The Virtual CMO Podcast
Season 6, Episode 19
Hosted By: Eric Dickmann
With Guest: Søren Friis Larsen
Our Featured Guest
Søren Friis Larsen
Founder & CEO - MindCream
Søren Friis Larsen is an executive advisor, crisis management expert, senior professional, and Founder and CEO of MindCream. His company offers high-value professional networking and business development opportunities for CxOs, BoDs, and senior professionals across a broad range of industries.
As an executive advisor specializing in communication and crisis management, Søren has been called upon countless times to offer advice on managing crises from global product recalls, cyber-attacks, regulatory entanglements, fraud, layoffs, medical malpractice, or false rumors in the press.
Today we discuss crisis management and how marketing can help organizations build credibility when a crisis strikes to build a reputational moat around their brand, PR, and marketing efforts.
What's Hot?
"High-value professional networks and business development opportunities for CxOs, BoDs, and Senior Professionals across a broad range of industries."
Mind-Cream offers high-value, by-invitation-only network and business development opportunities to CxOs, board members, and experienced senior professionals from different industries. The team helps client build professional connections, gain executive advice and evaluation, and own brand network as a service.
Mind-Cream holds on to two values- diversity of thought and letting purpose guide you. They want to bring together the brightest minds - the cream of the crop, and challenge them so they can grow and improve.
Søren Friis Larsen
What We Discussed with Søren
On this episode, host Eric Dickmann interviews Søren Friis Larsen about crisis management- preparing for marketing's dark day. Here are some highlights of our conversation:
- [00:03:25] What are some of the things that you can do to start preparing for marketing's dark day?- Being prepared for marketing's dark day starts with having a mindset that the business may encounter both the good and the bad. It's wise for businesses to contemplate where things could potentially go wrong.
- [00:06:49] What are some of the early steps that companies need to take as they begin to deal with an unexpected crisis?- In most circumstances, it is rare that companies are entirely unprepared. To start, make sure to have the right people and resources around the table.
- [00:09:28] The importance of having a spokesperson - A strong spokesperson who remains calm and composed is a valuable asset for any company. They can communicate that everyone is working hard to resolve the situation and that goes a long way. A company may not have all the answers to the customer's questions, but being out there is vital.
- [00:14:03] How do you view a company's reputation?- The company's reputation should be treated as an asset. When the reputation is good, a company can thrive. When it's terrible, the company may suffer.
- [00:19:16] Dealing with negative reviews and reputation-haunting dilemmas- Online reviews may not seem like an area for crisis management but when left unattended, bad reviews can chip away at a business's reputation and cause long-term damage to the brand.
- [00:27:13] How personality adds another layer of complexity in implementing business decisions– Personalities can help calm a situation or exacerbate a problem. It's important to understand the management team's strengths and weaknesses. When in crisis mode, seniority matters but it's also important to consider personalities.
Resources Mentioned
- Mind-Cream - Company Website
