Social Media PR Disasters: #McDStories

This PR crisis may have come and gone within a few hours, but it’s still important. Why? Because it happened to McDonald’s, the sixth most valuable brand in the world. The story demonstrates that no one, not even a global restaurant giant, can control conversations on the internet.

The Brand

McDonald’s

·      14 million Facebook likes

·      294,000 Twitter followers

·      3.4 million YouTube views

The Incident

McDonald’s had been running an effective Twitter series called #MeetTheFarmers, where actual suppliers talked about their pride in their work and loyalty to the Golden Arches. These were “promoted tweets,” paid by McDonald’s to appear on the Twitter homepage. One tweet, quoting a farmer, included a new hashtag: “ ‘When u make something w/pride, people can taste it,’ - McD potato supplier #McDStories.” That hashtag also appeared via paid promotion on the Twitter homepage. But the company never defined what #McDStories was suppose to mean. Enter McDonald’s critics – and apparently there are a lot of them.

The Problem

People quickly began recounting their bad experiences with McDonald’s and tagging it with #McDStories. The restaurant’s own content was buried tweets referring to food poisoning, vomiting, and weight gain. “Fingernail in my Big Mac once,” read one tweet. “Never ate there again and became a vegetarian,” read another. “These #McDStories never get old, kinda like a box of McDonald’s 10 piece Chicken McNuggets left out in the sun for a week,” read a third.

The Response

McDonald’s pulled the promoted tweet within two hours. Social Media Director Rick Wion released a statement that included, “With all social media campaigns, we include contingency plans should the conversation not go as planned. The ability to change midstream helped this small blip from becoming something larger.” Wion pointed out that there were around 1,600 negative tweets about McDonald’s that day, out of almost 73,000 total mentions, putting the “disaster” in some perspective.

The Result

Though the crisis only lasted for a few hours, media outlets from the Los Angeles Times to London’s Daily Mail, jumped on the story of such a high-profile PR failure. I find it interesting that McDonald’s #MeetTheFarmers hashtag was untouched in all the madness. A few days later, McDonald’s launched another promoted hashtag, #LittleThings, apparently unaware that it was already being used by DoubleTree Hotels.

The Takeaway

Sure, you’re no McDonald’s. Still – how can you avoid a similar PR disaster?

- Focus on Your Fans

McDonald’s promoted #McDStories to the entire internet, inviting anyone who visited the Twitter homepage to post their thoughts. While I admire this, there’s no reason the company couldn’t have simply used the hashtag in tweets to its almost 300,000 followers. That audience would have been more likely to share positive stories.

- Manage the Message

McDonald’s second mistake was introducing the #McDStories hashtag without any explanation, and leaving the meaning vague. I bet just about everyone in the world has had an experience with the restaurant, and some of them are bound to be bad. On the other hand, #MeetTheFarmers is very clearly defined, even to the point that it doesn’t really invite people to use it. How many people know the McDonald’s farmers?

- Know When to Fold ‘Em

McDonald’s could have tried to steer the conversation, allowing the hashtag to continue for hours or even days. Social Media Director Wion saw that, while #MeetTheFarmers was getting the company’s message across, McDonald’s was paying for people to publicly criticize its brand. And there was no dignified way to explain what #McDStories was intended to mean. Rather than fight a high-profile, losing battle, Wion made the right call and chose to end the campaign.

While this crisis is over, it goes to show that social media PR disasters can happen anywhere, at anytime, for any reason. Whose hashtag will be next?

For the latest on social media, online recruiting, mobile marketing, and other branding trends, please like Brandemix on Facebook, follow us on Twitter, and join our LinkedIn group, Your Digital Brand.

What's Foursquare Really For?

The best social sites have clearly stated goals. Facebook is for connecting with friends. Twitter is for live updates. LinkedIn is for business networking.

So what is Foursquare? The smartphone app allows you to "check in" to a location, with the option of adding a comment and/or sharing the update on Facebook and Twitter. You can leave a "tip" at your location, so other users will see "Be sure to try the nachos!" when they check in at the same restaurant. 

You get points and badges for various "achievements," whether it's visiting five different Italian restaurants or traveling to different states. You can compete with your friends for the most achievements. Whoever checks in the most at a location, whether it's a park or a store or the Rose Bowl, becomes the "Mayor," with their photo on the location's main page.

But what's it all for? The points have no value. You don't need a third party to announce your location on Facebook and Twitter. The tips aren't moderated, leading to weird or unhelpful comments, and old tips can become outdated. When you check in at a museum or gallery, for example, you'll see many posts about exhibits that are long gone. 

