Crisis Communications Press Release
Here is the scenario for your crisis communications press release:
You are the president of the Music for Children not-for-profit volunteer organization. You have been raising money all spring to send 20 local children to a summer music camp in Nova Scotia. You have been holding bake sales, 50/50 draws, car washes. You have enlisted parents of the children to talk to local companies for corporate contributions. Teachers and parents and the general public have been making donations. There have been articles about this campaign in local newspapers and interviews on the radio. You have managed to raise $35,000 which is enough to pay for the children’s trip with parent chaperones and two weeks at the camp.
On the morning of the trip, the parents and children are waiting for the bus to pick them up with photographers present. You receive the phone call that the bus will not be coming because the bus company has not been paid. You discover that the hotel in Nova Scotia also has not been paid. You try to contact John Smith, the fundraiser you hired to help you raise the money over a four-month period. He is not responding. He is not at home and the money is missing. You hired him locally on the recommendation of a friend but didn’t check very deeply into his background. The trip is going to have to be cancelled. You have a lot of angry parents and children on your hands, not to mention the general public.
You need to handle this situation, including communicating the facts to the local newspapers. This means that you need to write a press release that will tell the story. Because the police are just starting to look into this, you cannot make any direct accusations about John Smith. No charges have been laid.
Remember:
1. What is the message you want to convey to the general public, the parents, children, teachers and donors?
2. Use the correct press release format. It should be 1-2 pages in length, single-spaced.
3. Does your press release effectively position your story and help to maintain your organization’s reputation?
4. Does it address your stakeholders and take their perspectives into consideration?
5. Is it objective in tone?
6. Write it in the third person. You cannot directly accuse the fundraiser at this point.
