The aim of publicity is to distribute information among as many people as possible. Any organization can make a mistake that might result in negative publicity, so it is essential that businesses have a plan ready to deal with negative publicity. Negative publicity can be turned into a PR opportunity. Positive publicity means more business and more exposure, but bad publicity can also be transformed into an opportunity to build the credibility of a business.
Negative PR
Negative PR includes harmful published information which can damage a company’s reputation. This information can be bad online press about a business, or negative reviews on its products and services. A business can try to counter the effects of negative publicity by showing itself in a good light. Steps should be taken to reduce the negative information about businesses.
Initial steps
The initial steps of turning negative publicity to PR opportunities should aim at reducing negative publicity. The response to negative information should be quick so that it can stop negative publicity from getting worse. Bad reviews should be followed by press releases or posts on social media platforms. For instance, a customer tweeted about loud music while dining at the Mexican fast-food chain, Boloco. The business saw the tweet right away, and instructed the staff at the restaurant to lower the volume of the music. They did not stop there, however. They had an idea of what the woman looked like from her Twitter avatar. So the staff found her and gave her a cookie. They also went to the extent of retweeting her tweet, and commented the word ‘done’ on it. The customer was very impressed. Given below are steps that can be taken to neutralize negative publicity and turn them into opportunities.
