18. Selecting Your Advertising Models and Spokesmen

     You’re selling more than a direct benefit. You’re selling an image, which is an intangible benefit. What kind of image best fits your advertising strategy? Mr. /Ms. Everyman, or Mr./Ms. Ideal? Celebrity, wise older person, neighbor, foil, helpful handyman, or someone else? Goddess or “girl next door”? Wise, older person or helpful handyman?
     Just as it is in movies and stories, television commercials will use stock characters: characters that are easily recognized as a certain type of character. Since television commercials are much shorter than television programs, it’s much more important for advertisers to rely on stock characters to get their messages across.

      In addition to the stock characters we’ve just mentioned, you’re likely to see a nerd, a tough Marine sergeant, a grumpy old man, or “typical” teenagers. Yes, we know: Teenagers are anything but typical, but there are certain types you easily recognize.

     To better understand the meaning of the term stock character, let’s look at the four types of characters you’re likely to see in books, on television, or in the movies:

1. Stock character: a character that’s easily recognized as a certain type of person. The reader (or viewer) remembers having seen someone like that in many other stories, so he knows what to expect of that character.

2. Flat character: a character that is not recognized as a certain type of person, but he is recognized as a person in a certain type of situation. The reader can know little or nothing about the person himself.

3. Stereotype: a character that is recognized as representing a certain racial group or other group. It’s usually an unfair or even insulting characterization.

4. Rounded character: a character who is developed enough that there can be only one person like him. The hero of a story is almost always a rounded character.

     Let’s look a bit more closely at stock characters you’ve probably seen in movies, in books, or on television.

     One example is the wicked witch. It doesn’t matter if it’s the sea hag in "The Little Mermaid, " the Wicked Witch of the West in The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, or the witch in the cartoon Cinderella. You know what to expect of each one of them because you’re familiar with the character type.

     Cinderella’s fairy godmother was the same character type as Glinda, the Good Witch of the North in The Wonderful Wizard of Oz. Both were wise, supernatural, mother/protectors cast after a model similar to Guanyin, Mazu, or the Virgin Mary.

     Then there’s the kindly, grandmotherly type. Whether she’s the mermaid grandmother in The Little Mermaid, Aunt Bee on the television series Andy of Mayberry, or the grandmother in a Porky Pig cartoon, we feel as if we know her the moment she appears on screen.

     Then there’s the flat character. That’s a character you recognize in a particular situation, but you don’t feel as though you know that person. In the movies, television shows, and commercials, the actor who plays the part is called an extra.

     If, for example, two people in a commercial were deciding whether to buy one brand item or another, you may see a cashier standing nearby. The cashier is in the store because you expect a cashier to be in the store. His only purpose in the commercial is to make the commercial look more like a real-life situation.

     In a crowd scene, it doesn’t matter if the woman in the blue dress is standing near the back of the crowd or near the front. She’s just a person in the crowd.

     Think about the fairy tales you’ve read. You feel as though you know the main character. Take Cinderella, Snow White, Sleeping Beauty, and the Little Mermaid, for example. Each has a personality that makes her different from the other three. They’re what you’d call rounded characters.

     On the other hand, take a look at the handsome prince that appears in each story, or the sisters of Cinderella and the Little Mermaid. They’re all alike. If you had the Cinderella’s prince switch places with the mermaid’s prince; and you had Snow White’s prince switch places with Sleeping Beauty’s prince, no one could tell the difference. They’re so much alike that you can’t tell them apart. That’s what you’d call a flat character.

     Unlike flat characters, stock characters can be developed into rounded characters. Take the kindly, easy-going, small-town cop. We all recognize the character. On occasion, however, this stock character has been developed into a rounded character. Martin Brody, the small-town police chief in the movie Jaws; and Andy Taylor, the small-town sheriff in the television series Andy of Mayberry, are of the same stock type. From this point, they were developed differently. One can hardly imagine Andy Taylor fighting for his life against a giant shark, as did Martin Brody in the movie Jaws.

     The most important casting decision an advertiser must make, though, is the main character in his commercial, especially if the main character is the product spokesman. Everything about the model or product spokesman has to fit the product and the brand image.

