I have been posting less on the blog over the past weeks. Given the current events in Ukraine, it would just not look right when the SlideMagic twitter account posts happy titles such as “A new and exciting way to crop your images” amid all the other stuff that is going on.

The current war is also a big communication war. And in times of conflict, it might be wise to count to 10 before saying things after seeing these horrible images coming out of the battlefield. Western leaders have been very aggressive in their language: ‘total economic war’ etc. etc. The problem is with all of this is that you need to keep a ladder for the other side to climb down, rather than throwing oil on the fire. The world already knows that you are (rightfully) upset.

The better strategy:

• Use a more matter of fact tone in communicating sanctions: “we don’t like what you are doing, here is what we do to show that we mean it, we will reverse if you do”

• Show unity and resolve

• Go after economic targets that really hurt, rather than things that are high profile but don’t actually mean very much

• Instead of leaking to the press how many arms you supplied or might supply, brief them on how to calculate the economic impact of the sanctions, now, in 1 week, and one month from now

• Maintain a cold and rational calculation of the financial damage done and communicate it

• Maintain a cold and rational evidence trail of wire crimes committed and communicate it

• Keep on ratcheting up the sanctions, without the polemic rhetoric.

Day by day the pressure to climb down the ladder will become stronger, and that will also not go unnoticed in other governments in the world that are evaluating geopolitical strategies