With reputation tattered, Jay Leno tries to “make good” on the Oprah Show February 7, 2010
Posted by admin in Uncategorized.Tags: Jay Leno, NBC, Conan O'Brien, Tonight Show
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Although he won the battle to take back the “Tonight Show” from Conan O’Brien, Jay Leno found his reputation in tatters after most people in late night television mobilized against him. To repair his image and tell his side of the story Leno appeared on the Oprah Winfrey Show at the end of January. Leno insisted to Oprah that he was not pulling any strings to oust Conan, and that it was actually O’Brien’s fault that he was forced to leave because his ratings were so low. Ultimately, Leno suggested that the nasty nature of the newest late night war was the result of NBC’s terrible handling of the situation. As Leno stated, anything would have been better than what NBC did: “Anything. If they had come in and shot everybody, I mean, it would have been, ‘Oh, the people were murdered,’ but at least it would have been a two-day story.”
Was Leno’s take on the situation an honest representation of what happened? Body language experts who saw the Leno interview with Oprah claimed that his gestures indicated the comedian felt a need to protect himself, and that he was truly hurt and uncomfortable about the drama.
Leno did not impress everyone, though. For a more critical perspective on his appearance with Oprah, see the following videos:
Discussion Questions:
1. Why did so many people side with Conan O’Brien in the tug of war over the “Tonight Show”?
2. Did Leno adequately address the criticism of his role in the drama? If so, what did he say that was such an effective defense? If not, what could he have done better?
3. Will Americans forgive Jay Leno?
The Importance of an Apology: Toyota manages crisis, its leaders say “sorry” February 7, 2010
Posted by admin in Uncategorized.Tags: Akio Toyoda, Apology, Crisis Management, Jim Lentz, public relations, Toyota
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Facing a major recall after discovering that some of its cars with malfunctioning gas pedals may be causing serious accidents, Toyota’s leaders have confronted the crisis with public apology. Toyota’s president, Akio Toyoda, apologized for his company’s recalls, and promised to ensure better quality control by setting up a special committee that he would lead. Moreover, the president and CEO of Toyota’s U.S. sales, Jim Lentz, said in a video on the company’s web site, “I know that our recalls have caused many of you concern and for that I am truly sorry.” Lentz also apologized to consumers on numerous morning news shows. With more than 2,000 documented reports of sticky gas pedals since 1999 that have caused 815 crashes, leaving 340 injured and 19 dead, it remains to be seen whether Toyota’s apologies will help repair the company’s image.
See the following videos to watch the apologies yourself, and to see a review of the company’s crisis management strategy:
Discussion Questions:
1. Why is offering an apology such an important part of crisis management?
2. Aside from an apology, what else should companies like Toyota say when issuing a statement about a major product recall?
3. What messages could Toyota use in its future campaigns to erase the public’s memory of this major crisis?
Recognizing the Value of a Joke: Slap Chop profits off internet gag February 2, 2010
Posted by admin in Uncategorized.Tags: Shlomi, Slap Chop
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Vince Shlomi, the pitchman known for his ShamWow commercials, hit a major low at the beginning of 2009. For starters, his newest ad for a product called the Slap Chop seemed lame and uncreative to most people. Moreover, though, Shlomi found himself at the heart of an embarrassing news story after a prostitute that he hired in Miami tried biting off his tongue. After punching the prostitute several times, Shlomi appeared in a mug shot that was quickly circulated on the internet.
Surprisingly, Shlomi, who became a bit of a joke on the internet, was featured in a “rap remix” of the Slap Chop video. The joke went viral on the internet, and Slap Chop eventually decided to embrace the various spoofs of its ad and air them on television.
To see both versions of the Slap Chop ads, watch the following videos:
Discussion Questions:
1. Why do you think the Slap Chop remixes have gone viral on the internet?
2. How has Slap Chop been able to reconnect with the public? Has it been able to reach a bigger audience than it would have if it ran exclusively on television?
