The impact of #loadshedding in Public Relations

By now everybody is aware of what Loadshedding is as it is one of the crises facing our country, but did you know that Public Relations Professionals can play an important role in managing the expectations of the affected people and the way they view loadshedding. The question is how? Well to answer that question continue reading this blog as I will further discuss the opportunities, challenges as well as recommendations for the strategic use of social media. 

Let me start by unpacking challenges for public relations professionals in this situation. Loadshedding causes a lot of anger to the affected public as it also impacts their business so they might blame Eskom who is the service provider, for any inconvenience leading to people having negative perception about the brand. Misinformation and fake news spread very fast on social media, leading to further confusion which makes it a little bit hard for Public Relation Professionals to control the situation. 

 

Now you must be wondering what the possible opportunities for PRPs in such situation could be. Well, when loadshedding happens and people complain this highlights the significance of Eskom to communities. The situation could also be an advantage to PR professionals as it gives you a chance to position your Eskom as a caring and responsible organization that is willing to limit the impact of loadshedding to its customers. 

 

To minimize all of this I would recommend Public Relation professionals to use social media to update on loadshedding schedule that way the customers would be less frustrated as they were expecting it. Also, the PRPs must monitor social media to avoid any misinformation that might spread in order for them to control the situation on time. The effective use of social media can be a valuable tool in this time