     Is your product presented as good for the body or for the target consumer’s appearances?

     If it’s supposed to make the consumer look better, what part of the body does that mean? Healthier, shinier hair? A brighter, whiter smile? A prettier figure? Younger-looking hands?

Then choose a model or spokesman who already has the qualities your product is supposed to give the target consumer.

     Many models specialize in a certain area. There are hair models, face models, figure models, and even hands models. Understanding what image you want your model to project is an important part of selecting the right model. Many modeling agencies already have a good idea of which of their models are face models, figure models, and so forth.

     Here are a few examples of how your selection of the model must fit the benefit of using the product:

1. Healthier, shinier hair: a hair model.

2. Brighter, whiter smile: a face model with an appealing smile.

3. Prettier figure: figure model.

4. Smoother, younger-looking hands: hands model

5. Any ad that involves a close-up of hands (such as a cell phone): hands model.

6. Smoother skin: face model

7. Other aspects of the face: eyes model or lips model.

     Many advertisers use product mascots to promote their products or services. Over the years, we’ve seen Speedy (for Alka Seltzer,) Tony the Tiger (for Frosted Flakes,) Colonel Sanders (for KFC,) Mr. Clean (for a product of that name,) and the jolly green giant (for Green Giant vegetables.) Coca Cola has used a range of mascots including the Coca Cola elf, a polar bear, and Santa Claus (dressed in the Coca Cola colors.)

     If people like your mascot, it can boost sales. Product mascots have been known, though, to hurt a company’s sales.

    The Star-Kist tuna canners came up with a multi-million-dollar advertising campaign built around a character called Charlie the Tuna. This campaign boosted their sales by only 1.5%. Deciding that it wasn’t worth the expense, Star-Kist dropped Charlie the Tuna from its commercials. As a result, their sales dropped so badly that they were forced to bring Charlie back. Now Star-Kist is stuck with using a product mascot that does them no good.

Now it’s your turn!

     Imagine what character or product spokesman should be used in your commercial. Remember, even radio and print advertisements often use stock characters.

     Develop a storyboard for your commercial.

17. Choosing Your Advertising Media

     By now you’ve learned that there are many different ways to get your advertising messages across. But how can you get the most for your advertising dollar? There are advantages and disadvantages to each medium.

Here are the main media for advertising:

1.    Newspapers

2.    Magazines

3.    Television

4.    Radio

5.    Direct Mail

6.    Telemarketing

7.    Brochures and Flyers

8.    Free Samples

9.    Internet

10. Cause/Brand Marketing

11. Product Placement Ads

12. Network Marketing

13. Consumer Surveys

14. Publicity Stunts

15. Outdoor Advertising

     When considering which advertising medium (or media) to use to promote your product or service, you must consider four things:

1. Whether the target consumer uses this medium

2. Overall cost of advertisement

3. Average cost per target consumer

4. Whether this medium is a good fit for my product or service.

5. Whether another medium or combination of media will give my product more exposure per advertising dollar.

Newspapers

     When considering newspapers as a means of advertising, there are six things to consider:

1. Circulation (How many people read it?)

2. Does the image or reputation of the newspaper fit my product or service’s image or reputation?

3. Area of Circulation (Where is it published?)

4. Readership (How many people read it?)

5. Target readership (How many of the people who read it are my target consumers?)

6. How much will the advertisement cost per target consumer?

Magazines

     Basically, you ask the same question as you would for newspapers. Newspapers tend to be for general readers. Magazines are often a better choice because magazines tend to target specific readerships.

     For example, Vogue magazine targets women who are interested in fashions and have the money to pay for them. Car and Driver targets teenagers who are interested in cars as a form of recreation.

     Some magazines are published only in very small geographical areas. Some are published worldwide. You should place your advertisement in a magazine published in an area that fits your marketing area and targets your target consumer.

Television

     Television advertisements, of course, cost more than ads for newspapers that cover the same geographical areas. There are, however, three major advantages to advertising on television:

1. You can select time slots when your target consumers are most likely to be watching television.

2. You can have your ad placed along with a show your target consumers are likely to be watching. when your target consumers are watching TV.

