CBM Brand Crisis Communication 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Which communication principle is best illustrated by a CEO appearing on live television within hours of a product recall?
- Information containment
- Visible leadership (Correct answer)
- Stakeholder deflection
- Media blackout
Correct answer: Visible leadership
Visible leadership during a crisis reassures stakeholders that the brand is taking responsibility at the highest level.
Question 2: A brand discovers a social media rumor is false but spreading rapidly. The BEST first step is to:
- Ignore it and wait for it to die
- Issue a legal cease-and-desist immediately
- Publish a clear factual rebuttal with evidence (Correct answer)
- Delete all brand social accounts temporarily
Correct answer: Publish a clear factual rebuttal with evidence
Providing factual evidence quickly counters misinformation before it becomes widely accepted as truth.
Question 3: What does the term 'crisis containment' mean in brand communication?
- Hiding negative information from all audiences
- Limiting the spread and impact of negative narratives through proactive messaging (Correct answer)
- Terminating employees responsible for the crisis
- Suspending all advertising campaigns indefinitely
Correct answer: Limiting the spread and impact of negative narratives through proactive messaging
Crisis containment involves strategic messaging to prevent a crisis from escalating or spreading to unaffected brand areas.
Question 4: During a brand crisis, 'bridging' in media interviews refers to:
- Connecting two separate crises in the same statement
- Transitioning from a difficult question to a key message the brand wants to convey (Correct answer)
- Linking the brand's crisis to a competitor's failure
- Pausing an interview to consult legal counsel
Correct answer: Transitioning from a difficult question to a key message the brand wants to convey
Bridging allows spokespersons to acknowledge a question and then redirect to the brand's core message or response.
Question 5: Which metric is MOST useful for evaluating the effectiveness of crisis communication in the immediate aftermath?
- Quarterly revenue figures
- Sentiment analysis of media coverage and social mentions (Correct answer)
- Number of employees retained post-crisis
- Annual brand equity score
Correct answer: Sentiment analysis of media coverage and social mentions
Real-time sentiment analysis reveals how audiences are responding to crisis messaging and whether narratives are shifting.
Question 6: A company issues a statement saying 'We regret if anyone was offended.' This is an example of:
- Full accountability
- A non-apology apology (Correct answer)
- Proactive crisis prevention
- Empathetic leadership
Correct answer: A non-apology apology
A non-apology apology shifts blame to the audience's feelings rather than accepting responsibility for the brand's actions.
Question 7: Which of the following best describes a 'holding statement' in crisis communication?
- A legal injunction preventing media coverage
- A brief initial message acknowledging a crisis while full facts are still being gathered (Correct answer)
- A long-form press release explaining all crisis details
- A statement issued only after litigation is resolved
Correct answer: A brief initial message acknowledging a crisis while full facts are still being gathered
A holding statement buys time by showing awareness and concern before the brand has all the facts needed for a complete response.
CBM Brand Crisis Communication 2
Which communication principle is best illustrated by a CEO appearing on live television within hours of a product recall?