CommCore Blog and News

Communicators in the Trump-World of Nano-Second Business Decisions

By: Andrew Gilman
In a recent New York Times DealBook article, Andrew Ross Sorkin argues that CEOs are experiencing a two-part reaction to President Trump’s fast and furious singling out of companies and industries. One part is jubilation that regulations and taxes could be lowered soon, thus pushing up their profits and paychecks. The second reaction is “…anxiety that they could become a target of one of the President’s Twitter tirades, which could undo their businesses or possibly their careers.”

Sorkin’s analysis is supported by Katie Paine’s PRNews analysis of how 9 companies responded to  @realdonaldtrump  tweets. “One 140-character screed about Lockheed Martin cost the company $28 million per character.” While the stock recovered, the short-term anxiety and tension was palpable.

Most organizations try to manage the predictable, and respond to sudden shifts, crises and unplanned events.  The question for CEOs and communication/reputation teams is: What do you do if the Trump Twitter machine has you in its sights? CommCore recommends a “Three-F” response to a Trump attack. Communicators working with senior management must be:

  • Fast
  • Flexible
  • Factual

Paine gives higher marks to those that were quickest. Organizations are responding Fast in the viral world, then adjusting with market and tweet reactions. So Flexible vs. rigid messages are key. Now that “alternative facts” has been introduced into our lexicon, it’s important that responses be Fact-based.  Lastly, respond with facts that you can support, not that you have to retreat from.

You can visit CommCore’s crisis management section on our website to learn how we can help before, during and after a crisis.