Taxonomy of Responses to VW’s Goodwill Package Reveals PR Lessons
This article by Juan Carlos Molleda orginally appears on PR News on Jan. 11, 2016.
Two automobiles — a 2012 Jetta and a 2013 Passat — became the protagonists in a “soft launch” of Volkswagen’s transnational crisis in May 2014, alerting the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the California Air Resources Board (CARB) to issues with VW’s reported emissions data.
VW remained silent until December 2014, when the company began a voluntary recall of nearly 500,000 vehicles in the U.S.
Then, on Sept. 3, 2015, and without going into detail, the German carmaker admitted to regulatory agencies that “clean” diesel cars included software to cut emissions when testing in a laboratory. Two weeks later, the U.S. Environment Protection Agency (EPA) announced VW’s violation, spearheading a dynamic global news flow and social media bursting in flames.
In short order, VW CEO Martin Winterkorn resigned; Matthias Müller from Porsche replaced him. A series of executive suspensions, somber and upbeat apologies and announcements about customer communications and restructuring followed. But the controversy and new revelations continued.
Throughout, VW has been consistent in its crisis communications: The company has said little. Public apologies and customer correspondence have been repeated on online platforms. VW has asked for patience while it looks for an optimal remedy for the deceived customers who may be offered a mechanical solution to repair the illegal device.
Late last year VW offered affected customers a “Goodwill Package.” VW describes it as “a first step toward restoring your invaluable trust.” It includes a $500 prepaid Visa gift card (aka loyalty card), a $500 VW dealership card and free 24-hour roadside assistance for three years.
How have customers and other active publics responded to the package?
