Katie Delahaye Paine's Measurement Blog

Stop worrying about the media, worry about your employees

Nary a week passes these days without a customer vs corporation kerfuffle erupting. This week it involves Applebees 

 

Invariably, the reporters covering the story get in touch with whatever social media or public relations experts they can have on speed dial AND can actually reach, to comment on the impact of the negative press on the corporate brand and reputation. (In the interest of transparency, I am one of those people having provided more than a quote or two to USA Today. )

 

I'm prone to take a very different perspective, looking at any of these incidents from the measurement perspective, considering the ultimate impact of the incident on employee morale and the bottom line.

I learned along time ago that PR practitioners love to flagellate their colleagues for presumed PR failings, when in fact there may be no impact whatsover. I was recently in a meeting where a very practiced and effective PR guy told the story about how he was "beaten up" by his management for what they perceived was a disastrous appearance on a late night comedy show. And yes, there were aspects of the story that were cringeworthy but I immediatley went to the metrics, and analyzed the company's  Google Analytics report for the 24 hours before and after the so-called disaster.  As it turns out traffic spiked within minutes of the appearance and registrations (membership) increased by 3% that day. What's the disaster in that?

 Smart organizations do that kind of thing every day. Sure, you can demonostrate a correlation between negative publicity and lower sales, particularly in the food business. But there is far more consistent evidence to link employee engagement with bottom line profit driven by lower turnover, improved customer loyalty, shorter sales cycles, and greater efficiency.

History has shown that organizations that looks at social media criticism as an opportunity to improve far far better than those like Applebees that throw employees under the bus. The bottom line impact to Applesbees, I suspect, will be that the talent they want won't want them. If you want to avoid the next crisis, you might want to start by reading this. 

 

 

 

Most Relevant Super Bowl Ad Analysis I’ve Seen

The students at the Missouri School of Journalism's ad agency MOJO conducted their own analysis of the impact of the Superbowl ads among the YAYA (Youth and Young Adult) Marketplace. According to them the Doritos' Goat ad won big. Here's the rest of the release:  

Students from MOJO Ad (MOJO-ad.com), a student-staffed ad agency at the Missouri School of Journalism specializing in the youth and young adult or YAYA™ market, recently ranked this year's crop of Super Bowl ads in what they call the "MOJO Ad Bowl™."

"Even if the YAYA market isn't the brand's target yet, they will be soon enough," said Professor Mark Swanson, the agency's co-creative director. "That's why when our students open their mouths, brands sit up and take notice."

MOJO Ad is the nation's premier student-staffed advertising agency specializing in the YAYA market, which consists of Gen-Whatevers between the ages of 18-24. Staffed with seniors and graduate students at the Missouri School of Journalism, MOJO Ad has shown its ability to produce communications with impact. The agency has helped national brands like Hallmark, Best Buy, Famous Footwear, TGI Fridays, US Bank, and Redbox.

"Of course, many of these ads aren't aimed at YAYAs – but we think their take on this can tell advertisers where the trends are headed," Swanson said.

Brands may want to listen up to the categories and rankings that the MOJO Ad student staff assigned to the ads. They used their expertise to form the MOJO Ad Bowl, where Super Bowl ads are ranked on a scale of 1-10 in three important categories: YAYA relevance, tweetability, and originality. Here's how some of this year's spot fared when they faced off in the 2013 MOJO Ad Bowl:

Coke- Hidden Camera

"Most Inspiring"

Originality: 8

YAYA Relevance: 8

Tweetability: 7

Coke hit square to the heart of YAYAs this year with their ad showing unexpected moments of kindness and joy caught on hidden camera. Meredith Hayford, an Account Planner thought it was "Just really, really cute. Much more relevant than the crazy polar bear social media campaign no one even knew about last year." YAYAs are suckers for unexpected acts of kindness and seeing the best in people.

