We had a client with, ahem, let’s say an odour issue. A local vigilante group was kicking up a storm, threatening all sorts and involving local media. We needed to take the heat out of the situation and safeguard the company’s reputation.
Across a period of six weeks, we worked closely with the client to contain the situation in a calm and respectful way, listening to the community anxieties, responding thoroughly but fairly and briefing key stakeholders such as local ward councillors, the local MP and the city council. We monitored, but did not engage with, residents’ social media.
The client made further investment in odour control and went to great lengths to overcome the issue. This was communicated via local media and directly to local residents. On a number of occasions the heat was taken out of local media stories initiated by local residents by briefing journalists on the actions taken by the client. A dedicated phone line and email was set up to handle residents’ concerns.