3. Television is an active, visual medium. This may fit advertising needs for your product or service.

Radio

     There are several advantages to advertising on radio:

1. Radio usually broadcasts over the same places as television, but it’s cheaper.

2. Radio broadcasts to a captive audience, such as drivers during rush hour. Listeners don’t leave during a commercial.

3. Since radio doesn’t command complete attention the way television does, the listener is in a less critical frame of mind. Thus, he’s more open to advertising suggestions.

4. Radio broadcasts stimulate imaginations; TV broadcasts take the place of imaginations. Thus, you can create “scenes” on radio that would be impossible for television.

Direct Mail

     Direct mail is possible only if you have a mailing list (email or snail mail) of your target consumers. The advantage of direct mail is that everyone who sees your ad will be a target customer.

     You can either buy a mailing list or create your own list by doing a survey in your target area.

A disadvantage to direct mail by snail mail is the cost. You have to create the printed material, hire someone to address envelopes and stuff them, apply for a bulk mailing permit, and pay for postage. Still, it’s one of the cheapest forms of advertising per target consumer.

Telemarketing

     Telemarketing involves calling people at their homes, usually between 6:00 PM and 9:30—the time when they’re most likely to be home. It’s also the time when they would least want to be bothered. Telemarketers use mailing lists targeting specific groups of people.

There are two advantages to telemarketing:

1. Everyone contacted is believed to be a target consumer.

2. This form of advertising costs less per target consumer than almost any other form of advertising.

     A major disadvantage is that most people hate telemarketers almost as much as they hate pedophiles. That’s why most companies don’t use this form of advertising.

Brochures and flyers

     A flyer is a single sheet of paper bearing an announcement or advertisement. A brochure us usually one sheet, but it’s folded and is usually of heavier stock paper.

     Flyers and brochures are used for small geographical areas because the target consumers are all found in that small area. Several times a week, you’ll find a flyer or brochure in your mailbox, advertising something local, such as a new apartment. In these cases, very few of the people getting the flyers or brochures will be interested, but this means is the most cost-effective means of reaching people in a small area.

     For this reason, brochures or flyers may also be placed in specific places, such as restaurants or tourist areas. Other small items, such as sports schedules or packs of tissue may also be used for this purpose.

Free Samples

     This is one of the most expensive forms of advertisements. It not only involves giving away the product for free, but it also involves paying for the means of delivering the free samples to target consumers.

     Although it’s costly, it’s often the preferred means of promoting a new product or promoting a product in a new market.

     One advantage is, it’s a cost-effective means of reaching target consumers in a small target area. Everyone who accepts a sample will be a target consumer.

Consumer Surveys

     Typically, businesses conduct consumer surveys to measure consumer tastes, likes, and dislikes prior to developing a product.

     Sometimes, surveys are taken for the purpose of identifying potential customers and making a sale to them. Either the sale is made on the spot, or the consumer’s contact information is recorded for a later sales pitch.

Other Forms of Advertising

     We’re grouping several other forms together, either because they’re self explanatory or we’ve set aside sufficient space for them in other lessons. They include the following:

1. Internet marketing

2. Cause/brand marketing

3. Product placement ads

4. Network marketing

5. Outdoor advertising (such as billboards)

6. Publicity stunts.

From where does your target consumer get his information?

Television? Which types of programs? What times of day?

Radio? Which types of programs? What times of day?

Movies? What genre of movies?

Internet? Which web sites does he visit?

Outdoor advertising? Where would he see them?

Magazines? Which magazines does he read?

That’s where you should direct your advertising.

Now it’s your turn!

How will you and your team advertise your product or service?

16. Remembering Your Target Consumer

     Do you remember the lesson in which we mentioned a guy who likes to fish? All of his equipment and fishing strategy were designed to fit the kind of fish he wanted to catch. You probably remember that you designed your product and your marketing campaign to fit your target consumer. Well, that’s also true with your advertisements—only more so. You design your product, your marketing campaign, and your advertising campaign—everything—around your target consumer.

Identifying your target consumers

     First, let’s do a quick review of how you fit your marketing campaign to your target consumers.

