A reputation audit is a crucial part of our issues management services and one of the fundamentals of proactive crisis prevention. It enables organisations, whether charities or companies operating within the education, healthcare, or entertainment industries, to assess the scope and nature of any recent reputational damage and provides valuable insights into the impact on both stakeholder and media relationships.
This initial assessment, which comprises the creation of a reputational risk landscape, best practice guidance, and specific recommendations on remedial measures, is indispensable for developing an effective crisis PR plan.
Reputation Audit – Our method
Our dedicated team of specialists boast a wealth of expertise in strategic communications, PR crisis plans and effective stakeholder engagement.
They employ this expertise and first-hand experience in handling PR crises and issues across a range of sectors as they support organisations through a bespoke and comprehensive reputation audit.
Face-to-Face Interviews
To begin, we carry out face-to-face interviews with key employees across your organisation. These interviews are incredibly valuable as they allow us to gather various insights into stakeholders’ perceptions, concerns, and expectations.
Focus Groups and Surveys
Focus groups and surveys effectively complement these engagements, favouring collective dialogue and shedding light on broader ideas and trends both within your organisation and from an external perspective. This helps us build out a clear understanding of your reputational risks and organisational vulnerabilities.
Desktop Research
Our bespoke analysis incorporates desktop research and benchmarking exercises, combining an exhaustive analysis of your online reputation and exposure to risk, internal governing documents and policies, industry standards, competition, and regulatory environments. Our findings then allow us to contextualise the situation better within broader industry trends.
By analysing an organisation’s existing crisis management protocols and assessing its recent media performance, we identify its vulnerabilities and areas that need improvement. This comprehensive approach allows our reputation audit to delve deep into the precise details and the underlying factors that shape an organisation’s reputation.
Once the reputation audit is complete, our clients receive a carefully crafted final report that provides valuable action points and addresses vulnerabilities. This document not only summarises our research findings but offers tailored recommendations that will best protect your reputation and plug gaps before they risk becoming a crisis PR disaster.
Our reputation audit assesses the current perception of an organisation and addresses any vulnerabilities that may lead to issues in the future.