Many large multinational businesses spend huge sums on enhancing their reputations and standing. They do this through advertising, of course, but also in more subtle ways – through teams in PR, publicity, public affairs and ‘strat comms’.
These teams, in turn, might pay chunky retainers to agencies that do pretty much the same thing – but better.
On top of all this, it’s not unusual for big firms to invest in ‘reputation insurance’ – policies that pay out to cover events such as security breaches, employee malpractice or association with a third party that brings the brand into dispute.
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While the events covered by such policies usually remain hidden from public view, the insurer Lloyd’s points to real-world examples where insurance could be relevant, including the US hotel and casino chain Wynn Resorts losing $3.5 billion after sexual assault allegations against its founder, and the electronics company Samsung losing $17 billion after it was forced to recall dangerous faulty batteries in 2016.
Preempt: De-risking it all
But what of high-profile individuals? What are their options in an era when the spectre of cancel culture looms as large as ever?
Step forward veteran reputation specialist Mark Borkowski, who reveals exclusively to Spear’s that his eponymous firm has developed a new insurance-based model for those who want to know they will be entitled to professional advice in the event of a sudden swarm of negative communications.
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Borkowski says that its policy, known as ‘Preempt’, will provide policyholders with a guaranteed 60 days of crisis communications support should they need it. The aim is to target those HNWs, family offices or corporates who would like to know that they have cover at hand, but may not want to shell out for a more expensive retainer agreement.
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As well as access to the firm’s specialists in a crisis situation, policyholders will also benefit from some pre-emptive due diligence – including a deep dive into their own potential threat landscape via background checks and advanced media monitoring.
‘It’s a bit like when you have your blood pressure checked with medical coverage,’ says Gregor Cubie, Borkowski’s strategy director, who has developed the product with underwriting and risk specialists Samphire Risk and RepuTitan.
‘We want to spot these things before they become a problem.’
Guarding against bad actors
Naturally, a policy doesn’t absolve its holder of responsibility when it comes to their potential cancellation. Just as a health insurance policy might demand that customers declare any pre-existing conditions, Preempt requires applicants to disclose details of anything which might be relevant – in other words, to come clean about any potential skeletons in their closet.
Similarly, the firm is clear that not everyone will be suitable for Preempt. Anyone perceived to be deliberately courting controversy – no doubt readers can think of their own examples – will likely be deemed unsuitable. ‘You wouldn’t expect a car insurance provider to cover a driver who was constantly crashing,’ says Cubie wryly.
Disclosure is one thing, but presumably such a policy would still need to provide some flexibility to deal with unforeseen situations. What coverage would an HNW have if they were to find themselves being targeted for comments made many years beforehand which may not have been controversial at the time? ‘If something that was harmless at the time is used against you at a later date, we should be able to support you through that,’ says Cubie.
The usual alternative – paying a sizeable monthly retainer for access to assistance that may never be required – is not without its problems.
‘Speaking from experience, selling retained crisis support to private clients is a difficult and thankless task,’ says Jordan Greenaway, founder of reputation management firm Transmission Private.
‘There is a tendency for them to see it as a heavy ongoing cost for something they might not actually need.’
While it may serve the interests of those selling such services to emphasise the risks their would-be clients face, reputation experts insist that the ever-more sophisticated techniques of bad actors should make HNWs think carefully about whether they want to risk leaving these things to chance.
‘We have seen the creation of industrialised fake news, where someone can use bot networks to amplify their attack on someone’s reputation,’ says Cubie. The result is that a cancel culture-style attack can be amplified to the point where it becomes the dominant search result for someone’s name.
Given the threat landscape, he says, it pays for HNWs to be prepared – and insurance may be the best place to start.
This feature first appeared in Spear’s Magazine Issue 94. Click here to subscribe.
