By doing any one of the things mentioned above, you can quickly make a bad situation 100 times worse.  But how do you come out smelling like roses, when the odor your story is emanating is rotten eggs?

Tell the truth.  As the old adage goes, the truth will set you free.  It is no different when it comes to your company and your brand.  Telling the truth, no matter how bad the situation is, generally helps lessen the blow and possibly produce a positive result.  How does one do that you ask? Easy…put a positive spin on it.

By using positive terms, and having one designated spokesperson when delivering negative information can help a situation go from top headline news that is being talked about for days on end, to a story that is just a flash in the pan – there and gone.  It’s all about how you ‘package’ it.

Instead of saying, ‘The customer was furious that we did not deliver the product on time.’ We could say, ‘The customer was not satisfied with the time it took us to produce a superior product.’  Remember, it is all about changing the negative words into more positive ones (packaging).  You are relaying the same message, just in a much softer, more subtle way.

Always focus on the success, the positive. Never highlight the failures or speak in negative terms. Even in the worst situations, there is always a shred of good, a silver lining.  Make sure you take a moment to take a step back, assess the situation, analyze what you have to work with, breathe and then formulate your positive spin.