Suppose you wanted a small child to take vitamins. Suppose you wanted an elderly person to take vitamins. Would you talk to both of them in the same way? Of course you wouldn’t. Would you give both of them the same reasons for taking their vitamins? You probably wouldn’t. Neither do advertisers.

Take food supplements, for example.

     To the small child, you may say, “It tastes good. It’ll make you strong and healthy. You’ll get this nice toy car to play with. Your favorite cartoon character likes it and wants you to take it.”

     To the elderly person, you may say, “It’s help you to have more energy. You won’t get sick as often. You want to be spry enough to go hiking, don’t you? I do want you to live longer.

   
     For that matter, suppose there were four little boys the same age. Supposed one liked baseball, one liked computers, one liked music, and the other was a temperamental sort who didn’t seem to like anything. You wouldn’t talk to these four little boys in exactly the same way, would you? Of course you wouldn’t!

     Let’s look at two examples of nature-based medicines and the target consumers for each of them.

1. Nature-based medicine for women with urinary cramps

2. Nature-based medicine for middle-aged and elderly people with joint problems

     Look at the image below. You will see the same high-mountain oolong tea in both packages. One costs NT$129; the other costs NT$888. That’s because one is packaged the same as most other teas. The other is packaged as if it were a thoughtful and expensive gift for a friend.

     Now look at the bottles of vinegar below. You will see basically the same thing in differently designed bottles at different prices. That’s mainly because the marketer is targeting different groups of consumers.

     You’ll see the same phenomenon for every product you see in the stores. Here are a few others we’ve observed.

1. Fabric softener—same company, same product, but two different colors: blue for little boys and pink for little girls.

2. Other fabric softeners—same product, different companies, different target consumers: a lavender-scented fabric softener in a lavender-colored bottle just for women (with a picture of a woman on it); a mauve-colored one for women with children (with a picture of a woman and a little girl on it); and a plain white bottle for low-budget consumers.

3. Toothbrushes: One brand is smaller than the other, and it displays images of cartoon characters. The other is larger, designed to fit the fingers of an adult’s hand, and it displays images of smiling, white teeth. It’s not hard to tell which targets small children and which targets adults.

     As you can see, both of these cereals are targeted toward health-minded consumers. The one on the left, however, more specifically targets health-minded women who want to lose weight.

     Even the colors you choose for your product or package should fit everything else in your marketing and advertising strategy. For example, most soft drinks are clear, but soft drink manufacturers add coloring to them. Root beer is colored a natural-looking brown. Lime soft drinks are colored a soft green, to remind target consumers of lime. We mentioned earlier that the lavender-scented fabric softener came in a bottle that was tinted a lavender color.

     You can see now that you don’t just make a product, advertise it, and hope that somebody buys it. You decide exactly which type of consumer you want to buy your product, build everything—from product creation to design to advertising to marketing—to please that one type of person.

Now it’s your turn!

     How will you and your team package your product or service”

15. Creating Your Website

     Due to the ever-changing nature of the Internet, it’s hard to give specific advice on how to use the Internet in your marketing campaign. No doubt you already realize that your business website is not just another form of advertising.

     The Internet has become a marketing tool in its own right. But how do you take your website from desktop to cyberspace and from cyberspace to the bank?

Here’s a smart start:

1. Hire a professional to build your website,

2. Have him make your website user friendly,

3. Maintain the website and regularly update it.

     At this point, you may be thinking, Hmm, I didn’t have to come to class to learn that one. That’s something everybody already knows. I’ll just skip this lesson.

     You see, nothing is more deceptive than an obvious fact. What’s more, people overlook obvious facts more quickly than any other information. That’s why we have to begin by emphasizing what you thought you already knew.

     The basic principles of marketing haven’t changed in thousands of years. That’s because basic human nature hasn’t changed in thousands of years.

     The only real changes have been in the tools we use for marketing.

  When your grandparents were teenagers and the first shopping malls opened, your grandparents were practicing the basic principles of Internet shopping. Actually, the basic principles of Internet shopping go back thousands of years. But let’s start with something more familiar to you.

