Sola Abulu & Associates (SA&A)

We don't make the rules. Online silence no longer reads as mystery. It is now interpreted as a sign of trouble or a lack of presence on the field of play. Major brands understand this. And invest significantly in proactively managing their online presence. Developing an active and strong online presence is no longer a nice -to-have. It is a now a central part of your competitive intelligence, industry or sector credibility and demonstrable commitment towards building a multigenerational business or institution. The line between online and market presence is becoming thinner by the day - even for companies in the B2B sector. "We are not on social media" is no longer a flex. Have a great week ahead!

Keeping your employees on side is a very important but often overlooked part of crisis management. Ensuring that the internal organization holds firm is the greatest part of any crisis management effort. If you lose trust within the organization, then there will be no light at the end of the tunnel. In a major crisis, the first thing to do is to strengthen the core of the organization and support and prepare to respond and manage the crisis ethically and sustainably without damage to brand, reputation, business continuity and license to operate And internal communications is a very strong part of that. #crisismanagement *****************************  𝑭𝒐𝒍𝒍𝒐𝒘 𝒖𝒔 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒊𝒏𝒔𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕𝒔 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒌𝒏𝒐𝒘𝒍𝒆𝒅𝒈𝒆-𝒔𝒉𝒂𝒓𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒄𝒐𝒏𝒕𝒆𝒏𝒕 𝒐𝒏 𝒔𝒕𝒓𝒂𝒕𝒆𝒈𝒊𝒄 𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒎𝒖𝒏𝒊𝒄𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒔, 𝒐𝒓𝒈𝒂𝒏𝒊𝒛𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒂𝒍 𝒆𝒇𝒇𝒆𝒄𝒕𝒊𝒗𝒆𝒏𝒆𝒔𝒔 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒓𝒆𝒑𝒖𝒕𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏 𝒎𝒂𝒏𝒂𝒈𝒆𝒎𝒆𝒏𝒕.  24/7 𝑪𝒐𝒎𝒎𝒖𝒏𝒊𝒄𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒔 𝑪𝒐𝒎𝒑𝒆𝒕𝒆𝒏𝒄𝒆 𝑩𝒖𝒊𝒍𝒅𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝑪𝒐𝒖𝒓𝒔𝒆𝒔 𝒂𝒕 𝒍𝒆𝒂𝒓𝒏.𝒔𝒐𝒍𝒂𝒂𝒃𝒖𝒍𝒖𝒂𝒔𝒔𝒐𝒄𝒊𝒂𝒕𝒆𝒔.𝒄𝒐𝒎

In this short clip Sola Abulu (SCMP®) speaks on the delicate balance in managing social media issues and/or crisis and why it's important to first of all (if relevant or necessary) consider making use of all the in-app opportunities to manage misinformation rather than taking it offline, instigating legal proceedings, etc ie going to the extent of overreacting to making something out of what would have otherwise have been nothing. Particularly for big brands it's time to consider setting up a misinformation desk with skilled practioners who understand how social media works. So that the management response is appropriate for the situation ie not inadequate or overdone. Just right to manage the issue without damage to immediate and long term reputation In crisis management, it's not what happens initially that counts but how you respond. #crisismanagement https://lnkd.in/eRUZQzVB

Sola Abulu (SCMP®) Live and speaking on how to transition to a career in Corporate Communications