One of the best uses for the service was for businesses to offer discounts to anyone who checked, or to the Mayor. Dozens of Houlihan's franchises give a free order of fries for every check-in, while the current Mayor receives 10% off all food items. This strategy could lead to consumers actually competing over who visits an establishment the most -- a dream of any store owner. But few companies have followed Houlihan's lead.

Foursquare founder Dennis Crowley recently spoke to VentureBeat about the service's "identity crisis." He said Foursquare is "most interested in taking the data from check-ins to model what’s happening in the real world, and help people find new things." He pointed to Radar, an app now available on phones running iOS5, which alerts you when your friends are nearby or when you're near a venue you've told Foursquare you want to visit.

I'll be the first to say that Facebook and Twitter can't match that. But just a few weeks later, Foursquare also announced that it was adding menus to 250,000 restaurant listings. Even Yelp and Urbanspoon don't offer that feature. But how is it social? How do recommendations and menus align with points, badges, and tips? How will any of these lead to more businesses offering discounts to attract new customers?

It seems that Foursquare has a lot of good ideas but isn't sure which direction take. If Zagat, now owned by Google, adds menus to its app, it could quickly overtake Foursquare's new feature. Facebook's "Add a location to this post" option now threatens Foursquare on another flank. And I travel all over New York City and hardly ever see a Foursquare sticker on a store window or the logo on the menu.

I hope Crowley can find a clear path for Foursquare. After all, it's a great concept. But its time is running out.

What Is Brand Research? (And Why Should I Do It?)

So you’ve read my post “Four Signs You’re Ready to Rebrand” and answered “yes” to one or more of the questions. Time to design a new logo, right?

Wrong. The first step in the process, and the most important, is conducting brand research.  

What Is Brand Research (And Why Should You Do It?)
Before you can embark on the exciting and sometimes painful process of re-branding, you need to go beyond theory and acquire actionable knowledge- game-changing insights that can steal market share and drive sustainable business results. That requires brand research. 

It's safe to assume that in your personal or professional life, you don't make important decisions without doing  due diligence, so why should your brand deserve anything less?

Don't drink your own Kool-Aid. Don't rely on a one-rat lab study. Put together a solid plan incorporating some of these tried and true techniques:

1. Qualitative Research (aka "Qual")

Bring in a small sampling of the “right” types of people and do a focus group, or in-depth interview, online or as a telephone campaign. The questions are open-ended and the answers are subjective. A trained moderator (like me) will probe for deeper perceptions, opinions, and feelings about your topic. Emotional drivers, not rational ones, are what we're zeroing in on since branding is all about creating emotional connections. We recommend 360 branding that involves both external (consumer) and internal (employee) elements, so you’ll want groups of consumers, vendors, employees, and senior leadership in the mix.

2. Quantitative Research (aka "Quant")

This is most effective when used to validate the findings of your qualitative study. It’s much more objective because well-crafted questions deliver unbiased answers. You can conduct some quantitative research surveys through online tools like SurveyMonkey or Zoomerang. But the trick is getting the right analysis from the data. Make sure that you get a good sample pool by surveying across geography, age, incomes, and skill sets (for employee research).

3. Ideation Workshops
These are useful in creating corporate mission and purpose statements, launching new products or product extensions, or simply taking research findings to the next stage of development. It provides a structured forum for collective brainstorming (where there are no bad ideas!) and can be augmented with trend-panels and outside thought-leaders. Invite 10-20 of your closest multidisciplinary stakeholders for an off-site retreat and let the brand games begin. 

Don't Try This Yourself

I recommend bringing in an outside party to conduct any type of research. For qualitative, it helps to have an outsider who isn’t afraid of the truth, and who can turn negative discussions into positive opportunities without feeling personally attacked. For quantitative, it helps reassure both internal and external participants that the results are anonymous. Conducting the research off-site also helps persuade subjects to be completely honest instead of just reciting the party line.

Evaluating It All

Since it's more art than science, analysis is where real branding experts really shine. (There are three sides to every story.) Agencies like Brandemix use the latest tools and technology to analyze the data to create unique messaging and marketing plans that resonate with fragmented groups. It takes experience, insight, and creativity to turn research into tangible business results.

Goals

The first goal is to simply get to truth. How do people really feel about your brand?

The next goal is align the findings with your company’s mission, vision, and values. If it’s an employer brand, you want to align it with your consumer brand.

The third goal is to find your niche, your “white space,” where you can deliver something that no one else can. Again, this applies to both internal and external branding.

Another goal is to look at your “As-Is,” your current situation, and to find what opportunities are available to you. Also, what can you learn from your “wannabe’s”? If you “wannabe” like Starbucks, in what ways can you emulate their successes?

