Chipotle Still Reeling Thanks to E-Coli Scare
Chipotle just felt the “two” of the one-two punch land. Immediately after the CDC discovered an outbreak of e coli in locations in Seattle and Portland social media exploded with endless barrages of consumer doubt and disgust. Recently, the company was forced to disclose the outbreak was not contained and could be in as many as six states. Upon hearing that news, the market responded accordingly. Chipotle stock plummeted about 12 percent last. Now the company is facing a PR crisis on two fronts: consumer and investor. The consumer PR crisis is bad and getting worse. Every time the CDC announced a new state impacted by the outbreak – California, Minnesota, Ohio, New York, Oregon and Washington have been listed…
Read MoreWalmart Workers Seeking Wages
Black Friday is coming, and some Walmart workers are using the annual bacchanal of retail excess as an opportunity to push their political agenda in a headline grabbing way. The organization, called “Our Walmart” plans to start a fifteen-day fast scheduled to end on Black Friday. The effort has been dubbed “Fast for 15”, an obvious connection to the Fight for 15 movement, a grassroots group demanding a $15 minimum wage. According to press reports, the fast will include both current and former Walmart employees as well as other sympathetic citizens. The current roster of participants stands at well over 1,000. At this point, not every protester has pledged to fast for the full 15 days, while the founders of…
Read MoreWhy A-list Star Power is Not Enough
In the salad days of Old Hollywood, when the studio system ran Tinseltown, Star Power mattered more than anything else. Theater fans didn’t go to see this or that movie. They went to see the latest movie starring this or that person. And, when people didn’t know much more about a film than who was in it, that worked wonders. Today, not so much. In an era when even teaser trailers are endlessly dissected and discussed online, no movie is safe from negative impressions before release. And, if a film deviates from a proven formula, the results can be financially disastrous and catastrophic for an actor’s career. Making a “bad” movie when you are a relatively new actor can send…
Read MoreZuckerberg Sends Kids to School… His Own.
Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg has made a name for himself with winning business ideas. He understands how to engage people, bring them together and give them what they want. Now, with the help of his wife, Priscilla Chan, Zuckerberg embarks on an entirely different business model. Private school. The Zuckerbergs’ new K-12 private school, “The Primary School”, in Palo Alto, California functions as a private, nonprofit educational institution. One different twist: the school offers healthcare services to every student, from birth to graduation. On a recent Facebook post, Zuckerberg explained, “It’s a new kind of school that brings education and healthcare together.” According to various media reports, the school will be free, geared toward low-income students and funded by a…
Read MoreVW’s New Boss thinks his Brand is Only Headed Up
Fall has not been kind to Volkswagen. An international scandal rocked the brand on two continents. While the literal price tag has yet to be tallied – VW expects it to cost them billions – the PR price tag has led to immediate changes at the top and among the rank and file. As expected, newly installed VW CEO Matthias Mueller says there’s nowhere for his company to go but up. He expects a shining new VW brand inside of three years. That’s an optimistic timeline, considering they will probably still be tabulating damages at that point, but, hey, a guy can dream. In his recent address to company managers, Mueller said the company needed to grow leaner and make…
Read MoreThe Facebook dislike button could spell doom?
Communication on Facebook has always had its pitfalls. Do you “like” a post if you agree with the sentiment but hate the situation described? What about a tragedy if you want to offer support and the person posting asks for support? Should you take the time to write out a message in the hopes of avoiding an uncomfortable situation … but you don’t really know what to say … or you feel the original post said it best? Ah, life in the mobile communication era. We talk as little as possible but try to say as much as we can with each keystroke. Now, Facebook revealed it is working on something people have been asking about for years … a…
Read MoreAirlines Battle over Buzzwords
JetBlue and now Delta Airlines are offering “humanity” as part of their service and that’s kind of an issue for JetBlue. They wrote the phrase “bringing humanity back to air travel,” right into their Customer Bill of Rights. It has been there for several years. Now in recent Delta ads the same phrase appears. Delta explains, they never meant to copy anything, and it just seemed like a phrase that fit their recent efforts. Michael Thomas, the spokesman for Delta said, they never set out to specifically highlight “humanity.” “The phrase succinctly captures Delta’s efforts to improve food and beverages, customer service, and onboard products,” he said. But in August, Delta did it again when it gave flight attendants handheld…
Read MoreWhy Rick Perry Quit the 2016 POTUS race
Rick Perry had never lost a bid for election until he first aimed for the White House in the 2012 campaign. He held the office of Governor of the State of Texas longer than anyone has and seen big successes, but the Presidential candidacy is probably the most difficult bid anyone could attempt – and the most expensive. Perry had been doing well in the 2012 Primary when he spectacularly flamed out by flubbing a debate question. His campaign had been loudly proclaiming his intention to axe 5 federal agencies. When asked which ones, Perry could not name them all. His closing salvo “oops” was the soundbite on everyone’s lips the following day. Voices from inside the Perry camp are…
Read MoreKraft Recalls Bacon: Breakfast PR Takes a Disastrous Turn
For bacon lovers, the news could hardly be any worse. Kraft recently recalled two million pounds of Oscar Mayer turkey bacon after consumers reported illnesses. Now, bacon purists might argue consuming turkey bacon in any amount is actually an illness. But those who want to stay healthy or avoid pork for other reasons enjoy turkey bacon because they can dig into the breakfast staple without transgressing in other important areas. When the headlines hit, the reaction was not discerning. Bacon was being threatened, and people took it very seriously. Then, Kraft Heinz made it worse by issuing a stilted recall released announcing some products “may be adulterated.” Now, it’s a perfectly fine word, but in the world of clear communication…
Read MoreRupert Murdoch: Brooks Back to Rebuild after Scandal
Everybody loves a good comeback story, and that’s what Rupert Murdoch is offering us. Along with that, Murdoch proves the ongoing support for Rebekah Brooks he’s claimed ever since her resignation in July 2011 from the now defunct News of the World. Brooks, for her part, has traveled the hard road and appears to be well on her way to redemption. Before that resignation, Brooks, now 47, had accomplished a great deal in her career. She became the youngest editor of a British national newspaper, in 2000 she was placed in charge of News of the World, and in 2003 she became the first female editor of the Sun. It didn’t stop there. In 2009, she became CEO of what…
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