Negative Publicity Doesn't Have to Break You
A 5-day email course on handling negative publicity — assessing the situation, choosing your response, crafting the message, escalation and de-escalation, and knowing when to stay silent. Turn a PR threat into a managed situation.
What You'll Be Able to Do After This Course
Assess the situation before you react
Learn to assess negative publicity — source, reach, sentiment, trajectory — before responding. Most organisations make things worse by reacting before understanding.
Choose the right response strategy
Learn the response options — acknowledge, correct, counter, ignore — and when to use each. Not every negative story needs a response. Know the difference.
Craft responses that defuse, not inflame
Learn to write responses that are calm, factual, and constructive. Master the tone and structure that turns a potential crisis into a non-event.
Know when silence is the strongest response
Sometimes the best response is no response. Learn to identify when staying silent is smarter than speaking — and when silence becomes its own problem.
Handling Negative Publicity
Tactical guide for responding to negative press, reviews, and social media backlash. Covers SCCT-based situation assessment, response strategy selection using the deny/diminish/rebuild continuum, response crafting with webcare evidence, escalation and de-escalation, and strategic silence. A 5-day email course for PR professionals, business owners, and brand managers facing negative coverage.
What You'll Learn
5 lessons · One per day
Lesson 1: Assessing the Situation
Learn to assess the situation — source, reach, sentiment, trajectory — before responding. Most organisations make things worse by reacting before understanding.
Lesson 2: Choosing Your Response
Choose your response strategy. Learn the options — acknowledge, correct, counter, ignore — and when to use each. Not every negative story needs a response.
Lesson 3: Crafting the Response
Craft the response. Learn to write messages that are calm, factual, and constructive. Master the tone and structure that defuses instead of inflames.
Lesson 4: Escalation and De-escalation
Learn escalation and de-escalation. Know when to take the issue seriously enough to escalate — and when to dial down the response to avoid amplifying the problem.
Lesson 5: When to Stay Silent
Know when to stay silent. Learn to identify when silence is the strongest response — and when staying quiet becomes its own problem. The hardest call in PR.
Questions? Answered.
Crisis Communication Essentials covers the full crisis lifecycle — types, first 24 hours, recovery. This course focuses specifically on negative publicity — the day-to-day reputation threats that aren't full-blown crises but can escalate if mishandled.
About 15 minutes per day for 5 days. Each lesson includes a practical exercise — assessing a scenario, drafting a response, deciding whether to engage.
You're covered by a 30-day money-back guarantee. If the course doesn't help you handle negative publicity, email us and we'll refund you — no questions asked.
Lessons arrive on a schedule — daily, weekly, or at whatever pace the course sets. Read each one in 5 minutes, complete the quick quiz, and move on. Access lessons in your inbox or online in your dashboard — no app to install.
No. Lessons work in any email client or web browser — Gmail, Outlook, Apple Mail, Chrome, Safari, anything. If you can open a link, you're ready.
Lessons stay in your inbox — read them when you have time. There's no penalty for going at your own pace. You're in control of your schedule.
Yes. Every course comes with a 30-day money-back guarantee. If you're not satisfied, contact us for a full refund — no questions asked.
Yes. Complete all lessons and quizzes in a course to earn a certificate of completion. Share it on LinkedIn or with your employer.
Yes. Lessons work on any device — phone, tablet, or desktop. Read them in your inbox or in your online dashboard. No separate app needed.
For the free mini-course, no — just enter your email. For paid courses, you'll create an account during checkout so we can track your progress and issue certificates.
Yes. You can stop receiving lessons at any time from your dashboard or by clicking the unsubscribe link in any email. No phone calls, no retention hoops.
Yes. Payments are processed by Stripe, a PCI-compliant payment provider. We never see or store your card details. You're protected by the same security standards as any major online retailer.
Yes. Lessons stay in your inbox, and your dashboard keeps a record of your progress and quiz results. You can revisit any lesson anytime — nothing disappears when the course finishes.