In Conclusion

Brand research professionals have more tools available now than ever before. There is no best way to craft the perfect research plan. It's through careful consideration of objectives, timeline, and budget that a sensible plan emerges. The answers can be painful, and every answer can lead to two more questions, but every question can lead to new opportunities to capture market share in ways never before considered. 

That's why we do it! Let us do it for you.

Clients: Are They Allies or Adversaries?

Want to go deeper into the client-agency relationship?  Take a few tips from Brandemix's own Kathryn Wandling, Director of Client Services. Here’s what she's gleaned after a decade of successful experience "in the trenches".

Secrets of Great Client Service
I’ve found every client to be very understanding and appreciative of the load we take off their backs. Though we may sometimes disagree, my clients and I share the same goal: To produce great work that solves business objectives. 

My philosophy boils down to these points:

Build Brand Equity at Every Touchpoint
While the client is the keeper of the brand, they may not always be keen on the best way to promote it. My job is to keep the brand top-of-mind.

Know the Client’s Business
This is critical when making marketing recommendations. Only through truly walking in their shoes, can I research and present best practice, and act as an advisor and consultant. I do my best to make sure I understand their industry, along with their industry-speak as quickly as possible. We carefully review everything that I think they should do, but I also listen to what they want to do and attempt to understand all the factors that led to their decisions. It is through this collaboration, that consensus emerges.

Teach Clients the Agency Business
Any learning that I can impart to my clients makes them look good and makes my job easier. While it's not important to know what a vector file is, or the difference between an .ai and .psd, it's important to understand our process and strategy, and how their goals have impacted the creative decisions we've made.

Learn the Rules
Every channel of communication has their own rules, and it's my business to know them. If we're building a new website, important items should never be more than three clicks away. If I'm executing a social media campaign, I need to discuss metrics for success -- whether it's likes, retweets, mentions, hires or sales. Our goal is always measurable success.

Hold their Hand and Watch their Back
My client's feel like I have one client, and it's them. I attempt to be the “level head” when dealing with the creative people on my side, and the crazy pressure from the CEO on their side. I can be a therapist, a policeman, a bean-counter, a devil or saint, depending on what's called for in each unique situation. It's not always an easy job,  but I always have my client's back. That's why they come back.

Got a question? My virtual door is always open.

Extending Your Brand Through Your Careers Site

After years spent studying how brands communicate their mission, vision, and values through messaging and design, here’s the Golden Rule:  Whether speaking to shareholders, management, employees, new hires, or job applicants, a brand must be consistent and compelling to be effective.

You’ve seen how I’ve highlighted companies that make great use of branding. In contrast, here are two brands that might be missing great opportunities to extend their brand within their careers site:

NBC Universal
NBCU is a media powerhouse with a century of history. Universal produced the classic 1930s horror films and has created some of most beloved film franchises of all time: Jaws, Back to the Future, Jurassic Park, and the Bourne movies. NBC’s contribution to television includes Friends, The Cosby Show, Cheers, Seinfeld, ER, and Law & Order – not counting the shows from its cable channels USA, SyFy, and Bravo. The combined company also includes five theme parks that feature attractions based on Harry Potter and Shrek.

With all that entertainment history, what might they show on their careers site? Are you thinking movie stars, rides, aliens, dinosaurs, or monsters?  Nope. Just plain text.

Compare that to CBS, which provides five images of its entertainment properties.

Condé Nast
This publishing house brings you a wide array of magazines: Vogue, Glamour, GQ, Architectural Digest, Wired, Vanity Fair, and The New Yorker, to name a few. In all, Condé Nast publishes two dozen magazines that feature amazing photography, beautiful locations, and cutting-edge fashion. The titles cover architecture, food, and travel. The company must have millions of visual assets from almost 30 years of publishing.

So what images does Condé Nast show prospective employees on its careers site?

A single window of ten rotating images, which are supposed to evoke passion. I’ll let you decide. 


What about your brand? Are you showcasing your brand’s assets on your careers site? Are you displaying your products, exhibiting your office space, presenting your history, or showing off your employees? What do applicants see when they first encounter your brand?


If not, we’d be happy to help. At Brandemix, we love branding.

Why State Farm is a Social Media Superstar

As many of you know from my speaking engagements around the country, I like to discover brands that are using social media in innovative ways. I honor these organizations with the name “SoMe Superstars.” Recent winners include PepsiCo and Moleskine.

