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It is an overlooked strategy when coming out of a sustained period of downward pressure on an organisation’s reputation to consider rewriting unhelpful narratives.
Done correctly this can move an organisation from a reactive communications footing – or responding constantly to issues – to a proactive footing where the communications are more on your terms.
It is also a great New Year’s activity that can be applied in a personal sense as well as for a business or a business unit.
But let’s stick to the business setting. How do you go about rewriting unhelpful narratives? Here are some guidelines.
- Know your starting point: by definition, a narrative is the telling of a connected sequence of events. A first step then is to put yourself in your audience’s shoes; how do they currently perceive you and the matter you are trying to move on from?
Your audience cannot simply suspend reality for a new communications setting – there is always a context. This analysis will also allow you to pinpoint the changed story you need.
- Look for adjacencies: following on from the point above, and in keeping with the definition of a narrative, your improved narrative needs to be about small moves – not big steps. It’s about turning that negative into a related next step communication that is proactive and positive.
For example, consider a (fictitious) case of public criticism being levelled at the quality control at a testing laboratory which turned into a long exercise of justifying their testing – an unhelpful narrative as the mistake had been rectified and the negativity of the issue got out of hand.
In this situation, Daymark would recommend looking at improving transparency around the quality control at the facility, by say releasing a monthly dashboard of benchmarks achieved.
This recommendation is related to the issue at hand but puts the issue back in the hands of the laboratory. It is also likely to be something that competitors don’t do. And most importantly provides a platform for what we may call ‘Phase 2’.
Phase 2 could for example involve advocating for greater transparency in quality control generally, bringing to light new quality control techniques, and demonstrating what a leader in quality control looks like for the sector.
- Be careful about timing: It can be better to reset the unhelpful narrative after a period of quietness on the issue at hand. There is an ‘it’s time’ factor in beginning to talk positively and proactively about an issue with former negative connotations.
- You will need proof points: any new narrative needs to have a sound foundation in what you are currently doing in the organisation. It cannot be a promise of things to come. Proof points matter.
All of these points are about how you transition from one unhelpful narrative to a positive one for the organisation. It requires thought and planning – and this is the perfect time of year to get on the front foot.
Take a look at prevailing perceptions about your organisation or business unit from 2023 that have been unhelpful. Turn the narrative on its head for a positive and proactive 2024.
