Kolbeco was recently brought in to help a well-known St. Louis company manage a public relations crisis; the event had garnered regional media attention.

Our client’s policy was to not comment during an event, but rather to provide a statement afterwards.

The nature of the client’s business includes families who are facing a difficult and personal time and their policy is simply to not provide media comments during such times. Kolbeco was brought in to help manage the media and to also assist journalists in understanding the guidelines in place to protect the client’s clients. The Kolbeco team immediately got on the phone with local newsrooms to take a more proactive approach, reaching out to those who would be covering the event. Kolbeco provided an on-site team as well as staff back at the office to manage media attention and field questions.

Our goal was to be open and up front with the media and let them know what the family was allowing and not allowing on this challenging day. Working with the media, we also managed their requests and questions. Through this process we were able to serve as the intermediary – allowing our client to focus on their core business and keeping their client from having to face a situation, they simply couldn’t manage at the time.

Ultimately we ended up with a very positive situation for our client, their client and the media, due in large part to the fact that we were well prepared and proactive in managing our internal communication.

In the end the client was portrayed well in the media and the media outlets thanked the client for being organized and direct in answering their questions. When facing a challenging situation, it often makes sense to bring in professionals to help avoid making a difficult situation more challenging than it already is.