure everyone is completely aligned on what your company stands for, or what’s happening with a particular issue, is critical for success. Internal communications has to be a priority for effective messaging.
5. Don’t pretend – this is the old walk the walk approach where you have to fully embrace what your brand values are about. That means putting them into practice in your everyday business programs. If you pretend, then you really don’t have a plot to stick to.
Good luck staying on your plotline, and have fun trying to ignore those recently deleted Instagram posts.
I’ve also been discussing how you can find success following the Coronavirus crisis through the RADD approach, which is Recognize, Adapt, Develop, and Deploy. Check out our previous posts to see how you can succeed with the RADD process:
– Get RADD And Plan For Success Following Coronavirus Crisis
– Prepare for Success and Get RADD, Part 1: Recognize
– Finding Success By Getting RADD, Part 2: Adapt
– Get RADD, Part 3: Develop Plans For Success
– Deploying Your RADD Communications Plan
Here are some additional resources for your crisis planning efforts:
– There’s Still Time To Communicate During the Coronavirus Crisis
– Is Pitching Media A Good Idea During COVID-19?
– Internal Communications During A Crisis
– A Meaningful Message, Or Pandering Without Purpose
And here are some additional blogs to help with your strategic communications planning:
– Pitching Media Like The Pros
– 7 Tips for Successful Media Interviews
– Don’t Let Perfect Be The Enemy Of Effective
– Wake Up. Kick Ass. Repeat.
– How to Create Content That Engages Audiences and Builds Brand Trust Quickly
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