Crisis Management

While always important, effective communications are vital during a crisis. American Viewpoint has assisted several organizations facing difficult scrutiny by helping guide their communications effort through a series of surveys, focus groups and dial testing. Some uses of how survey research can be helpful in managing a crisis include:

• National Survey-This would gauge awareness of allegations against an organization, and how that awareness drives down several reputation measurements. This survey can also test messaging to explain the allegations as well as test the potency of opponents’ attacks against the organization in question.
• Dial Testing of News Reports-Often news reports, especially news magazine shows such as 60 minutes, can be very damaging to an organization’s reputation and it is essential to be able to quickly and efficiently respond to allegations. These dial tests help gauge the impact of the broadcast and strength of the organization’s response.
• Opinion Elite Focus Groups-Opinion Elite focus groups are very helpful in crafting responses to various accusations. Opinion leaders are respondents who closely follow the news and are active in their community and are those most likely to influence their friends’ and neighbors’ perceptions.

With American Viewpoint’s background being in politics, we understand the importance of difficult timelines and a quick turnaround of accurate and well thought out recommendations, especially in a crisis mode.