3. What lessons might other companies or organizations learn from Slap Chop?
Hope for the Hopeless? John Edwards battles a tell-all book February 2, 2010
Posted by admin in Uncategorized.Tags: Andrew Young, Books, Crisis Management, John Edwards, public relations, The Politician
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Andrew Young, the former aide to John Edwards, has released a tell-all book about his relationship with the former candidate for president (and vice-president). In The Politician, Young writes that he admired Edwards when he was just a lawyer, and over a ten-year period did everything he was asked in order to become a trusted friend of the ambitious leader. It was not until Young was asked to cover up an affair that Edwards was having with an assistant that he supposedly began to question his allegiance to the former political star.
Obviously jaded with Edwards, Young has confessed that the North Carolinian hated mixing with the common people despite his populist image, cheated on his wife while she battled cancer, made a sex tape with his assistant, and was the father his mistress’s child. Young claims that he feared for his life after he broke ties with Edwards and decided to come clean. Needless to say, Young’s appearances on several talk shows recently has made it difficult for Edwards to repair his image as a political leader.
For more on Young’s tell-all book, see the following video:
Discussion Questions:
1. Is there a genre that describes the kind of book that Young wrote about Edwards? If so, what are some other projects that belong to that genre? How have those who’ve been attacked by those books responded in the past?
2. Could John Edwards have prevented this new crisis by confessing earlier? What mistakes did he make with his early statements about his transgressions?
3. Will Edwards ever be able to return to politics, either as a leader or adviser?
The hunt for the new Billy Mays January 25, 2010
Posted by admin in Uncategorized.Tags: Advertising Age, Billy Mays, DRTV, Jack Neff, Larry Dobrow, marketing, public relations, Telebrands
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It is hard for many people to fully understand the talent of late pitchman Billy Mays. According to Advertising Age’s Jack Neff, who recently watched Billy’s former employer, Telebrands, audition more than two dozen people for his position, Mays was a legend as big as Babe Ruth or Michael Jordan. The judging criteria was simple and straightforward, Neff suggested: “In DRTV, the only judging that really matters is how many of those operators stop standing by and get to work, or at least as importantly these days, how much traffic spikes on the website.” As Neff added, “Nobody has ever made more of that happen than Billy Mays. The same products invariably sold better when pitched by him than others. He was responsible for as much as 70% of the DRTV gadget ads on air at the time of his death, by some estimates, and a considerable if shrinking percentage even afterward.”
Advertising Age’s Larry Dobrow, who recently competed in a similar contest, offers some clearer insight about the characteristics of those people who can single-handedly lead a successful marketing campaign. Reflecting on his own failure, Dobrow asked, “Why did I bomb? Maybe it’s because I can’t summon sincerity on demand (this was perhaps Mays’ most underrated skill). Or maybe it’s simply because some people are born to sell and some aren’t. In the windowless green room, I spent an hour chatting with my fellow auditionees. Intense pre-show rituals notwithstanding — no fewer than five silently mouthed their spiels and examined their body language in front of the room’s mirrors — they struck me as a wonderfully able group, both decent and articulate. They made you want to listen to them.”
To see a few of the successful ads starring Billy Mays, watch the videos below:
Discussion Questions:
1. What made Billy Mays such a legendary pitchman?
2. How might other leaders of other campaigns learn from Billy Mays? For instance, what lessons could an aspiring politician starting the campaign trail learn from the famous salesman?
3. How did Billy Mays make his messages go viral? Is there any rule that describes his success?
Corn Refiners Association’s high-fructose corn syrup ads a mixed success January 25, 2010
Posted by admin in Uncategorized.Tags: public relations, Health, high-fructose corn syrup, Dan Childs, Corn Refiners Association, CRA, Lisa McLaughlin
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In September 2008 the Corn Refiners Association (CRA) launched an 18-month campaign to rebuild the tattered image of high-fructose corn syrup. Several television ads have been created with what Time’s Lisa McLaughlin has identified as a common message: “High-fructose corn syrup is made from corn, has no artificial ingredients, has the same calories as sugar and is okay to eat in moderation.” Despite the knee-jerk reaction that the message is ridiculous, McLaughlin said it contains some truth: “The American Medical Association recently announced at its annual policy-making meeting in Chicago that high-fructose corn syrup does not contribute more to obesity than sugar or other caloric sweeteners.”