Does this sound controversial? Yes traditional PR does not work in a bona fide crisis situation. (where your reputation is under threat, license to operate is being significantly threated and there is a groundswell of negative sentiment against the brand or personalities at the centre of the crisis). The challenge of modern day communications is to know when PR ends and Communications should begin. And crisis management is a classic example of that point. A crisis calls for a different approach. It is not about PR or protecting the image of the Brand. It is about DOING the right thing and being SEEN to do so. The dilemma of not knowing when to drop the PR hat and put on the Communications cap is why many brands fail woefully in crisis management. And there are many examples to draw on in this space - from small businesses, to major corporates to public sector institutions and to political players. The rules of crisis management and communications response are completely different. Have a great week ahead! ===================================  𝑭𝒐𝒍𝒍𝒐𝒘 𝒖𝒔 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒊𝒏𝒔𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕𝒔 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒌𝒏𝒐𝒘𝒍𝒆𝒅𝒈𝒆-𝒔𝒉𝒂𝒓𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒄𝒐𝒏𝒕𝒆𝒏𝒕 𝒐𝒏 𝒔𝒕𝒓𝒂𝒕𝒆𝒈𝒊𝒄 𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒎𝒖𝒏𝒊𝒄𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒔, 𝒐𝒓𝒈𝒂𝒏𝒊𝒛𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒂𝒍 𝒆𝒇𝒇𝒆𝒄𝒕𝒊𝒗𝒆𝒏𝒆𝒔𝒔 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒓𝒆𝒑𝒖𝒕𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏 𝒎𝒂𝒏𝒂𝒈𝒆𝒎𝒆𝒏𝒕.  24/7 𝑪𝒐𝒎𝒎𝒖𝒏𝒊𝒄𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒔 𝑪𝒐𝒎𝒑𝒆𝒕𝒆𝒏𝒄𝒆 𝑩𝒖𝒊𝒍𝒅𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝑪𝒐𝒖𝒓𝒔𝒆𝒔 𝒂𝒕 𝒍𝒆𝒂𝒓𝒏.𝒔𝒐𝒍𝒂𝒂𝒃𝒖𝒍𝒖𝒂𝒔𝒔𝒐𝒄𝒊𝒂𝒕𝒆𝒔.𝒄𝒐𝒎

Does your organization have a crisis management framework? Do you know how to handle social media issues or crisis without falling victim to the Streisand Effect? Which is when your attempt to manage a situation inevitably makes it worse.? In this video, Sola Abulu (SCMP®) highlights the importance of not overreacting and taking the time to understand the nature and gravity of what is going on and taking thoughtful steps to de-escalate without irreparable damage to reputation. Please watch and let us know what you think. ------- *Subscribe to our YouTube channel for more videos on crisis management and strategic communications https://lnkd.in/eQMph5Yd

It can be very unsettling when you wake up to a social media issue or crisis relating to your business or brand. The default reaction is alarm and first instinct is likely a fight or flight response. But it is important not to give into that gut response. Take a pause and evaluate what is going on - using the C-I-D approach Context - What is going on, where and why? Impact - How bad is it? De-escalate - What should we do to de-escalate and resolve effectively, ethically and completely? Containment and de-escalation should be the first goal. It is also important not to overreact because that could make things worse or even amplify the issue in a damaging way. Social media issues and crisis are far more delicate to handle because it is very difficult to correct misinformation once gone viral. And sometimes ill-advised actions may aggravate the issue and bring more negative publicity or attention to the brand and harm the business significantly in the immediate and long run. So what you should aim for is an informed, reasoned and appropriate response to manage the issue without damage to the brand, business and reputation of the entity. Have a great week ahead! ===============================

There are basically 4 types of brands out there. Those who are purely focused on business. Those who prioritize relationships above everything else. Those who view business from a purely marketing perspective and those who view business from a more balanced perspective where performance, relationships and communications work together to achieve market prominence and sector leadership. Which Brand would you say that your Business operates most like and why?

Celebrating the greatest resource on the planet. People. Flesh and blood workers who sleep and wake everyday to ensure that life goes on. That babies are born safely, roads are tarred, people are safe, utilities are efficiently provided, products are accessible, services delivered to standards, customer expectations are met, technology is applied innovatively. And that production targets are met and shareholder value is not eroded and the business delivers as promised. At SA&A - we do not see a world in which AI or any other form of intelligence could fully replace human intelligence, intuition or resource. Simply because people are at the heart of every business, political, social and community endeavor. The end game is to market, sell to or influence people. There is no path to success without the contribution, innovation or commitment of the people entrusted to WORK for business, society, governance or development purposes. HAPPY WORKERS DAY!!

Whether we realize it or not, we exist today in 2 universes. The physical and the digital. It is no longer enough to be present in the physical world only. As a business, your readiness for the world of the future will be determined not only by your real life performance but also by the scale and nature of your presence in the public online space. It is inportant to ensure that your presence online matches the scale and value of your business in real life. Your online presence should not be larger than in real life - unless you are basically an online company. But if you are a brick and mortar company with assets and operations primarily in the physical world, you need to ensure that anyone checking online gets a good grasp of the nature, value, purpose, impact and contribution of your business or initiatives just by interacting with your content online. Or by running a Google search. It is not acceptable in 2026 to have a scanty online presence. 🎤 Have a great week ahead. #brandcommunications