Case Study #40: Mitigating Tarnished Reputation and Credibility

Brand success is also dependent on the brand's stakeholders. But, what if a brand's most visible stakeholders mess up? Customers migrate to a competitor. Shareholders shed stock. Problem mitigation costs rise. The brand is mocked and teased in the social media universe, as well as Saturday Night Live.

International Monetary Fund (IMF) chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn hired a public relations firm for advice after his arrest for sexual assault. Clearly, this problem is much bigger than a lapse of judgement in a New York hotel.

While Strauss-Kahn's blunder was not directly associated with his IMF responsibilities, his behavior, most likely, directly violated the organization's values. Also, no one wants to elect a public official with questionable values. But, ambitions die hard; Strauss-Kahn wants to salvage what's remaining of his reputation and credibility.

Mitigating tarnished reputation and credibility usually involves the investigation of sources causing those issues. Some sources are credible; Some aren't. And a communication plan should address all of them with proportional emphasis. Concurrently, it's important to establish a "future state" of the "brand" (entity or person). Regardless of the mishap, how does the affected entity or person"deal with the now" while re-baselining personal and professional goals? Crises consume the resources of organizations and entities; But, crises also drive the urgency to adapt strategies for improved tomorrows.

If one does the crime, one does the time. While image management may not help in a prison environment, pre-lock up communication efforts may help the improved tomorrows of close ones directly impacted by poor decisions.

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Case Study #39: Building Brands Through Social Impact

Two years ago, I published a case study about TOMS Shoes. Since September 2010, TOMS has surpassed its social committment -"With every pair you purchase, TOMS will give a pair of new shoes to a child in need. One for One" - by giving over one million pairs of new shoes to children all over the world. Keep up the great work, Blake Mycoskie!

Brand building based on points of product, service and channel differentiation is rather antiquated. Stakeholders care about brand impacts peripheral to the income statement. TOMS provides compelling product descriptions to secure sales. However, TOMS mostly discusses health risks of moving around barefoot, explains progress with global shoe giving and provides transparency into the organization's stakeholders. TOMS is not only socially responsible and accountable; TOMS is a great brand.

What if a Chief Marketing Officer walked into his Chief Operating Officer's office and recommended: "We should re-position our brand based on a national or global cause." Let's assume the CMO and COO work in the food quickservice (QSR) industry. National or global causes can be: feeding hunger, obesity levels in young adults and increased risk of diabetes. Operational plans can be designed from the agreed upon causes.

The pervasiveness of bullying in American schools saddens me. A lot of this harrassment is done online. In response to the White House Conference for Bullying Prevention, Facebook created a suite of tools to protect users from bullying. Facebook can certainly use the functional enhancement to better demostrate an overall committment to responsible online communication.

Cause-based brand strategies may be challenging to implement in established companies. When dollars drive decisions, a "one for one" strategy may be a tough sell. Even if a company cannot build a cause-based brand, it should invest more in helping the world be a better place.

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Case Study #38: We Shouldn't Dance In the Streets Yet, Even If We Know How To.

Most current economic and market metrics say we are recovering from The Great Recession. When can someone of intellectual credibility and unequivocal wisdom say: "We're back, baby. Let's dance."? Champagne corks are popped, relieved laughter spreads across the world. The next morning, we wake up, renewed and empowered. Everything is going to be okay.

Unfortunately, the optimism about recovery isn't as upbeat as we'd like. Looking in the rearview mirror to look for "blind spots" in political, economic and social decisionmaking is an exhausting activity. Celebrating recovery based on the superficial communication of economic and market metrics is simply ignorant. So, when can we dance? When does the music start playing again?

When we read. When we pay attention. When we treat people the way we want them to treat us. When we help others without expecting anything in return. When we appreciate the non-material impacts of our efforts. When we smile. When we laugh. When we hug. When we pet our neighbor's dog (not the neighbor). When we fall in love. The list goes on. I imagine that when we prioritize those simple, effortless things a bit more, we will hear the music and our feet will then move to a beat.

I dedicate this blog to those brands or entities who get their stakeholders to prioritize the simple, effortless things in life. Enjoy.

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