How do we process the historic moment unfolding….

Communications Leadership
Written By Christina Crowley-Arklie
Queen Elizabeth II, 1926–2022.

Queen Elizabeth II, 1926–2022. Image Source.

I’m sure, like many of you, what you had planned to talk out and put out today from a content perspective or in your newsletter, may be back in the draft folders, after the news of the passing of Queen Elizabeth II yesterday.

How do we process grief as humans in real time, while it needs to be ‘business as usual’ in the workplace and with our corporate communications channels?

All of a sudden, content you had scheduled to put out, a campaign you were set to launch, an announcement or a live event/conference you have planned and were excited to share more about, may seem irrelevant, ill-timed and you may be wondering if it needs to be rescheduled altogether.

It’s one of the hardest and trickiest things to manage as a leader, as a brand or organization, as a communicator.. as a human… times such as these.

Watching ‘history’ unfold in real time, as we are in this very moment, can be that of a cathartic experience. It’s how I felt yesterday as I turned on the TV to watch the news be officially delivered by mainstream media, after seeing it officially announced through the Royal Family’s Twitter page. Digital is where news breaks now.

I also didn’t know things such as the plan for what is to be done after the Queen passes is called ‘Operation London Bridge.’ In the UK, the Queen’s death triggers an official 12-day period of national mourning and we in Canada may have a different official mourning period/process. Who knew any of this?

In these moments of historical significance, as things are unfolding, it’s a good reminder from a communications and digital communications standpoint, to be listening to your audience and listening to what they’re saying and how they’re feeling in order, to address their needs, their concerns, their feelings to continue with planned corporate communications.

Here are 5 helpful reminders from a corporate communications standpoint to keep in mind right now (if you haven’t already done something in response to the Queen’s passing yesterday or are thinking about how to plan ahead in the coming days):

  1. Determine if your organization will release a statement or signal anything on your digital/social media channels. It’s also a good question to ask — should your leader/CEO/Board Chair be saying anything with an official statement? Should your statement be included on your company website? etc;

  2. Always remember your target audience… and that they’re human — listen to them and what they’re saying/feeling and based your communications, both traditional and digital, use them as the ultimate ‘temperature gauge’ before you go back to business as usual and to determine what you do with your upcoming content calendar and events planned;

  3. Review your content calendar(s) — see where you may need to adjust putting content out and determine what is necessary in the coming days (aka. business as usual). See if/where you’d like to address what your target audience is most likely going to be watching, listening, feeling, discussing and events that are taking place in the coming days that may take away from important events/content/campaigns you had scheduled to go out;

  4. A reminder to be ready for — people may begin to become divided about the passing of Queen Elizabeth II especially in these times we’re living through. Be acutely aware of this and think of the many different perspectives and feelings being shared by your target audience right now. It’s not a ‘one size fits all’ approach anymore. Be ready to respond to this on your social media channels.

  5. Source information and dates from official sources. Mainstream media will continue to cover the events of the days to come as things unfold in the 12 days of official mourning, and while we may all have certain media outlets we prefer to source information from, follow official sources to ensure you’re getting dates correct, following how/when Canada will be mourning, etc. Here are some good resources to officially follow if you aren’t already:

Christina Crowley-Arklie https://www.crowleyarkliestrategy.com
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