     Why did your grandparents go to shopping malls? They went for the same reasons you do: because they enjoyed going. Why did they stay longer in a mall than they would have stayed in a mom and pop store? Again, they stayed longer because they enjoyed it more. And, because they stayed longer, they were more likely to buy something.

     From looking at our mall shopping habits, here are some of the lessons we learn about Internet shopping:

1. Potential customers have to know about the site before they can go there.

2. They have to go there before they can buy something.

3. The site must be easy to access and easy to navigate.

4. Potential customers must enjoy the site enough to want to stay awhile and to return. The longer they stay, the more likely they are to buy something. The more often they return, the more likely they are to buy something.

5. They will enjoy the site more if it’s kept interesting and if they don’t have to use much thought in navigating the site.

6. If they’re interested, relaxed, and not thinking very critically, they can be more easily nudged toward making a purchase.

     Let’s take another look at the list you saw earlier:
1. Hire a professional to build your website,

2. Have him make your website user friendly,

3. Maintain the website and regularly update it.

     Most people who want to create a website are focused on the website’s content (1.) When they think of maintaining it and regularly updating it (3.), they’re still thinking of content. What about the customer (2.) and the real purpose of the website: making sales?

     You don’t need a professional to provide content for you. For that reason, many businesses building a website try to get by cheaply and use the nearest computer nerd they can find.

     But content is just advertising—actually, it’s not even that much. Wouldn’t you want to hire a professional advertising agency to design your ads for you? Then you should have your website designed as professionally as possible.

    Almost everyone agrees that professionals should be hired to build business websites, but—astonishingly—many businesses use in-house amateurs anyway. Don’t overlook the obvious!

Another word on making your website user friendly:

     A typical visitor to your website should scarcely be aware that he’s visiting a website. He should not be expected to adjust his thought processes to fit the needs of the website. Navigation tools should be designed to fit his thought processes.

     For an example of this principle, look at the cursor on your computer screen. For many years, people had to move the cursor by clicking arrows up, down, or to the side. That’s not the way people think. Then someone invented the computer mouse. This more closely fits what people are more accustomed to doing: simply moving an object from here to there. More recent technology involves pointing or giving voice commands. People are becoming less and less aware that they’re using computer programs, because the programs are behaving more in line with the way real people think.

     Notice how familiar symbols are incorporated into websites. 

     The more familiar your communication seems to the visitors to your site, the more relaxed he’ll be. The more he feels that he’s navigating a website, the less relaxed he’ll be. The symbols you use, however, shouldn’t be distracting.

     Remember that your website is a shopping area. The longer customers linger in a shopping area, the more likely they are to make a purchase.

     How do you “nudge” them towards making a purchase? You do it the same way your favorite novelist nudges you to keep reading his novel until you reach the final page.

     You do it the same way a belly dancer keeps people watch her dance—even though she’s as modestly dressed as many of the young women you see on the street during the summer.

Here’s the step-by-step method:

1. First, you get their attention. They must understand that it won’t cost them anything to look.

2. You reward their interest by feeding them something interesting. At the same time, give them a hint of more to come. That will hold their interest.

3. Get them involved by having them do something that doesn’t involve cost or effort on their part. It must be something they think is interesting and relevant to them.

4. The more you’re able to repeat steps 2. and 3., the closer to a sale you can move the customer.

Shopping Cart: Making the sale

     One of the most brilliant marketing devices on the Internet is called the shopping cart. It’s easy to place an order in the shopping cart, and it’s just as easy to remove an item from the shopping cart.

     The customer knows that it costs him nothing to place an item in the shopping cart. It does, however, cost him if the item is still in the shopping cart when he leaves the website.

     That’s the brilliance of it. Call it a high-tech version of Newton’s Law of Inertia. If the item is not already in the cart, the customer probably won’t put it there. Once it’s in the cart, there’s a good chance that the customer will complete the purchase.

     There’s also the chance that the customer will get distracted and forget that it’s there. It’s still a sale.

Workflow: Completing the sale

     There’s much more to making an Internet purchase than just pressing the “send” button. Pressing the “send” button , however, is all that most customers actually do. All the other stuff is done automatically, to save the customer steps, time, and trouble; and that’s the way it should be.

