The greatest show on earth
Is there no such thing as bad publicity? Or is there?
If you follow the Turkish X.com or Linkedin agenda, you may have heard about the Patiswiss social media crisis that trended in Turkey on 21 April.
To summarise for those who haven’t heard: A consumer noticed mould growing on a product from Patiswiss, a chocolate manufacturer founded in Turkey in 2004. The consumer tagged the supermarket chain Migros and Patiswiss and made the above Linkedin post on the subject. The founder and CEO of the brand, who saw the post, blamed the consumer and said that their lawyers could knock on her door for “unfairly defaming the Brand”. Following social media backlash, the CEO’s response was removed and a short apology was posted on the official Patiswiss account.
Some consumers reacted as they did in many similar cases: “There is no such thing as bad publicity, Patiswiss will benefit from it.” Some even claimed that the incident could have been a fictitious advertising campaign.
Isn’t there such a thing as bad publicity?
When you research the original source of the saying known as “There is no such thing as bad advertising” in our country, you reach the words of Phineas Taylor Barnum, an American showman who lived in the 19th century, “There’s no such thing as bad publicity”.
Barnum, who opened the “Greatest Show on Earth” circus at the age of 60, opened the “Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Travelling Circus” with Anthony Bailey in 1871. With this circus, he became rich by selling shows about clowns, dwarfs, fire-eaters, elephants and “various oddities”.
Barnum, who also introduced himself as the “Prince of fakes”, led the Forer effect to be known as the Barnum effect with his fake character analyses. If you want to learn Barnum’s entertaining story accompanied by an epic musical, you can watch the 2017 film “The Greatest Showman”.
Back to our original question, “Is There no such thing as bad publicity”? Can negative rumours strengthen a brand?
For the brand, crises and controversies can create a small buzz that can attract public attention and put the brand on the agenda, albeit for a short time. However, negative discourse has a long-term impact on brand credibility. The wear and tear on the brand’s reputation can cause not only customers, but also stakeholders, investors and anyone who comes into contact with the brand to change their attitude towards it.
Because as the famous billionaire Scott Cook said, ‘Brand is no longer what we say to the consumer, it’s what consumers say to each other.’ Or as another billionaire Jeff Bezos said, “Your brand is what others talk about you when you’re not in the room.”
We’ll sort this out, we’ll do it right
The history of PR and communications is littered with famous stories of crisis and scandal.
On 20 April 2010, the Deepwater Horizon oil rig exploded 65 kilometres off the coast of Louisiana. Eleven BP workers were killed in the accident, and for 87 days some 800 million litres of oil spilled into the Gulf of Mexico. The spill eventually reached the coastlines of five states.
In the aftermath, it became clear that BP did not have a crisis communications strategy. The brand had failed to quickly communicate three key messages that the public needed to hear: That BP was responsible for the disaster, that there was concern about the resulting damage, and that BP had a plan to fix it.
Months after the disaster, while the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico was still being broadcast live around the world, BP made matters worse in June 2010 with a campaign of print and TV ads. In the ad, BP CEO Tony Hayward apologises and says: “We’re going to fix this, we’re going to do it right.
From 20 April to 19 September 2010 (about 5 months), an estimated 4.9 million barrels (210 million US gallons; 7,800,000 m3) of oil flowed into the Gulf from the unstoppable leak. Efforts to prevent and clean up the spill cost BP $8 billion. BP paid approximately $400 million in compensation to people living in the Gulf of Mexico who were affected by the incident.
BP has accepted all the findings of the 193-page report and will implement the recommendations in its operations around the world.
You my fly the unfriendly skies
The video of a 69-year-old Asian passenger on a 2017 flight of United Airlines, America’s third-largest airline, which operates under the motto “Fly the Friendly Skies”, hit the Twitter agenda. More recently, the same airline denied boarding to two female passengers because they were wearing tights, sparking another social media crisis.