 

Doritos- Goat

"Most Anticipated On Social Media"

Originality: 9

YAYA Relevance: 8

Tweetability: 9

Doritos ran a nearly perfect YAYA campaign. A lot of people got excited on Facebook and Twitter about what fan-made videos would make it to the Super Bowl. Jackie Hade, a Copy Editor, confessed that she also got caught up in the hype: "I previewed and voted for Doritos' "Goat" commercial several weeks back, and have been raving about it to everyone I know. The commercial was light hearted with a twist of shocking sound effects that had the whole room laughing. Bravo, Doritos!" We've been anticipating the ad it for days, and the payoff was just right.

GoDaddy- Bar Rafaeli Kiss

"Worst To Watch With Your Parents"

Originality: 2

YAYA Relevance: 2

Tweetability: 9

This ad was pretty bad for anyone to watch, but if you were unlucky enough to be in a room with your parents, it was the worst. The discomfort allowed it to gain some traction on Twitter for all the wrong reasons. Go Daddy is known for their sexual ads, but this one seemed over the top, even for them. As Interactive Specialist Bobby Adamson put it, "I actually used to host domains with them. I have switched to another service provider since they started running these ads. Let me be clear, I love sex just as much as the next dude, but my god."

Taco Bell- Viva Young

"Best Use Of Music"

Originality: 6

YAYA Relevance: 8

Tweetability: 7

Taco Bell flipped Fun.'s "We Are Young" by putting it in Spanish and featuring it as the backdrop of this irreverent ad. "The song really helped drive the message home. We do things to stay young and we all have those wild nights. Seeing a spin on it, starring older people is hilarious" quipped Megan Becker, a Media Planner.

   

Subway- February

"Biggest Waste Of Money"

Originality: 1

YAYA Relevance: 2

Tweetability: 1

This ad elicited sighs from many views. As Courtney Ledo, an Account Executive put it: "This ad was unoriginal, repetitive and basically the same as every other commercial I have ever seen Subway put out. I don't pay attention to them when I see them run during normal programming, and I sure didn't pay any extra attention to it during the Super Bowl."

   

Axe- Apollo

"Most Likely To Be Googled"

Originality: 6

YAYA Relevance: 8

Tweetability: 8

A lot of brands want YAYAs to take an interest and look them up, but Axe upped the ante this year with their ad promising to send contest winners into space if they applied before midnight. Caroline Merten, a Copywriter, experienced the interest that the ad drove. "I was at a party and after that ad, everyone was on Google looking up the details. They are offering a chance to go to space. Nothing you could be doing is more important than getting your name in to go to space." 

Pistachios- Gangnam Style

"Worst Meme Use"

Originality: 1

YAYA Relevance: 3

Tweetability: 1

Gangnam Style was a funny meme…. 3 months ago. "Don't get me wrong, I love Pistachio's, but they missed the mark. Not only is the Gangnam Style meme way over done and so 2012, but pistachios dressed as dancers was just plain creepy." commented Caroline Dobrez, a Researcher. Outdated fads are a huge turn off to YAYAs.

Tide- Miracle Montana Stain

"Best Super Bowl Tie-In"

Originality: 7

YAYA Relevance: 6

Tweetability: 6

A few companies made good use of the spirit of the Super Bowl when writing their ad, but Tide seemed to do the best job. Kathryn Jankowski said, "found this spot to be absolutely hilarious, because it really played to the irrational superstitions of sports fans, which YAYA viewers could really relate to. The kick from the wife was an absolutely perfect ending."

 Budwieser- Brotherhood (Clydesdales)

"Most Likley To Post On Your Mom's Facebook Wall"

Originality: 6

YAYA Relevance: 6

Tweetability: 9

The Budweiser Clydesdales added a touch of sentimentality to the Super Bowl ad lineup, one sure to bring a tear to the eye of anyone's mom. Account Planner Anna Gilligan said, "It immediately caught my attention because I had heard a lot about it beforehand since the foal was recently born. It may not have the laughter and entertainment as some of the other spots, but the story it tells is more authentic that way."

   

For more information about MOJO Ad, please contact:

   

Margaret Duffy, chair, Strategic Communication

[email protected]

   

Mark Swanson

[email protected]