How to say sorry the right way in a crisis

Communications expert Peter Wilkinson yesterday wrote an opinion piece for Mumbrella on Optus and how it handled a fine from the ACCC for selling products to vulnerable people. That piece included inaccuracies that Wilkinson later corrected in a clarification. Today, Wilkinson reflects on what an effective apology looks and feels like.

It’s worth discussing what makes a good written apology.

We are in difficult times, with an increasingly distrustful public, cynical and clickbait-driven media, and toxic social media.

Peter Wilkinson

Peter Wilkinson

Here are, for me, some ‘apology’ rules, and remember, the aim is to become trusted by the target audience:

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