Even the best managed animal welfare nonprofit foundations can find themselves in a PR crisis sometimes. An executive director could fail to uphold the ethical values that supporters expect, a volunteer could find themselves in hot water on social media, or something truly unexpected could occur out of nowhere.

When events happen suddenly, they can quickly escalate into a crisis if your organization is not prepared. With an animal welfare public relations agency by your side, however, you have a chance to protect your foundation against the wild nature of real world.

Not Having a Plan is Planning to Fail

Animal welfare foundations set out to change the world and make things better for everyone, but people within your organization can make mistakes that can hurt your mission. Even if your organization is value-driven and capable of creating real change, poor decisions by any of your board members, spokespeople or even volunteers can escalate into a crisis. Handling it the wrong way can drive away even long-time supporters, and your followers can feel betrayed. Your activism and values, even your reputation, could end up tarnished as a result.

In the case of one of our clients, the misbehaving party in question wasn’t even a person at all: when a rhesus macaque got loose in an airport on the way to his forever sanctuary home, people took notice. The organization handled it extremely well, though, and was even able to use this event as a way to educate the public about their cause.

Animal Welfare PR Can Help Navigate the Difficult Aftermath

These scenarios might seem unlikely, but they could leave your foundation reeling as you struggle to regain your footing.  It might be tempting to try to ignore a problem or cover up the truth, but this tactic can only alienate donors or make them feel like you’re not being honest about a situation. If they lose trust in your organization, they won’t continue to donate. Strategic animal welfare organizations know they need to work with a PR agency in advance so the agency can help them identify things that could potentially go wrong. This is how you can be prepared for any situation.

Orange Orchard Can Help

Due to the world’s unpredictability, having a strategy to resolve an animal welfare crisis can prevent a bad situation from getting worse, and it can give leaders the space they need to steer the foundation through uncertain times. If you’re looking for a partner that understands your goals and shares your values, we would love to help. Contact Orange Orchard online, or call us at (865) 977-1973.