Critics of the CRA’s ads assail the organization for its deceptive use of evidence. Sure, these critics argue, the ads are effective at encouraging people to ask questions about the negative attitudes toward high-fructose corn syrup, but they are also neglecting the fact that it is still just as bad for people as sugar. According to ABC’s Dan Childs: “Even if it is true that high fructose corn syrup is no worse than sugar, that means it still offers four calories per gram. This may not sound like a lot. But if the punch that mom is pouring in the televised ad is anything like one popular brand of fruit drink for which water and high fructose corn syrup are the two main ingredients, that eight-ounce glass she’s pouring for her kid contains about 120 calories. For kids 9 to 13 years old, the total amount of daily calories recommended by the American Heart Association tops out at between 1,600 and 1,800.”
To see why health experts link fructose to obesity, watch the following video:
To see a few of the CRA’s ads yourself, watch the following videos:
To see why many health experts are critical of the CRA’s ads, watch the following video:
Discussion Questions:
1. To summarize, what are some of the realistic dangers of high-fructose corn syrup?
2. Why do many people find the CRA’s ads to be deceptive?
3. Despite these concerns, why are the CRA’s ads so effective?
H&M and Wal-Mart outrage the public for trashing winter clothing January 18, 2010
Posted by admin in Uncategorized.Tags: Crisis Management, Facebook, H&M, homeless, Jim Dwyer, public relations, The New York TImes, Wal-Mart
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On January 5, 2010, Jim Dwyer from The New York Times broke an embarrassing story for clothing retailer H&M and superstore Wal-Mart. Dwyer was tipped by a New York City graduate student, Cynthia Magnus, that the two stores on 35th Street in NYC were destroying and discarding articles of clothing that for some reason could not be sold. Dozens of trash bags filled with ripped shirts and jackets were found, even though donating these items during an amazingly cold winter season seemed like an obviously better choice.
The public’s reaction to the story forced both stores to investigate and make necessary changes to its stores’ policies. H&M’s Facebook page, for instance, contained several comments from consumers who promised to boycott the store until it disposed of its unsold clothing in a more socially responsible way. Following Wal-Mart’s lead, H&M eventually promised to stop the practice and donate the items to charity.
The recent scandal for H&M and Wal-Mart came at a unique time – temperatures were at a record low. To see a few examples of the news stories that led the nightly news, watch the following videos:
Discussion Questions:
1. What harms could the scandal above have caused for Wal-Mart and H&M?
2. Was the response by both of the companies effective enough to repair their tarnished images? Why, or why not?
3. What could both companies do in the near future to continue to repair their image after this embarrassing news story?
Domino’s Rogue Employee Scandal of 2009: How the pizza company addressed its biggest crisis of the year January 4, 2010
Posted by admin in Uncategorized.Tags: Domino's Pizza, Kristy Hammonds, Michael Setzer, YouTube
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Domino’s Pizza found itself in the midst of a crisis in Spring 2009 after the video of two employees tampering with food leaked on the internet. The employees, Kristy Hammonds and Michael Setzer, recorded themselves happily putting cheese in their nose, rubbing food on their rear ends, and sneezing into the product. The two were immediately fired and the restaurant was closed for clean up, but the troubles were huge for the chain.
Within a day of the video being posted to the internet, over 750,000 had viewed the disgusting prank on YouTube and other social media sites. Recognizing a crisis, Domino’s responded with the following statement:
“The opportunities and freedom of the Internet is wonderful. But it also comes with the risk of anyone with a camera and an Internet link to cause a lot of damage, as in this case, where a couple of individuals suddenly overshadow the hard work performed by the 125,000 men and women working for Domino’s across the nation and in 60 countries around the world.”
For more on this story, and how Domino’s responded, watch the following videos:
Discussion Questions:
1. How might have this crisis hurt business for Domino’s Pizza?
2. If you were a PR consultant handling the crisis management for Domino’s, how might you have responded to this scandal?
3. After watching Domino’s Pizza’s official response to the crisis, how do you think the company performed? What went well in the response? How could the response have been better?
