Media Relations Handbook 
for Agencies, Associations, Nonprofits and Congress
 

§ 12.8  How to Use a Web Site in a Crisis

By Brad Fitch Foreword by Mike McCurry Contributing Author: Beth Gaston $45 Ships within 1 business day. The Author Reviews Sample Sections Details

Your greatest asset in any crisis, but especially a systemic crisis, is a web site. In addition to being available to the public 24/7, it has the added advantage of allowing you to disseminate information completely unedited by the media. It is also a great way to get information to reporters.

There are a few simple things you can do with your web site as soon as a crisis breaks:

• Create a special section on the crisis for the public. Make it the most prominent item on your web site. Regardless of whatever message or mission your organization has, during a crisis nearly 100 percent of your web site's visitors will be coming for crisis information--don't make it hard for them to find it.
  
• Create a special section on the crisis for the media. Reporters have different needs than the public, and good web sites tailor different sections of the site to the various needs of visitors. Include detailed information, such as background on your organization's efforts, reports related to the crisis, and the latest statements from the organization's officials.
  
• Post updates at regular intervals, even if it's simply to say there is no new information. During a crisis, a web site must be current. And, in a crisis, current for a web site means it's been updated within the last two hours.
  
• Promote links with related web sites. Make contact with other web sites, such as news organizations, and provide them easy links to your web site. You share the same goals in a crisis--getting the information to the public quickly. Take advantage of the shared mission to advance your message.
  

Media Relations Handbook
By Brad Fitch
Foreword by Mike McCurry
Contributing Author: Beth Gaston

$45
Plus shipping and handling (6% of order, $7.95 minimum).
Ships within 1 business day

Hardbound: 368 pages 
ISBN 10: 1587330032
ISBN 13: 978-1-58733-003-2
LCCN:  2003113070
OCLC: 54982382
Published 2004
Dimensions: 7.2 x 10.25 x 1.1
Weight: 2.1 pounds
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Last updated: January 01, 2008