Today I’d like to recognize a company that’s using social media for recruiting: State Farm. I like how the insurance company recently rebranded with its clever “Magic Jingle” commercials, alongside funny ads featuring everything from falcons to giant robots. But the company has continued its transformation with a big push in social media and interactivity as well. Here are the three superstar ways that State Farm engages job applicants:

First, State Farm has a dedicated careers Facebook Page with more than 16,000 Likes, featuring lots of interesting content from both the corporate communications department and individual agents. Responses to questions and grievances usually come within 24 hours. The page’s admins go beyond typical stories of disaster recovery to include posts that are useful to job-seekers, such as asking “What’s the strangest thing you ever sent a recruiter?” and giving “Tips for networking at holiday parties.” This makes the Page a destination for anyone looking for employment, even outside the insurance field.

 









Second, the State Farm careers site includes eight videos under the title “See For Yourself.” These feature testimonials from agents and employees and great photography of the State Farm headquarters. The company offers a section called “Meet Our Interns,” with videos, written interviews, and “Advice and Guidance from Real Interns.” This is a powerful way to reach out to young people by providing content that’s educational but also fun. It also shows an awareness that Millenials would rather watch a video than read a long corporate mission statement.

   

Third, State Farm offers a unique interactive website, exploresfagency.com, which the company calls a “virtual job tryout with real-world scenarios.” Job-seekers are put in situations faced by real insurance agents, from marketing a new office and handling staff to dealing with customer complaints. There are no wrong answers; users simply pick the action they’d most likely take, and the one they’d least likely take, from four options. State Farm then evaluates what sort of agent they’d be. It’s a job preview unlike anything I’ve ever seen.

Finally, these career sites add to the overall State Farm online presence, which includes branded accounts on YouTube, Twitter, and Flickr – and an interesting Facebook Page called State Farm Nation, “where fans can get helpful tips, be inspired, and have fun connecting with others.” That Page has more than 1.3 million Likes.

What can you learn from State Farm? First, set up a dedicated careers site, preferably accompanied by a careers Facebook Page and Twitter profile. Then post content that’s useful to anyone looking for employment, not just posts about how great your organization is. Offer photos and videos, showing job-seekers what your office looks like and what your employees love about working there. And, if you really want to stand out, invest in something unique like State Farm Nation on Facebook or the revolutionary “Day in the Life” interactive site.

For communicating with talent in smart, fun, and interactive ways, I name State Farm Insurance a SoMe Superstar!

For the latest on social media, online recruiting, mobile marketing, and other branding trends, please like Brandemix on Facebook, follow us on Twitter, and join our LinkedIn group, Your Digital Brand.

Four Signs You're Ready to Rebrand

It’s January,  the time of year to take stock of your business and goals for the year. 

Besides upgrading your software or buying a new printer, you also should look at your branding. Whether you want to redesign your website, extend your brand into social media, or align your internal communications with your consumer advertising, January is a great time to launch a rebranding effort.

Are you ready to rebrand? There are four signs that you might be. Do any of these match your company’s situation?

Your focus has changed.

This often happens to small businesses. Sometimes the mission you had when you started the company no longer matches what you’re currently doing. Maybe you opened a deli but found that only cupcakes were selling, so you transitioned into a cupcake shop. Any of your previous branding that mentions, say, breakfast, no longer works…unless you invent a breakfast cupcake, for which I’d be the first in line!

Image via MrMalique.com

You have a new market or audience.

Perhaps you’re speaking to a new demographic now, which isn’t responding to your previous messaging. Both Farmers and State Farm insurance were known as solid, reliable – and boring. Both have launched new ad campaigns that add humor to the usual dire insurance company warnings. Both firms were founded in the 1920s, but realized that 90-year-old branding wasn’t speaking to consumers in 2012’s competitive marketplace.

There's been a merger, acquisition, or expansion.

Circumstances might be forcing you to rebrand. If your company merged with another, or was acquired, or launched a new division that modifies your core mission, you’ll need a new brand to reflect the change. Or perhaps your brand is too close to another’s, and you’re pre-emptively changing to avoid legal issues. Or maybe you need to shed some baggage, which is why Philip Morris became Altria or GMAC became Ally Bank.

It's been a while.

Sometimes branding just becomes stale. Some fonts and logos can become dated; maybe yours fell victim to what Marty Neumeier called the Great Swoosh Epidemic, when every company wanted a curved or circular icon. You may find that your logo doesn’t fit well in the icon space allowed by Twitter, or looks good onscreen but not on paper. These missteps are relatively easy to fix.

Image via Concept Genius

If you answered “yes” to any of these questions, get ready to rebrand.
If you’ve never been through a corporate or employer rebranding effort, you may be asking yourself these questions:

• How do I create a plan to rebrand?
• How long will it take to rebrand?
• How much will it cost to rebrand?
• What is the ROI of a rebrand? 

Unique goals and objectives make these questions hard to answer in general terms, but future blog articles will endeavor to add clarity to your quest. In the meantime, if rebranding is on your New Year's resolution list, get in touch with your friends in BRANDEland.