     That’s where the concept of workflow comes in. Workflow is the set of chores that no one likes to do, but someone has to do it. As it was in the fairy tale “The Elves and the Shoemaker,” we have computer programs to do it for us.

     If the customer is buying a car from, for example, the Ford Motor Company, this is how the workflow may someday take place:

1. The customer fills out a form and places an order for a Ford Taurus.

2. The customer’s credit is verified by GE Capital.

3. The customer’s insurance is provided by Samsung.

4. The customer’s car is registered at the state department of motor vehicles.

5. The customer is informed of when and where his new car will be delivered.

     A single click of the mouse sets the entire process in motion. Unless there’s a hitch, such as a bad credit rating, the customer has to do nothing more; and the dealer has to do little else.

What if you’re not interested in e-marketing?

     Even if you’re not planning to make sales over the Internet, you’re still in the business of e-marketing. The only difference is, your shop or store, rather than the Internet, is the customer’s point of purchase. You still have to get him interested enough to come to your place of business.

You still have to do an effective selling job if he’s going to be interested in finding your place of business. You still have to make it as simple as possible for him to find your place of business.

You’ll also want your customer to be satisfied with service after the sale. He’ll be more satisfied if he doesn’t have to leave his home to get the service he needs.

14. Managing Outside Pressure

     In Lesson 13, we covered supply chain management, and you saw how one bad link in the chain can harm a company’s reputation. Reputation management, though, involves more than things that can go wrong in your supply chain. It also involves decisions you should make in managing your business’s reputation.

     You’ve probably heard the old saying, “The road to hell is paved with good intentions.” By the same token, just thinking of yourself as a good person doesn’t mean that you can’t get a bad reputation.

Case Study #1: Royal Dutch Shell

     Some years ago, the oil company Royal Dutch Shell had to dismantle an aging oil platform in the North Sea. After years of study, they concluded that the most reasonable way to dispose of it was to blow it up and sink it. Their scientists told them that the ruins of the platform would become a habitat for fish and other sea life.

     Some oil would leak into the sea, but it would be far less than the sea naturally experiences without human causes. Besides, the oil would soon biodegrade.

 

     Then, in the dead of night, a radical environmentalist group called Greenpeace seized control of the oil platform. This captured the world’s attention.

     Greenpeace argued that, if this platform were sunk, other aging platforms would also be sunk. This, they said, would create a pollution hazard. Royal Dutch Shell further harmed their own reputation by using water cannons to try to dislodge Greenpeace activists from the platform.

     Amid public disapproval, Royal Dutch Shell’s profits fell. In the end, they agreed to dismantle the oil platform and recycle it on land.

Case Study #2: Star-Kist

     Star-Kist is the world’s top processor of canned tuna.

     Tuna fishermen use nets to catch them, but they sometimes accidentally catch dolphins. Since dolphins are mammals and not fish, they can drown if they become entangled in nets.

     At the time, dolphins were regarded as plentiful all over the world. On the other hand, tuna populations—especially blue fin tuna—have been depleting since 1886, and several species of tuna are approaching the risk of becoming endangered species.  

     Scientifically, there’s every reason to be concerned about tuna populations but no reason to be concerned about dolphin populations. At least that’s what Star-Kist’s scientific advisers told them.

    During the mid-1980’s, a popular television program premiered: Flipper. The “star” of the show was a lovable dolphin named Flipper, who was also very smart and often saved people’s lives.

     Viewers of the TV series Flipper could be excused for wondering why anyone needed life guards or a Coast Guard when they had Flipper to solve all their seagoing problems for them.

     Overnight, the public began to see Star-Kist as low-life scum who were murdering Flipper’s friends. Star-Kist sales dropped faster than a brick. Never mind that Star-Kist’s competitors were doing the same thing. Activists targeted Star-Kist, and Star-Kist suffered.

     Star-Kist began using “dolphin-free” nets and noted this fact in their advertisements.  As a result, they eventually regained their market share.

