Crisis or not? New app knows the difference

Source © Brian Jackson 123rf 48Hours has launched a free, web-based application to determine the level of a crisis

In a global crisis management survey conducted by Deloitte, 34% of businesses that have already experienced a crisis say the most important lesson they’ve learned is to have better systems in place to identify crisis scenarios, with 29% saying they would execute a more timely and robust communications plan.

Annoying chatter vs an existential crisis

When it comes to a crisis, the struggle, though, is knowing the difference between annoying chatter and an existential crisis.

In a bid to assist clients to quickly and effectively assess and act, crisis agency, 48HOURS, has launched a free, web-based application called Vice.

At a time when many crises played out on social media, it is vital to gauge scale of the problem and act as speedily as possible to contain it. The Vice app can produce valuable insight and direction for brand owners under pressure within just three minutes.

Industry-tested perspective

Vice provides industry-tested perspective, and a first dashboard view of what action needs to be taken.

After answering a quick four-step questionnaire related to metrics regarding Validity, Influence, Credibility and Economic Impact, the app produces a Severity Score from 0 - 100 that will inform the nature of the response with proposed reactions that range from simple monitoring to all hands on deck.

The tool enables business leaders to quickly establish whether they have very little cause for concern or if they are facing the kind of crisis that has the potential to severely harm their business.

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Crisis readiness

“Crisis readiness is something we encourage. But once a real-life crisis presents itself, acting decisively is the first step towards successfully containing the fallout,”says Victor Dlamini, co-founder of 48Hours.

“The Vice tool gives you a dependable methodology to assess the magnitude of the crisis quickly,” he explains.

Using data and other technology-driven tools has given 48Hours the edge in helping organisations across industries resolve crisis situations and avert the calamity they could create. The Vice tool puts a vital part of the methodology the agency uses into the hands of key executives and decision-makers.

For busy executives

“We’re really excited to introduce Vice to our clients and the rest of the market,” states Mike Stopforth, director at 48Hours.

We designed the tool with busy executives in mind, knowing that when faced with a crisis, they need insight that can quickly aid them in making smarter, less emotional decisions to protect their brands,” he explains.