Lessons from Companies Dealing with Controversy

Marketing is hard enough under the best of circumstances but creating a positive marketing campaign for a company with a controversial past can be near impossible. Some advertising firms have been able to pull it off with amazing finesse. Some have just dug the hole deeper.

Company: Monsanto

Controversy: Monsanto has been in the limelight of controversy from the beginning with its development of the artificial food sweetener Saccharin in the 1970s. Currently, they are portrayed as the super villains behind the genetically modified organism controversy.

Spin: Monsanto has suffered from marketing myopia, a term first coined by Harvard business professor Theodore Levitt. Until recently, the biotechnical giant has virtually ignored the protests around their GMO practices. Recently, Monsanto placed an ad in the December issue of Parenting magazine that encourages readers toward bee-friendly product use. This ad is a direct response to allegations that their GMOs are responsible for much of the bee population decimation.

Did It Work?: Too soon to tell but Monsanto has a long history of spinning negative publicity into a marketing success.

Company: California Fish and Game Commission

Controversy: In 2012, the president of the California Fish and Game Commission (Daniel Richards) submitted a photo to an outdoor magazine of a cougar, taken during an Idaho hunting trip. Traditionally an environmentally conscious blue state, California residents blasted the commission, part of whose job it is to protect threatened creatures. To make matters worse, the president’s response was that he broke no rules.

Spin: The commission’s marketing response was to force the president’s resignation. They also began to push hunter safety programs to stay in the middle between hunters and conservationists.

Did It Work?: Yes. A rapid fix to any negative issue is a solid PR strategy. Even if it is only an apology, having it come quickly is the best tactic. Six months after the incident Richards was ousted.

Company: Walmart

Controversy: The business model of this supergiant revolves around low wages and undercutting local businesses until they close. In recent years, each time that Walmart has attempted to open a new store, it has encountered protests.

Spin: Walmart has launched a series of advertisements, painting the company as an American organization and playing on the jingoistic nature of some Americans.

Does It Work?: Not really. A study published in Administrative Science Quarterly showed that the protests of Walmart make it easier for Target, Walmart’s competitor, to enter the market.

Company: Yankees

Controversy: The Yankees are arguably the most hated baseball team in America, accused of buying their team’s top players. If everyone loves to root for the underdog then hating the 27-time World Champion is natural.

Spin: The New York Yankees highlight the New York aspect of the team in all of their marketing. They link the team to just one more aspect of being part of the best city in the world. They embrace the term “Haters gonna hate.”

Does It Work?: The Yankees have a huge fan base and revel in the antagonistic rhetoric of their detractors. This makes them some of the most enthusiastic and ardent of the baseball fans.

The article Lessons from Companies Dealing with Controversy first appeared on Andrew Rogerson and Rogerson Business Services.