Video footage from inside the plane showed the passenger being pulled from his seat and dragged screaming down the aisle. Blood could be seen on the passenger’s face in some of the footage. The passenger being dragged was David Dao, a doctor. Three passengers, including Mr Dao’s wife, had agreed to get off the overbooked plane. But David Dao said he was working in a hospital and had to see patients the next day.
United Airlines CEO Oscar Munoz issued a written statement defending the behaviour of his staff after the dramatic incident in which the Asian passenger was escorted off the plane. He said the passenger had been “disruptive and belligerent”.
In an avalanche of reaction on social media, more than 60,000 people have petitioned the White House for an investigation into the incident.
The Chicago Department of Aviation said that one of the three security guards involved had been “suspended” and that the actions were “absolutely unacceptable”. It said it had launched an investigation into the incident. The US Department of Transportation has placed United Airlines under surveillance for selling more tickets than it should have.
Following the incident, the airline’s share price fell by more than 4%, costing the company around $1 billion (£800 million).
Ironically, CEO Oscar Munoz had been named PR communicator of the year a few months before these events.
Conclusion: What could have been done?
In the global brand crises, I mentioned above, today’s AI tools did not exist. Now we have dozens of AI models and we can ask how Chat GPT, one of the most used tools today, can respond to these two crises. Here are the answers we got:
- Hey Chat GPT, If a passenger is taken off the plane by airline staff, or even injured in the head area during take-off, what statement should the airline make?
We regret to inform you that during our recent flight, a passenger experienced a medical incident requiring immediate attention. As always, the safety and well-being of our passengers are our top priorities, and our crew responded swiftly to provide necessary assistance.
Due to privacy considerations, we cannot disclose specific details about the individual’s condition. However, rest assured that they received appropriate care, and we are in contact with the necessary authorities to ensure the situation is handled with the utmost care and professionalism.
We understand that incidents like these can be concerning, and we appreciate your understanding and patience as we work to resolve the matter. Please know that we remain committed to providing a safe and comfortable travel experience for all our passengers.”
This message acknowledges the incident, respects the privacy of the individual involved, reassures passengers of the airline’s commitment to safety, and expresses gratitude for their understanding.
- Hey Chat GPT, There was an accident at an oil company’s refinery in the Gulf of Mexico, millions of litres of oil started leaking into the sea after the accident in which 11 workers died in an explosion, when and what kind of explanation should the company give to the world?
“Dear [Stakeholders/Community/Media],
We are deeply saddened to inform you of a grave accident that occurred at our refinery in the Gulf of Mexico. On [date of the incident], an explosion took place, resulting in the tragic loss of 11 lives. Our hearts go out to the families and loved ones of those affected by this devastating event, and we extend our deepest condolences during this difficult time.
The explosion also resulted in a significant oil spill, with millions of liters of oil leaking into the sea. We recognize the environmental impact of this incident and the potential consequences for the surrounding ecosystem. We are fully committed to taking immediate action to contain the spill, mitigate its effects, and ensure the safety and well-being of the communities and wildlife in the affected areas.
At this time, our primary focus is on supporting the ongoing rescue and recovery efforts, cooperating fully with the relevant authorities in their investigations, and providing assistance and support to those affected by this tragedy.
We understand the importance of transparency and accountability in situations like these, and we pledge to keep the public informed as we learn more about the causes of the accident and our response efforts. We are committed to conducting a thorough investigation to determine the root causes of the incident and to implement any necessary corrective measures to prevent similar occurrences in the future.
We recognize that trust in our company has been shaken by this incident, and we are fully committed to earning back that trust through our actions in the days, weeks, and months ahead.
We thank you for your understanding, patience, and support during this challenging time.
Sincerely, [Company Name/Representative]”
In response to the Patiswiss crisis, the Migros supermarket chain immediately stopped selling the products on its shelves and recalled them all with a message to its employees on 22 April 2024. As events unfolded, the CEO of Patiswiss announced his resignation on Monday 22 April 2024 with the following statement.
Bu makalenin türkçe orjinalini alttaki linkten okuyabilirsiniz.