Case Study #3: Nike

     Nike, with its image-driven marketing campaign, was enjoying double-digit increases in sales figures each year from the beginning of the 1980’s until near the end of the 1990’s. In just one year—1996—Nike’s sales figures jumped by a whopping 36% over the previous year. The figures for 1997 were even more impressive: 42%. Nike was on a roll, and it appeared that nothing could stop it.

     All during the 1990’s labor rights groups tried to publicize the labor abuses of Nike’s source plants in Asia, particularly Indonesia. Nike CEO Phil Knight dismissed these concerns, saying that he “didn’t have to know” about labor conditions in his source plants. If anyone had a problem with the way Nike’s source plants treated their workers, they could take it up with the source plants—not with Nike. “We don’t make shoes,” Knight flatly stated.

     Then the Nike labor scandal hit the mainstream. For more than a week, the popular comic strip Doonesbury emphasized issues of safety, health, child labor, and physical abuse at Nike source plants in Vietnam. Tonight Show comedian Jay Leno panned Nike on his television program.

     Hollywood muckraker Michael Moore made a movie in which he interviewed Nike CEO Phil Knight. On camera, Knight said that he wasn’t bothered by the thought of 14 year-old Nike laborers, because, in Southeast Asia, that was the legal age for dropping out of school and going to work in a factory.

     Nike’s sales figures still climbed but at a much lower rate: 14%, as opposed to 42% the year before. Nike had to reorganize just to make a profit. The following year, Nike posted its first loss in two decades.

   
      Since 1999, Nike has worked with chosen activist groups to improve its image. Nike source plants are no longer accused of child labor, physical abuse, labor contract violations, or violations of safety and health.

     Nike does, however, remain on watchdog watch lists for alleged union-busting tactics. For example, in Latin America, a source plant was allowed to unionize. After it was unionized, Nike then cited quality control problems at the plant as a reason for ending his contract with the plant. Public pressure forced Nike to back down and rehire the workers.

     As dismal as Nike’s labor record is, labor activist groups generally consider Nike “one of the better performers” on labor rights.

     In the decade since the labor abuse scandals of the late 1990’s, Nike has never regained its market share.

Royal Dutch Shell, Star-Kist, Nike:

What did these three scandals have in common?

1. All of these companies were obeying the law as the laws existed at the time.

2. Standard business practices of the time were still in a state of flux, and it was not yet firmly established that what the companies were doing was wrong. (About the same time, Adidas and Levi Strauss took quicker and more responsible approaches than Nike and their sales didn’t suffer, except as a direct result of the Asian Currency Crisis of 1997-98.)

3. All three companies were able to offer compelling reasons for their actions.

4. All of these companies failed to consider the emotional side of the issues. Seeing only facts and statistics, they were blindsided by public outrage.

What can your company do to manage outside pressure?

     Most protests will never harm your company’s reputation or sales. Still, it is important to be able to recognize which issues should be taken seriously.

Ask yourself a few questions about the issue:

1. Does the issue have the power to raise emotions?

2. Is the issue media friendly (current, visually striking, easy to understand)?

3. Can your opponents make a reasonable-sounding case for their views (even if you disagree with their views)?

4. How far has the issue progressed? (By the time the issue has hit the comic strips, talk shows, and evening news, you may have waited too long to act.)

5. How difficult is it to find a solution? The easier it is to find a solution, the more important compromise becomes.

6. How much potential does this issue have to harm my company’s reputation or sales?

7. How “isolated” is my company? That is, is there any reason to believe that other companies may help in my defense—or will they find that it makes better business sense to leave my company to its opponents?

8. Can anyone make a connection between this issue and some other highly emotional issue? For example, the Royal Dutch Shell protests went beyond North Sea oil platforms; people associated it with the general principle that the earth’s environment should be protected.

Now it’s your turn!

     Get together with your team and decide what kind of CSR issues can be used against your business or its marketing strategy.

     Remember that CSR issues don’t have to be of world-class importance. For example, what if your company sponsored a Little League Baseball team? That sounds like good PR and good CSR, but what can go wrong? For one, Little League Baseball teams are for boys. Opponents could ask, “Why are you discriminating against girls?” This could cause you to lose half of your customers—the female half.

     On your final exam, include a discussion of CSR issues and outside pressure that your business may face and how you would manage it.