Orchan Consulting | Asia Sdn Bhd

A few years ago, a regional brand we worked with found itself in the middle of a fast-moving online storm. A minor service error had escalated into angry tweets, then media pick-up. Their instinct? “Let’s wait it out. If we don’t feed the fire, it’ll burn out.” But silence doesn’t look neutral. In today’s environment, silence looks like guilt. Within 48 hours, the narrative was out of their hands. By the time they finally issued a statement, the damage wasn’t just about the service error -- it was about “a company that doesn’t care.” This isn’t a one-off. We’ve seen it across industries in Asia-Pacific : brands that equate silence with safety almost always dig themselves deeper . The public doesn’t interpret silence as strategic restraint ; they interpret it as evasion . And competitors or activists will happily fill that vacuum with their own version of the story. The lesson is clear: crisis management is not about hiding; it’s about speaking quickly without losing control . That’...

Reputation isn’t built by press releases. It’s shaped by what people say when they think no one’s listening. Here’s how unseen chatter can derail your brand, and what to do about it. Companies love their press releases. Glossy language, approved quotes, carefully chosen words. But here’s the uncomfortable truth: your reputation isn’t built in those polished paragraphs. It’s built in the conversations you don’t control. The comments whispered at the coffee shop. The WhatsApp messages between frustrated customers. The grumbles employees share at lunch. That’s where reputations are shaped; and often, where they’re broken. The Story No Press Release Could Save A few years ago, a well-known brand (no names, but you’d recognise them instantly) invested heavily in a “positive PR push.” Press releases were flowing, coverage looked great on paper, and the leadership team was confident. But beneath the surface, informal chatter was telling a different story. Customers were quietly compla...

Most crisis management plans fail the moment reality hits. Here’s why your playbook is probably useless -- and what actually works when reputation is on the line. Crisis management plans look great on paper. Thick binders. Colour-coded tabs. Executive signatures on the front page. But when the fire alarm goes off? Most of those plans are about as useful as duit pisang. Here’s the uncomfortable truth: the majority of crisis plans fail the second they’re needed. Not because people don’t mean well, but because the plans are written for boardrooms, not for the chaos of real life. The Big Flaws We See Over and Over 1. Too Slow to Matter Plans are often thick binders or pretty PDFs that require endless approvals before anyone can act. By the time the press statement is “perfected,” the damage is already viral. 2. Too Sanitised to Be Believed Crisis templates are full of jargon and corporate-safe language. But in a real crisis, audiences crave honesty , not clichés. If your respons...

Crisis doesn’t knock politely. It barges in. One minute you’re trending for a clever campaign, the next you’re trending for all the wrong reasons. In Malaysia, where culture, community, and the court of public opinion move fast (and sometimes unforgivingly), managing a crisis is about more than issuing a statement. It’s about protecting trust when it matters most. So What Counts as a Crisis Today? In Malaysia, a “crisis” isn’t just a product recall or a shareholder scandal. These days it can be: A social media pile-on that starts with one unhappy customer. A regulatory slip-up that attracts headlines and ministry eyes. A cultural misstep that sparks outrage faster than you can say “delete tweet.”                                           Just look at the recent myBurgerLab incident (link below): a senior exec’s careless remark about Friday prayers didn’t just stay on Facebook; i...